Description
Book SynopsisContending that even at its best patriotism subverts the democracy it purports to value, this book turns to patriotism's defenders to show how they must jettison democracy to champion patriotism. Drawing from various aspects of American political and popular culture, this book presents examples to disclose patriotism's self-defeating character.
Trade Review“Have you become wary of how benign patriotism is invoked to counter bellicose patriotism? In this book Steven Johnston shows you why that wariness is well grounded. He explains the traps attached to benign patriotism, and he presents an alternative suited to democratic life. An indispensable book for a post-Bush era.”—William E. Connolly, author of
Capitalism and Christianity, American Style“This courageous book directly confronts a political impulse—patriotism—that has been a largely unchallenged cornerstone of American culture and, at the same time, an integral strategy for the deployment of hatred and resentment that threatens the democratic enterprise. Drawing on diverse sources (intellectual and popular; contemporary, historical, and classical), Steven Johnston questions the very possibility of a coherent American patriotism.”—William Chaloupka, Professor of Political Science, Colorado State University
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The Truth about Patriotism will engage the reader in meaningful thought and reflection on a core political issue. He compels the serious reader to question the roots and role of patriotism in today’s political culture. Academics and graduate-level students of political theory and ethics will find this to be stimulating, thought-provoking, and intellectually rewarding reading.” -- Peter J. Bergerson * Perspectives on Political Science *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix
1. “Without External Picturesqueness,” Or, Why I Am Not a Patriot 1
2. This Patriotism Which Is Not One 21
3. Iconic Drama I: The Mortal Logic of Enmity 64
4. Iconic Drama II: The Socratic Way of Death 89
5. The American Memorial/Monument Complex I: The Architecture of Democratic Monuments 115
6. The American Memorial/Monument Complex II: Political Not Patriotic 138
7. Patriotism and Death: Wounded Patriotic Attachments 161
8. Bruce Springsteen and the Tragedy of the American Dream 198
Notes 233
Bibliography 269
Index 279
