American Cultural History A Very Short Introduction [Paperback]

The iconic images of Uncle Sam and Marilyn Monroe, or the fireside chats of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the oratory of Martin Luther King, Jr.: these are the words, images, and sounds that populate American cultural history. From the Boston Tea Party to the Dodgers, from the blues to Andy Warhol, dime novels to Disneyland, the history of American culture tells us how previous generations of Americans have imagined themselves, their nation, and their relationship to the world and its peoples.

ThisVery Short Introductionrecounts the history of American culture and its creation by diverse social and ethnic groups. In doing so, it emphasizes the historic role of culture in relation to broader social, political, and economic developments. Across the lines of race, class, gender, and sexuality, as well as language, region, and religion, diverse Americans have forged a national culture with a global reach, inventing stories that have shaped a national identity and an American way of life.

ABOUT THE SERIES:The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

List of illustrations

Chapter 1: American culture in red, white and black
Chapter 2: Mass culture and mass politics, 1800--1860
Chapter 3: The Age of the City, 1860--1900
Chapter 4: The rise of culture industry, 1900-1945
Chapter 5: The suburbanization of American culture
Chapter 6: The world wide web of American culture

References
Further reading
Index

Eric Avilais Professor of History, Chicano Studies, and Urban Planning at UCLA. An urban cultural historian, he is the author ofPopular Culture in the Age of White Flightl34