The Real American Dream: A Meditation on Hope
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Delbong>anong>co, ong>Anong>drew, PUBLISHER: Harvard University Press, Since we discovered that, in Tocqueville's words, "the incomplete joys of this world will never satisfy the heart," how have we Americong>anong>s made do? In "The Real Americong>anong> Dream" one of the nation's premier literary scholars searches out the symbols ong>anong>d stories by which Americong>anong>s have reached for something beyond worldly desire. A spiritual history rong>anong>ging from the first English settlements to the present day, the book is also a lively, deeply learned meditation on hope. ong>Anong>drew Delbong>anong>co tells of the stringent God of Protestong>anong>t Christiong>anong>ity, who exerted immense force over the long>anong>guage, institutions, ong>anong>d customs of the culture for nearly 200 years. He describes the falling away of this God ong>anong>d the rise of the idea of a sacred nation-state. ong>Anong>d, finally, he speaks of our own moment, when symbols of nationalism are in decline, leaving us with nothing to satisfy the longing for trong>anong>scendence once sustained by God ong>anong>d nation. From the Christiong>anong> story that expressed the earliest Puritong>anong> yearnings to New Age spirituality, apocalyptic environmentalism, ong>anong>d the multicultural search for ong>anong>cestral roots that divert our own, "The Real Americong>anong> Dream" evokes the tidal rhythm of Americong>anong> history. It shows how Americong>anong>s have orgong>anong>ized their days ong>anong>d ordered their lives--ong>anong>d ultimately created a culture--to make sense of the pain, desire, pleasure, ong>anong>d fear that are the stuff of humong>anong> experience. In a time of cultural crisis, when the old stories seem to be faltering, this book offers a lesson in the painstaking remaking of the Americong>anong> dream.