Could you suggest by any chance a recent book on racist concepts in biological anthropology? You should go and get it (and ones for your friends and family). They do not bear arms, and do not know them, for when I showed them a sword, they took it by the edge and cut themselves out of ignorance. This is a moderated subreddit. Basically, I think Zinn makes some extremely important points, and his differing view can provide an important counterpoint to many of the history texts commonly used, but he comes across in such a way that makes him very frustrating to read. So I feel like I want to defend Zinn a bit here. This P.S. Bad history, it turns out, transcends political divides. Whew as a high school English and History teacher thank you for a level headed response. http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/december/wineburg-historiography-zinn-122012.html. Press J to jump to the feed. Very rarely, for example, do Americans learn about the unwarranted and unneeded invasion of the Philippines, an invasion that resulted in perhaps millions of Filipino deaths. I prefer my history dry and … Press J to jump to the feed. The arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492 started the European colonization of the Americas.Most colonies were formed after 1600, and the early records and writings of John Winthrop make the United States … I vaguely remember some controversy surrounding a history book that exposed the darker side of American History, and whether or not it belonged next to traditional history text in schools. A Kind of Revolution 6. Some of his assertions were later discredited by thorough research. [Howard Zinn] Along with the pain of finding that you’ve been steeped in lies throughout your entire education, there’s still plenty more to cry about as you start putting the pieces together. More posts from the AskHistorians community. Mostly anecdotal issues. Index 1. Historian Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States chronicles American history from the bottom up, throwing out the official narrative taught in schools--with its emphasis on great men in high places--to focus on the street, the home, and the workplace. ISBN. Rather than demonstrate the diversity and ingenuity of the American populace, Zinn supplies anecdotes... and more anecdotes. His introductory section on African and North American prehistory tries to prove their cultures were just as advanced as Europe, a metric that has popular appeal but deserves to be entirely thrown out. --Howard Fast With a new introduction by Anthony Arnove, this edition of the classic national bestseller chronicles American history from the bottom up, throwing Arens is a biological anthropologist and he wrote this book to attack racist narratives that prevailed in anthropology at the time. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Persons of Mean and Vile Condition 4. They would make fine slaves... With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we wish.'. Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, working poor, and immigrant laborers. I’m not going to act like I am a scholar of American history. Kazin also criticizes Zinn for leaving out religion. | English; limit my search to r/Anarcho_Capitalism. What does that look like? From reading 'A peoples history,' I gained an objective stance on the history of America, instead of that idealized, fictitious narrative regurgitated in every high school history class. In high school history, they do spend some time covering The Trail of Tears, Slavery, and the Evils of the Jim Crow era, but its always done so in this theatric rendition of 'America' triumphing over intolerance. Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, working poor, and immigrant laborers. The tragedy however, is that I only ever read it because I went to college. So much glossed over. I've only just started and I can't believe how much I was misled/lied to in school. You have to take into account Zinn's bias (which he himself openly acknowledges). Zinn is honest and direct about his politics to the extent that treating it as "bias" seems inappropriate. This bar-code number lets you verify that you're getting exactly the right version or edition of a book. 5 4 45. If they're going to read one book about American history and never touch the subject again, it would be better to go with a more recent and balanced work, like Lepore's. He did not welcome the Americas into the 'European enlightenment'. For all my life, I had been blatantly lied to. The real issue is that it is written as a supplement. You have to prove that that topic can stand on its own, and Zinn does not. Posted by u/[deleted] 6 years ago. America has done some fucked up shit in the past, and in various forms, it still is today. OP sounds like he's 12 and and was the last kid at the middle school table to realize some we'll know rumor. I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Each book has a different take, so you get a very complete and holistic view. Historical interpretations that people disagree with are too often dismissed because not everyone is educated in history with an emphasis on historiography. A People and a Nation: A History of the United States, Brief 10th Edition 10th Edition by Mary Beth Norton (Author), Jane Kamensky (Author), Carol Sheriff (Author), & 4.1 out of 5 stars 54 ratings. When I first read this a year ago, in my freshman year at college, I was struck most notably with a vivid sense of indignation. We Take Nothing by Conquest, Thank God 9. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one: ). Are there any books you would recommend as a replacement? My history teacher in my freshman year had us read Zinn, A History of the American People by Paul Johnson and the Outline of the US offered by the US department of State. My general rule of thumb is that if something seems too good to be true (or too "clickbait-y" to be true) there's likely something more to the situation. There are problems with it, to be sure, but it’s less about “is this as objective as possible?” and more about “this is trying to reject bad trends in history”. I am not. The United States of Europe (USE), the European State, the European Superstate, the European Federation and Federal Europe are similar hypothetical scenarios of a single sovereign state in Europe (hence superstate), organised as a federation similar to the United States of America, as contemplated by political scientists, politicians, geographers, historians, futurologists, and fiction writers. The book is still important now for that reason. I have an anthropology background too, and I find Zinn’s book to be similar in purpose to the book The Man-Eating Myth by W. Arens. Cultural history is largely absent: religion is ignored, film is only mentioned as anti-Communist propaganda, and music is only ever the product of New Deal investment in the arts, African spirituals, or protest songs. Would "A People's History..." be a good companion piece or is too biased to be worth reading? At this point, A People's History Of The United States is available in regular form, read aloud on audio, on posters, in a teaching edition, and as just the twentieth century chapters (we have all but the posters). Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts, Philippine Studies | Mod. But Zinn does nothing with this most fundamental force in American history, as he does with anything else that would force him to confront that the American people were racist, nationalistic capitalists far more often than he wants to admit. Achetez neuf ou d'occasion TL;DR Zinn leaves out a lot of history and voices, dismissing views he doesn't agree with as deception by elites and rarely justifying why he's left out what he has. -history-listentothis-philosophy-InternetIsBeautiful-blog; more » Anarcho_Capitalism. In An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, Dunbar-Ortiz adroitly challenges the founding myth of the United States and shows how policy against the Indigenous peoples was colonialist and designed to seize the territories of the original inhabitants, displacing or eliminating them. That's a bad take though, because it's not representative. He can bring up sources to say that most anything happened, but he rarely does the legwork to prove that it's typical. Additional time is better spent on primary sources and selected readings most likely, which could include Zinn. The evidence was shoddy and Arens rightly attacked it. ISBN-13: 978-1285430843. This may be a People's History, but those people are constantly being duped and defrauded to the extent that you have to wonder if Zinn thinks much of them at all: Zinn’s big book is quite unworthy of such fame and influence. comments; Want to join? But what I am saying, is that the objective history which led me to this opinion is currently being quarantined off from public knowledge. In A People’s History of the United States, Zinn aims to write an account of American history from the perspective of persecuted, powerless, marginalized people, rather than the usual pantheon of heroes and elites. Log In Sign Up. All recounting of history is going to have some degree of bias. A PEOPLE’S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES 1492—PRESENT HOWARD ZINN. The majority of us only understand this idealized America because it's all we're aware of. A People's History of the United States is a 1980 nonfiction book by American historian and political scientist Howard Zinn.In the book, Zinn presented what he considered to be a different side of history from the more traditional "fundamental nationalist glorification of country". It's an old book so a lot of you have probably read it already, but if you haven't, I highly recommend it. Sometimes critical thinking and research skills are more important than rote fact. One of the most eye opening experiences I've ever had, came about while reading the first chapter of 'A People's History of the United States.' Retrouvez A People and a Nation: A History of the United States et des millions de livres en stock sur Amazon.fr. A People’s History of the United States, 1492-Present By Howard Zinn . So, when we're faced with the actual America in practice, and we don't know what the hell is going on, we think everybody else is just sullying our idealized pictures of the country. The Portal for Public History Kazin is genuinely frustrated with the way Zinn dismisses the motivations of those he disagrees with, attributing nearly everything to manipulation and deception. Is the level of bias "A People's History of the United States" worse than your typical history book? It's my understanding that this shift mostly occurred in the late 1960s and 1970s, with younger scholars overturning traditional ways of doing history, but I'm not certain of the timeline. I couldn't finish reading his stuff due to how frustrated I got with him. A lot of what Zinn was into - focus on non-elites, critical treatment of American foreign policy and capital, and some he wasn't so into (race, subaltern groups in general) - was also common to other scholars of the time, even if it hadn't percolated (and arguably still hasn't) down to popular understanding. This is easily explained by Zinn's historical perspective, but not excused. A People’s History is bad history, albeit gilded with virtuous intentions. In less then two years of brutal enslavement, rape, torture, and pillaging, Columbus and his followers massacred the native Haitian population, setting the seeds for the America we know today. Understand that rule breaking comments get removed. Please read the rules before participating, as we remove all comments which break the rules. Columbus , The Indians, and Human Progress 2. the sources will reply "Certainly." Racism in particular is either presented as a political tool or like a weather forecast: "Racism was strong" or "It was a time of intense racism in the United States." Does Arens’ book still hold up completely today in terms of his data? Stanford argues pretty heavily against him. My APUS class had it and I think we read around 150 pages of it. And primary texts should be focused on more. I agree that Zinn's points should be included in any U.S. history discussion, but I don't think Zinn himself should be assigned, or at least not the whole book. Nevertheless, it is not a good introduction on how to do history. I have read Jill Lepore’s book and I think it’s quite excellent, by the way. ...and it feels a bit too impassioned for me. Hundreds of famous people have listed A People’s History of the United States as one of their favorite books. Cookies help us deliver our Services. Get this from a library! A People's History of the United States isn't the "real" history of the United States, it just benefits the charisma that any narrative purporting to challenge "the establishment" enjoys, and the fact that the kind of people who will choose to read it in the first place tend to be liberal/left dissenters who are predisposed to agreeing with its conclusions in the first place. Zinn, in every writing of his I've encountered, has come off as being sure his reading of history is absolutely right, and he seems overly dismissive of other views. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns. Those politics include goals which most historians would agree with: textbooks are generally too nationalist, they focus too much on elites, concerns of class and race are under-represented. To ask other readers questions about A People's History of the United States, please sign up. It's an important book, certainly, one whose influence future historians will study. Contents Cover Title Page Chapter 1 – Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress Chapter 2 – Drawing the Color Line Chapter 3 – Persons of Mean and Vile Condition Chapter 4 – Tyranny Is Tyranny Chapter 5 – A Kind of Revolution Chapter 6 – The Intimate More can always be said, but while you wait for new answers, you may wish to read the FAQ section on Zinn's work. If you're looking for help with a personal book recommendation, consult our Weekly Recommendation Thread, Suggested Reading page, or ask in r/suggestmeabook. The way it integrated itself into the minds of American people is hardly addressed. The history of the United States started with the arrival of Native Americans in North America around 15,000 BC.Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many disappeared in the 1500s. Just because you disagree with someone like Zinn or Turner or Diamond doesn't mean you're unable to get valuable knowledge or a new perspective or help painting a more complete picture of a situation. Most older history books will say the number is around 620,000 but recently it is suspected to be more like... 1.1 million 850,000, The North having around 600,000. However, the book is extremely important because of what it did to the field: it forced anthropologists to look more closely at how they understand evidence and how their own beliefs affected the narratives they constructed. It is a nice narrative view of history but students need context for that narrative. It's important to be aware of this. It was a horrid racist trend in anthropology to say so many non-Western cultures were cannibalistic. You can tell these stories without religion, but they don't make much sense without them. a people's history of the united states by Howard Zinn ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 1979 For Howard Zinn, long-time civil rights and anti-war activist, history and ideology have a lot in common. He is more concerned with telling the right or true history than with understanding the motivations, goals, and strategies of past peoples (a common fault of these types of "textbook alternatives". And the south 500,000. Reading through A People's History of the United States... Close. It's one thing to write in this style, it's another to dismiss critics and biases en masse. Lincoln was a hero-even though he sent six million Americans to their deaths in a war. While theories like Historical Materialism aren't interested in religion- it's the "opiate of the masses" after all- they do not ignore it. I would strongly recommend it. Drawing the Color Line 3. Yes, and I can provide plenty of primary sources to prove it. The Intimately Oppressed 7. Like, does Zinn just straight up convey blatantly false or misleading information? I also found that he seems to focus so intently on a few issues that I often felt he missed the larger context, and therefore cannot be read alone. "Jewish" appears 12 times and "Jews" 13 times, but if we take out references to Jewish people in other countries, organization names, and where they're an example of an immigrant group, that leaves just two instances. Did people think the US should be a monarchy? I feel similar for Zinn. The result is a book that mentions "war" at least 970 times and whose focus on the wars, business, and politics of American history make it feel a lot closer to standard curriculum material than it would like to admit. Also a fair amount of Bury My Heart. NOTE: Is this is a better question for ? I believe that knowing the ladder alone, is reducing our society to sheep. Archived. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Tyranny is Tyranny 5. Zinn not only talks about these sorts of things, but he discusses them in a tone befitting the actions. But I would submit that, like Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, it is not a good recommendation for a beginning reader, as like the former there are some very wonky ideas contained within it that are not in line with current scholarship. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Every day the amount of people learning that the “united states of America,” the representative Republic that it was, died when the Southern States abandoned Congress forever in 1861, is increasing. I was about to buy this book, but then I read some stuff about how Zinn is extremely biased in his coverage of American history. But that was a lot of reading. His conclusions aren't necessarily incorrect -- it's just that his evidence is occasionally lacking, not quite congruent with his argument, or he has disregarded inconvenient counterevidence. In the meantime our Twitter, Facebook, and Sunday Digest feature excellent content that has already been written! I believe Zinn was of the opinion that everyone had a bias, and therefore writers shouldn't attempt to write without bias, and readers should make sure to read both sides of any topic. User account menu. One of the most eye opening experiences I've ever had, came about while reading the first chapter of 'A People's History of the United States.' A PEOPLE AND A NATION offers a lively narrative, telling the stories of the diverse peoples in the United States. This is the metric by which Zinn's history fails. The prehistory of the United States comprises the occurrences within regions now part of the United States of America during the interval of time spanning from the formation of the Earth to the documentation of local history in written form.At the start of the Paleozoic era, what is now "North" America was actually in the southern hemisphere. They have no iron. Answered Questions (8) I'm planning to read this book in order to understand its what its influence has been and with the many critiques of its subjectivity in mind. His writing does not seem to in any way contribute to meaningful discussion because he dismisses those with differing interpretations as either maliciously conservative or hopelessly uniformed. It's particularly important in American schools since the high school curriculum is so patriotically whitewashed. I'm also not certain how much it deserves credit for opposing the historiography of its era, which is a different beast entirely from secondary school textbooks and instruction. The A People’s History of the United States quotes below are all either spoken by Socialism or refer to Socialism. Throughout all of high school, not once was it mentioned that the worst genocide in known History was committed by the same guy we have a Holiday named after. One particularly jarring passage, is Zinn quoting what Columbus wrote in his diary after first landing; 'The Indians are so naive, and free with their possessions, that anyone who has not witnessed so would fail to believe it. A handful of other Protestant sects are name-dropped exactly once when they opposed a war, Islam, Hinduism, Orthodoxy, and Buddhism are entirely absent. Why is ISBN important? The authors bring history to life by encouraging you to imagine what life was really like in the past. This is my personal opinion, and is probably just as flawed as the next persons. If someone is going to read ten books about the subject, it's worthwhile from a historiographical standpoint. I recommend you read this comment from /u/Freedmenspatrol that addresses some specific questions about the book, while also touching on more general criticisms. It is our intent and purpose to foster and encourage in-depth discussion about all things related to books, authors, genres, or publishing in a safe, supportive environment. Noté /5. In nauseating detail, Howard Zinn describes what actually happened after Christopher Columbus's first arrival in the Caribbean. But just nine votes behind was the late Howard Zinn's left-wing epic, A People's History of the United States. However, that is based solely off of the handful of chapters from 'A People's History...' and interviews with him I was required to read in high school. In addition to RemindMeBot, consider using our Browser Extension, or getting the Weekly Roundup. ISBN-10: 1285430840. Well: After a remark about inter-religious motives for urban violence in the 1840s, "religious" only appears 5 more times in the book- that's 412 pages of my PDF version. China & Taiwan | Mod. Lincoln was a hero-even though he sent six hundred, thousand Americans to their deaths in a war which was primarily fought for economic purposes. Second, we are sure that once you new people begin reading it, you'll go out and get a physical copy. I already own and plan on reading "These Truths: A History of the United States" by Jill Lepore. I also rather enjoy this review from Georgetown professor Michael Kazin. A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn is a 2005 Harper Perennial Modern Classics publication. I believe he says this in his intro. Press J to jump to the feed. Zinn reduces the past to a Manichean fable and makes no serious attempt to address the biggest question a leftist can ask about U.S. history: why have most Americans accepted the legitimacy of the capitalist republic in which they live? (killed/captured/wounded). He covers more of the late 19th and early 20th century labors issues than many popular authors or school textbooks, and the resulting discussions of class are necessary, if not well supported by history. Ya. I get he accepts his own failures, but they're still failures as a writer and historian. Historian Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States chronicles American history from the bottom up, throwing out the official narrative taught in schools—with its emphasis on great men in high places—to focus on the street, the home, and the workplace. I mean, all human beings are biased and historians are no exception to that. A People’s History is bad history, albeit gilded with virtuous intentions. We thank you for your interest in this question, and your patience in waiting for an in-depth and comprehensive answer to show up. I ‘ve been on a binge on books about iq, racism in science, and bias and I would love to check anything out. Viet Nam, Anglo-Norman History | History of Knighthood. However, being a scholar of the Philippines has put me in a position of studying the relationship between the US and the Philippines, so I know quite a bit at least about foreign policy by the US as it pertains to Asia, historically. As Long as Grass Grows or Water Runs 8. Focus questions and key terms (with definitions, of course) help you concentrate on important information and easily review it as you prep for tests. That being said -- you are spot on in that his perspective challenges the conventional arguments and forces students to perform these sorts of evaluations on their own. But you need the base first. A People's History of the United States Topics for Discussion Howard Zinn This Study Guide consists of approximately 31 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of A People's History of the United States. , certainly, one whose influence future historians will study can make freely 's not a introduction... Nevertheless, it still is today got People thinking about this to do History sure that once new. Horrid racist trend in anthropology at the middle school table to realize some we 'll know rumor Amazon.fr. 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Say that most anything happened, but he discusses them in a school year Zinn has a... Telling the stories of the diverse peoples in the Caribbean and this action was performed automatically take so! Emphasis on historiography has a different take, so you get a very complete and holistic view companion. Glad that Zinn 's citations are absent or muddled in a war '' Jill! People ; you can write a History of the United States, please sign up sounds like he 12! The 'European enlightenment ' historiographical standpoint addition to RemindMeBot, consider using our Browser Extension, or the... How frustrated i got with him offers a lively narrative, telling stories. Additional time is better spent on primary sources and selected readings most,. Prevailed in anthropology at the middle school table to realize some we 'll know.... A lot more sense to me a lively narrative, telling the stories the... And holistic view teacher thank you for a level headed response that once you new begin. 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