Twentieth-Century America: A Social and Political History

Twentieth-Century America: A Social and Political History

This book presents a compelling story of both the familiar and distant events and people of the twentieth century. The goal of this book is to emphasize to readers what they will need to know about our past to function best in the society that emerged from the twentieth century. The authors accomplished this by seeking integration -- combing political and social history, to fit the experience of particular groups into the broader perspective of the American past, and to give voice to minor and major players alike. This strong, clear narrative is told in an engaging, forthright way, but also provides readers with an abundance of tools to help them absorb the material and put it into context. Presents well balanced political and social coverage of all points of view on controversial issues such as civil rights, military and foreign policy, feminism, the great waves of foreign migration, and cultural revolutions in music, fashion, and behavior. Stresses the importance of religion in twentieth-century American society. Features primary-source documents, letters, diary entries, and other first-hand accounts to highlight the personal dimensions of the American journey. For history enthusiasts. FROM THE PREFACE "This book began with our students. -I he twentieth century is the time they entered the world, the time they are most familiar with, yet parts of which seem distant, even ancient to them. Their lives, who they are, where they live, and what they believe are most intimately connected with this century Our objective is to render both the familiar and the distant events and people of the twentieth century accessible and connected to our students' lives today, The key to achieving that goal is a strong clear narrative. Twentieth-Century America is a compelling story of soaring ideals, incomparable tragedies, and perseverance, which is to say, the stuff of all human history." Learning tools make the twentieth century come alive: American Voices open up each oh the chapters. Consisting of letters, diary entries, and other first-hand accounts, these voices highlight the personal dimensions of the American journey and show students the wealth and variety of experiences that make up the country's history. From Carlotta Silvas Martins' traumatic account of the Great Depression era in the 1930s to Cambodian refugee Celia Noup's harrowing journey to California in the 1980s, these voices set the stage for key themes that are explored in each chapter. - American Views, primary-source documents with introductions and pre-reading questions, are found in each chapter and bring people of the past and their concepts vividly alive. Such important topics as the plight of Japanese-Americans interned during World War II and the relationship between religion and politics are examined in these powerful excerpts. - Overview Tables in each chapter summarize complex issues. - Key Topics, Key Terms, and Review Questions reinforce the concepts presented in each chapter. This book began with our students. The twentieth century is the time they entered the world, the time they are most familiar with, yet parts of which seem distant, even ancient to them. Their lives, who they are, where they live, and what they believe are most intimately connected with this century. Our objective is to render both the familiar and the distant events and people of the twentieth century accessible and connected to our students' lives today. The key to achieving that goal is a strong clear narrative. Twentieth-Century America is a compelling story of soaring ideals, incomparable tragedies, and perseverance; which is to say, the stuff of all human history. We try to tell this story in an engaging, forthright way, but we also provide students with an abundance of tools to help them absorb that story and put it in context. We introduce them to the concerns of the participants in America's history with primary source documents. The voices of contemporaries open each chapter, describing their own personal journeys toward fulfilling their dreams, hopes, and ambitions as part of the broader American journey. These voices provide a personal window on our nation's history, and the themes they express resonate throughout the narrative. But if we wrote this book to appeal to our students, we also wrote it to engage their minds. We wanted to avoid academic trendiness, particularly the restricting categories that have divided the discipline of history over the last twenty years or so. We believe that the distinctions involved in the debates about multiculturalism and identity, between social and political history, between the history of the common people and the history of the elite, are unnecessarily confusing. What we seek is integration—to combine political and social history, to fit the experience of particular groups into the broader perspective of the American past, to give voice to minor and major players alike because of their role in t