Description
Book SynopsisDelves into the dream world of ordinary Americans and finds that as their self-perception increased, transforming them on a personal level, so did a revolutionary spirit that wrought momentous political changes. This book is intended for specialists in the fields of American and African-American history.
Trade Review"Mining over 200 narrative memoirs of blacks and whites, both rich and poor, as well as letters and diaries, the author found that dream interpretation was central to self-transformation, whether in revolutionary participation, religious conversion, or race and gender relations."--Publishers Weekly "Sobel has boldly probed into a strange and demanding and promising subject ... Sobel has certainly identified a critical set of raw nerves in our history, and a bold new approach to the understanding of our past."--Alan Taylor, The New Republic "Sobel's book is notable in turning our attention back to a topic too long thought off limits to historians: the psychological origins of race and racism."--Ann Marie Plane, Common Place "This book links the psychological and spiritual work of individual self-fashioning with the emergence of the Republic in strikingly fresh ways, including detailed analysis of recorded dreams and how these dreams changed social behavior and sometimes influenced political action."--Charles Hambrick-Stowe, H-SHEAR "Sobel details how decades of religious and political upheaval impelled Americans from all walks of life to refashion their identities, typically in aggressive opposition to other social groups."--Konstantin Dierks, The Journal of American History "Mechal Sobal's Teach Me Dreams will grip readers from the first page to the last, sweeping them up in her vision of self-formation in the revolutionary era. The book's multi-faceted approach to issues of self and identity brings new insight and rigor to the field... This is a wonderfully original book, certain to delight, provoke, and inspire for years to come."--Nicole Eustace, Journal of Social History
Table of ContentsIllustrations xi Acknowledgment xv Introduction 3 1. "Teach me Dreams": Learning to Use Dreams to Refashion the~ Self 17 2. Whites' Black Alien Other 55 3. Blacks' White Enemy Other 106 4. "Making Men What They Should Be" 135 5. Women Seeking What They Would Be 164 Coda: "In Dreams Begins Responsibility" 206 Notes 243 Bibliography 313 Index 357
