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American Trinity: Jefferson, Custer, and the Spirit of the West
American Trinity is for everyone who loves the American West and wants to learn more about the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is a sprawling story with a scholarly approach in method but accessible in manner. In this innovative examination, Dr. Larry Len Peterson explores the origins, development, and consequences of hatred and racism from the time modern humans left Africa 100,000 years ago to the forced placement of Indian children on off-reservation schools far from home in the late 1800s. Along the way, dozens of notable individuals and cultures are profiled. Many historical events turned on the lives of legendary Americans like the "Father of the West," Thomas Jefferson, and the "Son of the West," George Armstrong Custer - two strange companions who shared an unshakable sense of their own skills - as their interpretation of truths motivated them in the winning of the West.
Dr. Peterson reveals how anti-Indian sentiments were always only obliquely about them. They were victims but not the cause. The Indian was a symbol, not a real person. The politics of hate and racism directed toward them was also experienced in prior centuries by Jews, enslaved Africans, and other Christians. Hatred and racism, when taken into the public domain, are singularly difficult to justify, which is why Europeans and Americans have always sought vindication from the highest sources of authority in their cultures. In the Middle Ages it was religion supplemented later by the philosophy of the Enlightenment. In nineteenth-century Europe and America, religion and philosophy were joined by science and medicine to support Manifest Destiny, scientific racism, and social Darwinism, all of which had profound consequences on Native Americans and the Spirit of the West.
Presenting research in anthropology, archaeology, biology, history, law, medicine, religion, philosophy, and psychology, Dr. Peterson provides the latest observations that delineate why the Native American's life was destroyed. American Trinity is a stunning portrait, a view at once unique, panoramic, and intimate. It is a fascinating book that will make you think about the differences between belief and knowledge; about the self-skepticism of science and medicine; and about what aspects of the world we take on faith.
Dr. Peterson reveals how anti-Indian sentiments were always only obliquely about them. They were victims but not the cause. The Indian was a symbol, not a real person. The politics of hate and racism directed toward them was also experienced in prior centuries by Jews, enslaved Africans, and other Christians. Hatred and racism, when taken into the public domain, are singularly difficult to justify, which is why Europeans and Americans have always sought vindication from the highest sources of authority in their cultures. In the Middle Ages it was religion supplemented later by the philosophy of the Enlightenment. In nineteenth-century Europe and America, religion and philosophy were joined by science and medicine to support Manifest Destiny, scientific racism, and social Darwinism, all of which had profound consequences on Native Americans and the Spirit of the West.
Presenting research in anthropology, archaeology, biology, history, law, medicine, religion, philosophy, and psychology, Dr. Peterson provides the latest observations that delineate why the Native American's life was destroyed. American Trinity is a stunning portrait, a view at once unique, panoramic, and intimate. It is a fascinating book that will make you think about the differences between belief and knowledge; about the self-skepticism of science and medicine; and about what aspects of the world we take on faith.
- GenresNonfiction
728 pages, Hardcover
Published August 1, 2017
7 people are currently reading
307 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 17, 2022
Larry Len Peterson is an award winning author of not only Western American history, but also a scientist, physician, and cultural historian. The book I read is a revised edition. In the preface to the book Peterson states he was haunted by the question:who were we and who are we as Americans and a nation.
American Trinity is big book because the story is huge and the author has crafted a story which is both sprawling as it is scholarly and still accessible and readable.
I found myself reading a chapter and then setting the book aside for a while so that I could digest what I had read and ponder on it conclusions as it applied to me as a reader as well how it affects all of us as Americans.
The varied and extensive research is evident in every chapter.
Today we find those who want to erase history that is controversial or unpleasant, but the author explains that though it is hard to look backward, history should force us to read it with an aim to the future.
This book is so much more than a dry history, it is information that needs to be taught in schools today. The book includes chapter endnotes, bibliography, and an index. It is a challenging book with an in-depth look at history.
American Trinity is big book because the story is huge and the author has crafted a story which is both sprawling as it is scholarly and still accessible and readable.
I found myself reading a chapter and then setting the book aside for a while so that I could digest what I had read and ponder on it conclusions as it applied to me as a reader as well how it affects all of us as Americans.
The varied and extensive research is evident in every chapter.
Today we find those who want to erase history that is controversial or unpleasant, but the author explains that though it is hard to look backward, history should force us to read it with an aim to the future.
This book is so much more than a dry history, it is information that needs to be taught in schools today. The book includes chapter endnotes, bibliography, and an index. It is a challenging book with an in-depth look at history.
Displaying 1 of 1 review