Interpretations of American History Vol. II: Patterns and Perspectives [Vol. 2 From Reconstruction], Seventh Edition

by Francis G. Couvares (Contributor), George Athan Billias (Editor), Martha Saxton (Editor)

Contrary to conventional wisdom, no area of study is outdated more quickly than history, and no time has been more turbulent for the discipline than our own. This classic point/counterpoint reader in American history, now in a completely revised and updated seventh edition, takes note of history's impermanence, giving voice to the new without disposing of the old. In ten lively chapters, essays by the editors introduce dialectical readings by distinguished historians on topics from Reconstruction to the present. The essays and readings address history's timeless " Change or Stasis?," "American Economic Expansion or Ideological Crusade?," and "The Civil Rights Top-Down or Bottom-Up?" New readings are included on African Americans, women, and immigrants. In the fray of debate, eminent historians from Samuel Hays and Alfred Chandler to John Lewis Gaddis, Walter LaFeber, and Kathryn Kish Sklar struggle to interpret the past. The editors'essays moderate the passionate arguments and offer a clear, distanced vision of the changing character of history. They explain how history has usually been viewed through the lens of the present and demonstrate with sparkling historiography that the discipline is as contemporary as the headlines of today, as vital as the problems of tomorrow.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Academic, American History

464 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Terri Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read this for a graduate school independent study. While I much prefer world history to American history because it is more varied and interesting, I did enjoy this book because there were some good topics included in the articles and they were well-written and included many things I didn't know and had never read before. This book is particularly good for a course like the one I am taking in graduate historiography because it clearly demonstrates how historians think and how they objectively write about their research.

[Ed Callahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is a good collection of histiographical essays which can help history teachers and historians in general get a good sense of the state of the literature. It needs to be read in conjunction with an American history survey text so that the gaps can be filled in.

[Terri Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for a graduate independent study on historiography and it is pretty good. There are some stories here that I had never read or heard about before. The book is quite readable, unlike many texts.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written-and easy to read