Richard S. Slotkin

Oct 5, 2024 | nytimes.com | Richard S. Slotkin

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are making their appeals to the American electorate on the basis of personality, character and policy. But they are also framing themselves as actors in the American story - the events of the recent past and the deeper narrative of U.S. history carried by the symbol-rich stories of our national mythology. There has been very little common ground expressed between the parties in this election, except the belief that a victory by the opposition would be apocalyptic.

Jun 26, 2024 | lrb.co.uk | Richard S. Slotkin |Eric Foner

It hardly qualifies​ as news today that the United States, the world’s foremost economic and military power, suffers from a political and cultural malaise. Americans are deeply sceptical of once well-regarded institutions such as universities, the media and the public health system, and do not trust the functioning of democratic politics.

Apr 3, 2024 | nextbigideaclub.com | Richard S. Slotkin |James Rhee |Daniela Rus |Gregory Mone

Jim Sciutto is a news anchor who has been the Chief National Security Correspondent for CNN for over ten years. He has covered the deteriorating relationship between Russia and the West for years and was in Ukraine in February of 2022 when Russia invaded. One of his other books, The Shadow War, is about how Russia and China were already fighting a war against the U.S. and its allies before the eruption of open conflict.

Mar 11, 2024 | yalereview.org | Richard S. Slotkin

These myths haven’t just helped Americans define themselves as Americans. They’ve also been a way for people to use history as an instrument of political power. When faced with a crisis or challenging situation, Americans have scanned our common lexicon of myths for analogies that will help us make sense of the situation, and precedents on which to model a successful or even “heroic” response.

Feb 7, 2024 | daily.jstor.org | Amelia Roth-Dishy |Robert W. Righter |Richard S. Slotkin |William Cronon

The icon indicates free access to the linked research on JSTOR. Each year, more than 25 million visitors descend on the National Mall, according to the National Park Service. Fanning out, they encounter a circuit of imposing marble monuments dedicated to high-profile former presidents: Abraham Lincoln to the west, Thomas Jefferson to the south, and George Washington—abstractly rendered as a towering obelisk—at the center of this grassy axis.