Modern America
Developments in Contemporary American Society
Jan Erik Mustad & Sean Taylor (eds.)
modern america
developments in contemporary american society
jan erik mustad & sean taylor (eds.)
modern america
developments in contemporary american society
©GyldendalNorskForlagAS2017 1. edition 2017, 2022
ISBN978-82-05-49600-2
Omslagsfoto:Getty
Omslagsdesign: Munch Design
Layout: Laboremus Oslo AS Sats: have a book
Brødtekst: Minion 10,5/15 pkt
Papir: 90 g Amber graphic Trykk: Renessanse Media, Norge 2022
Allehenvendelserombokenkanrettestil Gyldendal Akademisk Postboks 6730 St. Olavs plass 0130 Oslo
www.gyldendal.no/akademisk akademisk@gyldendal.no
The author Jan Erik Mustad has received financial support from the Norwegian Non-fiction Literature Fund.
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Preface
Writing a textbook about modern and contemporary America may seem like a formidable task. The United States of America, with a population of nearly 320 million people, contains 50 states, one federal district (District of Colombia), and several territories and land possessions. Moreover, the country spans nine time zones and has a tremendously varied geography, climate, and not least ethnic composition. A major challenge of writing about modern America is to penetrate this diversity and break down themes and topics to make the book a readable whole. Hence, with the guided selection focused on the Scandinavian student, we have approached the project by highlighting certain issues relevant to our readers.
The Purpose and Plan of This Book
This book aims to serve as an introduction to modern America, particularly how American society evolved in the 20th century. It seeks to explain and discuss various aspects of society and thus attempts to show how and why America has become what it is today. We have applied this approach with a Scandinavian reader in mind even though the book’s contributing writers have predominantly used sources produced in America. With chapters shared equally between American and Norwegian scholars, the book offers views of the nation’s development from the perspective of both outsiders and insiders. It is also our aim that the different chapters will cast light on important issues in contemporary American society. American studies is an important discipline, and closer knowledge of American society, culture, and history has become more relevant over time. We sincerely hope that the themes and
topics of this book will encourage students and readers into further explorations of historical and contemporary America.
America is a fascinating country and is visited by thousands of Scandinavians every year. Due to the book’s organization, the various chapters and diverse authorship will lead to some discussion of the same topics from different angles. We believe that examining issues from various perspectives adds to the reading and learning experience.
Chapter 1 provides an introduction to many of the issues that will be examined in more depth in the individual chapters. It is also an attempt to discuss some of the terms and issues we often associate with America, for example the melting pot, the American Dream, and American identity. It also deals with some of the myths and preoccupations often seen in the public eye in Scandinavia, in an attempt to prepare the right kind of framework for the reader.
Chapter 2 by Anna M. Peterson investigates how the continent attracted settlers and became a fascination to immigrant groups from all over the world, and indeed also the racial implication of immigration. Furthermore, it discusses identity and dreams of a new life away from the strains and hardships of many European societies and how their new existences unfolded in the New World. As mentioned, America is enormously varied and consists of a myriad of different peoples; hence, it is appropriate to devote a chapter to exploring ethnicity. In chapter 3, Jena Habegger-Conti creates a multi-narrative, with a particular emphasis on ethnic minorities and three groups in particular; Native Americans, African Americans and women. Giving room to many different voices in American society, she discusses how easily forgotten and marginalized many of their stories are.
Clearly, religion played a dominant role for the early settlers way back in the 17th century; therefore, it seems only logical that religion be given ample space in this book. In chapter 4, Øyvind Gulliksen discusses how religion and religious ideas have helped to shape American society and indeed how religion in contemporary society still resonates with the ideas of the Founding Fathers. Mentioning the founders leads us to chapter 5, which examines the importance of the new political framework that was designed after the 13 colonies broke away from Britain in 1776. Alf Tomas Tønnessen’s chapter is a comprehensive survey of how a new nation created a political system that benefited the many and not the few and that sought to balance power between different interests in the new American society. It thoroughly explores how these interests affect modern America and how important these institutions are in defining America today.
A natural sequel to Tønnessen’s chapter on the political system is Hilde Restad’s examination of U.S. foreign involvement. In chapter 6, she seeks to discuss the many facets of foreign engagement and indeed debunk many of the myths associated with America’s role in the world. Subsequently, the chapter provides tools for the reader to gain a better and deeper understanding of U.S. foreign policy. The seventh and final chapter of the book, by Magne Dypedahl, is devoted to American popular culture and its heavy influence on the rest of the world generally and Norway specifically. At the same time, it stresses how an understanding of popular culture can lead to a better understanding of mainstream ideas, attitudes, and trends in a society. We firmly believe that gaining insight into American popular culture, and its transmission to the rest of the world, will cast light on and strengthen knowledge of American society.
Many Norwegians believe they understand America and Americans. However, we daresay that this is not always the case. We hope this volume will help enlarge and deepen their understanding and contribute to creating a more informed and perhaps more nuanced picture of what America is and how it came to be this way.
Clearly, this is not an exhaustive book on modern American society. However, it is an attempt to cut through some of the many preconceptions, abstractions, myths, and generalizations that exist about this huge nation and present some realities as we see them from our perspectives. Naturally, the continent is too large, complex, and diverse for its society and history to be summed up in a short textbook like this. Still, we hope this introduction to contemporary American culture and society, written by esteemed and experienced scholars in their particular fields, can inspire and challenge readers to further explore some of the issues raised here. Even though the chapter authors are themselves responsible for their work, the collective responsibility of the entire book is that of the editors. Before we let the reading begin, we would like to express our gratitude to our students and colleagues, who always keep us on our toes. Furthermore, we thank the staff at Gyldendal Akademisk, our Norwegian publisher, for the wonderful job they have done with this project.
Kristiansand and Moorhead, March 2017
Jan Erik Mustad and Sean Taylor