Synopses & Reviews
This text's clear and engaging narrative balances political, social, and cultural history within a clear chronological framework. The Fifth Edition features a thorough revision of the narrative, a complete redesign of the book, and an enhanced art program.The authors explore the enduring vision of the American people, a vision they describe as "a shared determination to live up to the values that give meaning to America." Each chapter has been revised to incorporate the most up-to-date scholarship, with special emphasis placed on technology and public health.
Synopsis
Noted for its innovative coverage of the West and the environment, this best selling U.S. history text provides students with a clear political narrative that incorporates social, cultural, military, and economic history.Each chapter begins with a dramatic vignette that both draws students into the chapter and presents the chapter's main themes. The vignettes are followed by three to five focus questions that provide a framework to help students understand the most important topics in the chapter.
About the Author
Paul S. Boyer was the Merle Curti Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University. He was also a visiting professor at the University of California, Los Angeles; Northwestern University; and the College of William and Mary. An editor of NOTABLE AMERICAN WOMEN, 1607-1950 (1971), he also co-authored SALEM POSSESSED: THE SOCIAL ORIGINS OF WITCHCRAFT (1974), for which, with Stephen Nissenbaum, he received the John H. Dunning Prize of the American Historical Association. His other works include URBAN MASSES AND MORAL ORDER IN AMERICA, 1820-1920 (1978), BY THE BOMB'S EARLY LIGHT: AMERICAN THOUGHT AND CULTURE AT THE DAWN OF THE ATOMIC AGE (1985), WHEN TIME SHALL BE NO MORE: PROPHECY BELIEF IN MODERN AMERICAN CULTURE (1992), and PROMISES TO KEEP: THE UNITED STATES SINCE WORLD WAR II (third edition, 2005). He was also editor-in-chief of the OXFORD COMPANION TO UNITED STATES HISTORY (2001). His articles and essays appeared in the AMERICAN QUARTERLY, NEW REPUBLIC, and other journals. Clifford E. Clark, Jr., M.A. and A.D. Hulings Professor of American Studies and professor of history at Carleton College, earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University. He has served as both the chair of the History Department and director of the American Studies program at Carleton. Clark is the author of HENRY WARD BEECHER: SPOKESMAN FOR A MIDDLE-CLASS AMERICA (1978), THE AMERICAN FAMILY HOME, 1800-1960 (1986), THE INTELLECTUAL AND CULTURAL HISTORY OF ANGLO-AMERICA SINCE 1789 in the GENERAL HISTORY OF THE AMERICAS SERIES, and, with Carol Zellie, NORTHFIELD: THE HISTORY AND ARCHITECTURE OF A COMMUNITY (1997). He also has edited and contributed to MINNESOTA IN A CENTURY OF CHANGE: THE STATE AND ITS PEOPLE SINCE 1900 (1989). A past member of the Council of the American Studies Association, Clark is active in the fields of material culture studies and historic preservation, and he serves on the Northfield, Minnesota, Historical Preservation Commission. Joseph F. Kett, James Madison Professor of History at the University of Virginia, received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. His works include THE FORMATION OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL PROFESSION: THE ROLE OF INSTITUTIONS, 1780-1860 (1968), RITES OF PASSAGE: ADOLESCENCE IN AMERICA, 1790-PRESENT (1977), THE PURSUIT OF KNOWLEDGE UNDER DIFFICULTIES: FROM SELF-IMPROVEMENT TO ADULT EDUCATION IN AMERICA, 1750-1990 (1994), and THE NEW DICTIONARY OF CULTURAL LITERACY (2002), of which he is co-author. A forthcoming book, MERIT AND ITS DISCONTENTS SINCE THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, will be released in late 2012. As the former History Department chair at Virginia, he also has participated on the Panel on Youth of the President's Science Advisory Committee, has served on the Board of Editors of the HISTORY OF EDUCATION QUARTERLY, and is a past member of the Council of the American Studies Association. Neal Salisbury, Barbara Richmond 1940 Professor Emeritus in the Social Sciences (History), at Smith College, received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the author of MANITOU AND PROVIDENCE: INDIANS, EUROPEANS, AND THE MAKING OF NEW ENGLAND, 1500-1643 (1982), editor of THE SOVEREIGNTY AND GOODNESS OF GOD, by Mary Rowlandson (1997), and co-editor, with Philip J. Deloria, of THE COMPANION TO AMERICAN INDIAN HISTORY (2002). With R. David Edmunds and Frederick E. Hoxie, he has written THE PEOPLE: A HISTORY OF NATIVE AMERICA (2007). He has contributed numerous articles to journals and edited collections and co-edits a book series, CAMBRIDGE STUDIES IN NORTH AMERICAN INDIAN HISTORY. He is active in the fields of colonial and Native American history and has served as president of the American Society for Ethnohistory and on the Council of the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture. Harvard Sitkoff, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of New Hampshire, earned his Ph.D. from Columbia University. He is the author of A NEW DEAL FOR BLACKS (Thirtieth Anniversary Edition, 2009), THE STRUGGLE FOR BLACK EQUALITY (Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Edition, 2008), KING: PILGRIMAGE TO THE MOUNTAINTOP (2008), TOWARD FREEDOM LAND, THE LONG STRUGGLE FOR RACIAL EQUALITY IN AMERICA (2010), and POSTWAR AMERICA: A STUDENT COMPANION (2000); co-author of the National Park Service's RACIAL DESEGREGATION IN PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES (2000), and THE WORLD WAR II HOMEFRONT (2003); and editor of FIFTY YEARS LATER: THE NEW DEAL REEVALUATED (1984), A HISTORY OF OUR TIME (2012), and PERSPECTIVES ON MODERN AMERICA: MAKING SENSE OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY (2001). His articles have appeared in the AMERICAN QUARTERLY, JOURNAL OF AMERICAN HISTORY, and JOURNAL OF SOUTHERN HISTORY, among others. A frequent lecturer at universities abroad, he has been awarded the Fulbright Commission's John Adams Professorship of American Civilization in the Netherlands and the Mary Ball Washington Professorship of American History in Ireland.
Table of Contents
1. Native Peoples of America, to 1500 2. The Rise of the Atlantic World, 1400-1625 3. Expansion and Diversity: The Rise of Colonial America, 1625-1700 4. The Bonds of Empire, 1660-1750 5. Roads to Revolution, 1750-1776 6. Securing Independence, Defining Nationhood, 1776-1788 7. Launching the New Republic, 1789-1800 8. Jeffersonianism and the Era of Good Feelings, 1801-1824 9. The Transformation of America Society, 1815-1840 10. Democratic Politics, Religious Revival, and Reform, 1824-1840 11. Technology, Culture, and Everyday Life, 1840-1860 12. The Old South and Slavery, 1830-1860 13. Immigration, Expansion, and Sectional Conflict, 1840-1848 14. From Compromise to Secession, 1850-1861 15. Crucible of Freedom: Civil War, 1861-1865 16. The Crises of Reconstruction, 1865-1877 17. The Transformation of the Trans-Mississippi West, 1860-1900 18. The Rise of Industrial America, 1865-1900 19. Immigration, Urbanization, and Everyday Life, 1860-1900 20. Politics and Expansion in an Industrializing Age, 1877-1900 21. The Progressive Era, 1900-1917 22. Global Involvements and World War I, 1902-1920 23. The 1920s: Coping with Change, 1920-1929 24. The Great Depression and the New Deal, 1929-1939 25. Americans and a World in Crisis, 1933-1945 26. The Cold War Abroad and at Home, 1945-1952 27. America at Midcentury, 1952-1960 28. The Liberal Era, 1960-1968 29. A Time of Upheaval, 1968-1974 30. Society, Politics, and World Events from Ford to Reagan, 1974-1989 31. Beyond the Cold War: Charting a New Course, 1988-1995 32. New Century, New Challenges, 1996 to the Present