American Cultural History: A Very Short Introduction

Very Short Introductions #577

by Eric Avila

The iconic images of Uncle Sam and Marilyn Monroe, or the "fireside chats" of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the oratory of Martin Luther King, 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. This Very Short Introduction recounts 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 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.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ebooks, Social Science, Audiobook

168 pages, Paperback

Published August 14, 2018

Reviews

[Bryan Cebulski · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rudimentary overview of a lot of disparate subjects. It didn't really teach me anything new, but it might be a good quick read for someone looking to find an era of American cultural history that strikes their fancy.

[Esmé · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a brilliant whistle-stop tour of American culture from pre-1800 to 1990s, subjects that I quickly realised I knew surprisingly little about. I loved how fluently and deftly written it was - Avila always emphasises the links between different political/social/historical moments which made it such a pleasure to read.

It helped answer the overarching question that I kept wondering about - why does the US feel so different when I had always thought it was the UK but with larger portion and stranger vocabulary. Avila begins by suggesting that ‘the West’ is a concept that has made the proximity between Europe and North America seem much greater through a ‘unified self-awareness as “Western”, always in contrast to the “other”— Avila notes the Other as non-‘Whites’ (however this is classified at the time). I was embarrassed to realise I had never really considered to what extent Native America, African and Asian cultures have had a profound influence on the US, even when these peoples have been subjugated and shunned by people of European descent.

Another question answered was why some Americans are so excited to tell you about their 21% British, 34% Irish, 14% Welsh, and 49% Scottish ancestry (is there a difference?!) - Avila mentions the ‘Roots of’ movement of white Americans reasserting their centrality in 1970s culture and revising their history as the ‘American dream’.

Endlessly interesting and essential reading for beginning to understand the U S of A

[Jay French · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one didn’t catch my imagination as much as I hoped. Have you ever read a serious conspiracy theory book? In those that I’ve read, the narrative tends to bounce all over the place, tying people, events, history together showing connections, often fantastical. I think of the movie “A Brilliant Mind” where John Nash has notes taped to the wall with strings connecting them in a tangle. That was what this book felt like. The author bounces between topics with ping-pong speed, connecting many topics with odd thoughts, coincidences, trivia, and the occasional ah-ha. Topics touched on include disco, movies, pre-Revolutionary War American Indian appreciation societies, and early American authors. At their best, these kinds of books turn out like James Burke’s “Connections”, and at their worst, or more their most campiest, they turn out like Neal Wilgus’ “The Illuminoids”. This book falls in the middle, closer to Burke’s book. As it is one of the “very short introduction” books, you can’t expect a lot of critical thought about those connections or completeness of topics, but it was fun to read in a casual way due to the wide variety of occasionally compelling history.

[Hank Hoeft · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good survey of American cultural history, Avila's account minimizes the advancement of a politically-correct outlook that plagues several of the Very Short Introductions I've read so far. But in this case, the inclusion of the advancement of feminist, racial, queer, and other identity politics issues is appropriate, as these issues are a huge part of contemporary American culture. Also as with other volumes in this series, one of the most useful features of this book is the list of books for further reading at the end.

[Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mediocre writing, content is not all that interesting, and he gets basic facts wrong.

William and Mary is not in the Ivy Leagues and Poe is not a Baltimore native. This book is characterized by a sloppiness that a fact checker could have fixed.

Read 20%.

[Sal Leggio · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the early chapters, from the colonial period to the end of the 19th century. 20th century stuff was less interesting, and I think, less on target. As a UCLA professor, he has a lot of stuff in here about the movie industry, which is fine, but it seems to me that he overestimated the importance of film noir as a cultural phenomenom in the late 40s and early 50s. I also think that he overestimated the importance of disco, which was a 1970s flash in the pan.

Very liittle discussion at all about the decline of broadcast radio and TV, and the rise of iTunes and Netflix.

[Tristan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too many quick connections without succinct framing. Just because it’s a short introduction, doesn’t mean every point of American cultural production has to be short. Author should’ve condensed some of the history to offer longer form descriptions. Obviously handpicked events too, especially in the postwar section.

[Kari McDowell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this little overview a lot. Knocked it down one point because I think that it is a little less neutral than I would expect from Oxford University Press. It was very negative towards religious conservatives in a couple of places, more so than I think is appropriate even from someone who may have legitimate criticisms.

[Ben Smitthimedhin · Rating 4 out of 5]

As many reviewers have already mentioned, this was super fun to read but lacks a unifying vision, jumping from one topic to the next. Still, I was not disappointed overall with the quality of the introduction here.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't bad - just not very comprehensive and tended to pick and choose what elements of culture were showed, kind of at random. Worth a read, but I don't feel like I understand any more about the topic than I did before I read it.

[Gebo · Rating 4 out of 5]

One more awesome book in the VSI series. Big picture strokes, but still has some good tidbits of info. Covers a large timespan.

[Audrey Kalman · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty focused on the economics of the subject

[Sandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read like a list of key events and people without any kind of connection between ideas. Needs a thesis, argument, or some kind of through-line.

[Ebony]

yes i’m counting my course books towards my reading goal.

[Boolia Bart · Rating 3 out of 5]

learning about the animatronic "savages" that attacked you with spears at the jungle cruise in the original Disneylans was crazyyyyy

VSI # 12/700 something

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Serviceable introduction lacking in incisive insight

[B · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's very short. Writer Eric Avila hit what, in my opinion, are landmarks and milestones of the history of the United States. He writes clearly and accessibly.