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Summary - American Studies
Comprehensive summary for the elective; American studies. It includes lecture notes and book chapters. Grade: 8,4
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Chapter 1: The American contextAmerican civilization
Describes an advanced human society, which occupies a specific geographical space (The
US) and has been populated historically by many different migratory populations.
The American Dream
A promise that is often misunderstood. It explains that everyone can start over and pursue
success. However, there are no guarantees, because America is a competitive meritocracy
(society ruled by merit).
Individualism
Is recognised by the individual dream. The US culture values independence & personal
freedom. However, with great freedom comes great personal responsibility.
Exceptionalism
America’s founders sought to build a ‘City on A Hill’, a religiously reformed community that
would be a model for change in England. America and its people strive to be exceptional,
which is recognised by its unique mission in the world, idealism, high aspirations and sense
of destiny.
9/11
The US and its foreign politics are still significantly conditioned by the September 11, 2001
attacks on New York and Washington. In response, the US Administration sought to protect
its domestic and worldwide interests and declared its opposition on terrorism.
Historical developments:
1. Early migration of diverse peoples.
2. Late 15th C: colonial and military settlement by Europeans.
3. Treatment of Native Americans and African American over time.
4. War of Independence from Britain: 1775-83.
5. Westward expansion.
6. Declaration of Independence 1776: human dignity, rights to freedom, justice &
opportunities (US constitution).
7. ideologies of egalitarianism, individualism and utopianism.
8. large-scale immigration, especially in 19th-20th c.
9. the Civil War to end slavery, and southern-state secession from the
Union 1861-1865.
10. Development of capitalism.
11. Increasing government regulation → undermined individual autonomy.
12. American isolationist and interventionist attitudes to the world, during the two
WW, Cold War and early 21th c.
13. US as a dominant economic, military and cultural force since the 19th c.
14. Influence of contemporary globalization
These historical developments created 6 major cultures in the US:
Ethnic culture: founded on the Native Americans, European colonial settlement, African
American slavery and later waves of immigration. The European colonial settlement after
1607 was largely composed of British people who shared North America with the Natives
and other Europeans. Until 1776 more than half of the population was British and contributed
to a white, Anglo-American, protestant dominant culture. After the colonial period and
American Independence from Britain 1776: north-western Europeans (2/3 of the immigration)
and many Asians (mostly Chinese) in the 19th century. By the end of the century was a shift
of southern and eastern Europeans that changed significantly the composition of the country.
Despite greater restrictions, in the 20th c was a large variety of other nationalities from
worldwide origins.
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,Religious culture: its roots in Native American belief structures and in faiths of colonists,
slaves and immigrants. Religion is a private matter and constitutionally separate from the
state, but it conditions social, economic and political life.
Political-legal culture: based on;
- centralized law and constitution in American life;
- restrictions of the constitution upon politics;
- the belief in minimal government at the federal level;
- the need to produce consensual national policies.
This illustrates the abstraction in defining the US and “Americanness”. The notion was
revised and reinvented over time and reflects the tension between a materialistic reality and
an idealistic, abstract and rhetorical image. The racial or ethnic differences, immigration and
social diversity have been barriers to unity are still problematic.
Economic culture: an idealistic/abstract and materialistic/practical culture. Americans in
general believe in individualism and free enterprise system, which is supposed to deliver
goods demanded by the consumer market. Historically they have had to fight for their
economic and social survival, which can result in exploitation of others, excesses and a
Darwinian “survival of the fittest” mentality.
Media: from simple methods of production and communication to complex modern
technologies, online interactive programs and a divers media audience and market.
Arts, sports and leisure: diverse and influential in the US and have reflected class, national
and economic conditions.
National identity: historical dilemma; how to balance a need for civic unity against the reality
of diversity. First emphasis on “Americanization”- the assimilation of different ethnic groups
into an Anglo-American-based identity or “melting pot”. But this was seen as pressurizing
immigrants to move to a dominant Americanized culture and lose their identity.
Chapter 2: the country
Nativism
Factors such as conflicts and racial tensions between cultures have revealed nativism:
discrimination towards others by the indigenous population) and racism in many areas of
American life, often in institutionalised form.
Problems in the American political-legal system
Americans are aware of corruption, fraud and incompetence in the political and legal systems
and that claims to ‘’liberty’’ and ‘’freedom’’ are not always respected in reality.
Ethnic disadvantages
Despite significant structural and cultural improvement form the 1950’s, racial and ethnic
divisions still continue to affect American society in both cover (indirect) and over (open)
forms; attitudes to immigration remain volatile and opinions about the existence of racism in
the US vary between blacks and whites.
Sources of contemporary debate:
• The gaps between poor and rich;
• International military intervention
• The roles of federal and state governments
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,The cultures
• US was founded by WASPS who left Europe because of religion freedom,
puritanical influence and cultural dominance.
• The American Dream attracts immigrants. This results in a diverse culture with
different sides
• Ethnic & Religious culture play a big role in people’s identity. However,
America is not multi-cultural melting pot, because cultural identity maintains
• American motto is ‘E Pluribus Unum’. It stresses the need to unite diverse
groups into one culture, often through political & legal culture. ‘Civil Religion’ & law act
as glue. However, politics also divides people, example: blue states vs red states
• The American Dream is part of the Economic Culture. Competition & success
are admired
National identity: Americanization, assimilation and integration
To unite the American civilization, emphasis was initially placed on Americanisation: the
assimilation of different ethnic groups into a shared, Anglo-American-based identity or
melting pot. Assimilation implies absolute national unity, whereas integration occurs at levels
of partial and more natural blending or mixing.
American Identity
It is hard to define American Identity, mainly due to pluralism, cultural identity, cultural
contradictions & dramatic divisions. However, there are observations you can make.
Americanness involves Individualism & personal responsibility, The American dream &
Meritocracy, with ups and downs and a desire to be exceptional. Also, there are attempts to
unity by political, legal, economic & media cultures. But these can also prove to be divisive.
There is no single ‘American Why’. A key feature of American life is how individuals manage
to combine traditional ideals of the nation with the actual realities of society and how they
cope with the resulting tension.
Political ecology
Refers to the complex distributional issues involved in Americans’ involvement with the
environment. Depleted reserves and extensive pollution has led to environmentalist
movements , public concerns, government monitoring and regulation of the environment.
Natural resources
• The Atlantic Plain: crude oil and natural gas reserves
• Appalachians: minerals, iron, coal
• Central Lowland: soil and fossil fuels
The Great Plains
Is a band of semi-arid territory almost 500 miles wide between Canada and Mexico. It is
important for America because the Plain’s mineral wealth, mainly low-grade brown coal, is
extracted from there.
Environmental protection
In the 1960’s, a remarkable period of protest and reform in the US, conservationist and
environmentalist organizations grew in strength response to exposés of pollution (oil spills,
chemical explosions etc.):
• 1970, the first Earth Day: a nationwide ‘’tech-in’’, focused on the dangers of
pollution.
• 1970, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): an independent regulatory
body which took on the national government’s responsibility for monitoring and
protecting America’s natural environment.
Clean Air Act: gave the EPA the duty of identifying and reducing airborne pollutants.
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, Results:
• Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act
• Federal laws enacted from the 1980s to 200s have protected rivers and
beaches from toxic dumping and the public from nuclear wastes.
Cultural regions in the contemporary US
• The south: Industry moved south because of low energy and labour costs and
natural resources such as iron ore, bauxite, oil, gas.
• The Midwest: Midwestern political traditions show a mixture of pragmatic
caution and organized protest. While the region has the reputation of being
conservative, it was the birthplace of the Republican Party, which opposed the spread
of slavery and nominated Lincoln for presidency.
• The west: Is a myth, a popular set of values, and a regions of the country. It
represents possibility, freedom, self-reliance, the future. As a region, it is made up of
three parts: The Southwest, the mountain states, and the Pacific coast.
The federal government is the largest landowner in the Southwest and even dominates the
economy of the mountain states. It has powers over the leasing of federal lands, since the
government owns a big part of the region.
Hawaii
Resource and land-management are major issues in Hawaii. Its government instituted a
detailed land-use system soon after it became a state in 1959. The law not only provided
areas for commercial, industrial and residential building, but also protected farmland, nature
reserves and tourist attractions
Political ecology: exploiting its natural resources has depleted reserves, caused pollution and
led to dependence on other nations’ resources. recently, energy independence has become
a major goal for economists, politicians etc.
Natural resources, economic development and environmental concerns:
1. Atlantic Plain: coastal lowland from New England to middle of Texas → poor soil, but
fertile citrus-growing region and cotton belt (farming). Most important natural resource is
in Gulf of Mexico - crude oil and natural gas. Water pollution and oil drilling posed
serious threats.
2. The Piedmont: inland from the Atlantic. Along the east edges is the fall line, where
rivers running down to the Atlantic and form waterfalls. Water power was used for
lumber, grain and textile mills, America’s first industrial cities grew up.
3. Appalachian: mountains from Canada to Alabama that separate the eastern seaboard
from the interior. Iron, building stone and coal in large quantities. Coal deposits in
Pennsylvania and West Virginia are among the world’s largest. Today: depressed area
of the replacement with oil, gas and atomic energy.
4. Central lowland: west of Appalachians, from New York to central Texas surrounded
by Great lakes and highlands. The iron ore was transported over the Great lakes to the
Appalachian and made coal industry possible. This industry was the backbone of the
nation’s economic expansion. The natural resource (= nation’s breadbasket) is its soil
and fossil fuels. The fields of oil and gas in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas were the most
important domestic supply until the reserves in the Gulf and Alaska were tapped.
5. Great plains: west from Central lowland, from Canada to Mexico; “badlands”. Some
good for ranching because of grass
6. Cordillera mountains (Rockies and Pacific ranges) and basins and plateaus: near
southern Rockies is the Colorado Plateau = maze of canyons and mesas (tableland,
elevated area of land with flat top and sides that are steep cliffs). Grand Canyon.
Surrounded by southwest desert, valleys and plains in the Middle Rockies. The western
arm consists of two lines of mountains with valleys in between, active volcanos. Inland
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