Produktdetaljer
Biografisk notat
Heike Paul (Prof. Dr.), geb. 1968, ist Lehrstuhlinhaberin für Amerikanistik an der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg. Forschungsaufenthalte und Gastprofessuren führten sie nach Cambridge (MA), Los Angeles (CA) und Hanover (NH). Sie ist u.a. Sprecherin des DFG-Graduiertenkollegs »Das Sentimentale in Literatur, Kultur und Politik« und erhielt 2018 den Leibniz-Preis.<p>»[Die Analyse ermöglicht] in ihrer Gesamtheit faszinierende Impressionen von Mentalitäten und Idealen, Vorurteilen und Abgrenzungen der US-amerikanischen Gesellschaft des 19. und 20.Jahrhunderts.«</p>
Peter Andreas, Historische Zeitschrift, 301 (2015)
<p><i>Besprochen in:</i></p><p>Archiv für Sozialgeschichte, 23.07.2015, Horst Dippel</p><p>https://lights-camera-history.com, 12,12,2020, Paige Lurie</p>
<p>"In its entirety, [the analysis offers] fascinating impressions of mentalities and ideals, prejudices and practices of cultural distinction present in the US-American society of the 19th and 20th century."</p>
Peter Andreas, Historische Zeitschrift [German bimonthly historical_journal], 301 (2015)
This essential introduction to American studies examines the core foundational myths upon which the nation is based and which still determine discussions of US-American identities today. These myths include the myth of »discovery,« the Pocahontas myth, the myth of the Promised Land, the myth of the Founding Fathers, the melting pot myth, the myth of the West, and the myth of the self-made man.
The chapters provide extended analyses of each of these myths, using examples from popular culture, literature, memorial culture, school books, and every-day life. Including visual material as well as study questions, this book will be of interest to any student of American studies and will foster an understanding of the United States of America as an imagined community by analyzing the foundational role of myths in the process of nation building.
Myths play a vital role in the process of American »nation building«. On the basis of a critical analysis of central American myths this textbook offers an introduction to the field of American (Culture) Studies.