Beschreibung
Ever since Crevecoeur formulated his famous question, Americans
have asked themselves: “What, then, is the American,
this new man?”, and
even more urgently so once it became predictable that the traditionally
majoritarian position of Anglo-Americans will dissolve in a sea of
multi-ethnicity. What constitutes an American nation and produces
collective identity among an extremely heterogeneous population? Is American
identity, is American nationality defined differently from that of European
nations which, in their own different ways, each share longer historical
and cultural experiences? This comparative issue is addressed by
sociologist Liah Greenfeld in her introductory essay. Other essays
contributed by historians and political scientists from the U.S., England,
and Germany discuss historical developments and phenomena which have led to
regional or group-specific identities which, in complex ways, contribute
to, and interact with American national identity and nationalism. Among
them are religion and its relation to politics in 17th century New
England; socio-political change around the turn of the last century;
immigration and Americanization; African Americans
within, and facing the
American mainstream. The projection abroad of America’s values through its
foreign policies is also part of the process of shaping American national
identity and nationalism which are analyzed in this volume.
Knud Krakau is a professor of North American history at the
John F. Kennedy-Institut of the Freie Universität Berlin.