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Title details for City on a Hill by Abram C. Van Engen - Available

City on a Hill

A History of American Exceptionalism

by Abram C. Van Engen
ebook
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A fresh, original history of America's national narratives, told through the loss, recovery, and rise of one influential Puritan sermon from 1630 to the present day
In this illuminating book, Abram Van Engen shows how the phrase "City on a Hill," from a 1630 sermon by Massachusetts Bay governor John Winthrop, shaped the story of American exceptionalism in the twentieth century.
By tracing the history of Winthrop's speech, its changing status throughout time, and its use in modern politics, Van Engen asks us to reevaluate our national narratives. He tells the story of curators, librarians, collectors, archivists, antiquarians, and often anonymous figures who emphasized the role of the Pilgrims and Puritans in American history, paving the way for the saving and sanctifying of a single sermon. This sermon's rags-to-riches rise reveals the way national stories take shape and shows us how those tales continue to influence competing visions of the country—the many different meanings of America that emerge from its literary past.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    February 1, 2020

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780300252316

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9780300252316
      • File size: 9494 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Library Journal

      Starred review from February 1, 2020

      Van Engen (English, Washington Univ. in Saint Louis) has written an excellent treatise on how an idea can develop, spread, hide, and reemerge. The "City on a Hill" sermon by Puritan leader John Winthrop has been frequently quoted by American politicians to justify the historical roots of American exceptionalism. Van Engen reexamines the phrase "city on a hill" by tracing its origins: It was first used in a 1630 sermon by Winthrop, titled "A Model of Christian Charity." The author maintains that the sermon was a call to action for communalism. Winthrop's sermon stated that God did not grant the Puritans a new Garden of Eden to prosper; the only way they could prosper was by effectively working together. The author also shows how the sermon was nearly forgotten in history--and rediscovered in the 20th century. The final section examines how the original meaning of the sermon has been co-opted into a clarion call for American exceptionalism. VERDICT Van Engen has created an engrossing, highly recommended intellectual history that counters one of America's founding myths.--Jacob Sherman, John Peace Lib., Univ. of Texas at San Antonio

      Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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