This is a fascinating, well-crafted, and much-needed book. Shalhope sums up the best current research on the origins of early national thought and culture in the United States, showing the inextricable relationship of republicanism and liberalism in our democratic heritage. The book is wide-ranging, thoughtful, and extremely well-written.
Stanley N. Katz, Princeton University Robert E. Shalhope . . . ... Read moredemonstrates how this critical transition period was marked by the creative intermingling of traditional hierarchical and modern egalitarian attitudes and patterns of behavior, preparing the way for the emergence of a dynamic culture in the nineteenth century. This is a stimulating and rewarding synthesis.
James H. Kettner, University of California, Berkeley A sophisticated and significant synthesis of recent scholarship on the ideology and values of America's Age of Revolution. Exploring culture as 'systems of meaning,' [Shalhope] skillfully charts the simultaneous disintegration of traditional hierarchical norms and the rise of ambitious materialism and individualism in the decades 1760-1800. This book is a valuable tool for both the scholar and the teacher.
Steven Watts, University of Missouri-Columbia Robert E. Shalhope's book, the work of a leading scholar on forms of American republican thought, is a deftly expert and up-to-date summary, especially successful in relating socioeconomic to intellectual and cultural elements.
Marcus Cunliffe, George Washington University, George Washington University Show Less