In a brilliantly conceived and elegantly written book, Rogan Kersh
investigates the idea of national union in the United States. For
much of the period between the colonial era and the late nineteenth
century, he shows, "union" was the principal rhetorical means by
which Americans expressed shared ideals and a common identity
without invoking strong nationalism or centralized governance.
Through his exploration of how Americans once succeeded in uniting
a diverse and fragmented citizenry, Kersh revives a long-forgotten
source of U.S. national identity.
Why and how did Americans perceive themselves as one people from
the early history of the republic? How did African Americans and
others at the margins of U.S. civic culture apply this concept of
union? Why did the term disappear from vernacular after the 1880s?
In his search for answers, Kersh employs a wide range of methods,
including political-theory analysis of writings by James Madison,
Frederick Douglass, and Abraham Lincoln and empirical analysis
drawing on his own extensive database of American newspapers. The
author's findings are persuasive -- and often surprising. One
intriguing development, for instance, was a strong resurgence of
union feelings among Southerners -- including prominent former
secessionists -- after the Civil War.
With its fascinating and novel approach, Dreams of a More
Perfect Union offers valuable insights about American political
history, especially the rise of nationalism and federalism. Equally
important, the author's close retracing of the religious,
institutional, and other themes coloring the development of
unionist thought unveils new knowledge about the origination and
transmittal of ideas in apolity.
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