History and Hope in American Literature

Throughout history, creative writers have often tackled topical subjects as a means to engage and influence public discourse. American authorsthose born in the States and those who became naturalized citizenshave consistently found ways to be critical of the more painful pieces of the countrys past yet have done so with the patriotic purpose of strengthening the nations community and future. In History and Hope in American Literature: Models of Critical Patriotism, Ben Railton argues that it is only through an in-depth engagement with historyespecially its darkest and most agonizing elementsthat one can come to a genuine form of patriotism that employs constructive criticism as a tool for civic engagement. The author argues that it is through such critical patriotism that one can imagine and move toward a hopeful, shared future for all Americans. Railton highlights twelve works of American literature that focus on troubling periods in American history, including John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath, David Bradleys The Chaneysville Incident, Louise Erdrichs Love Medicine, Tony Kushners Angels in America, Junot Dazs The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, and Dave Eggerss What Is the What. From African and Native American histories to the Depression and the AIDS epidemic, Caribbean and Rwandan refugees and immigrants to global climate change, these works help readers confront, understand, and transcend the most sorrowful histories and issues. In so doing, the authors of these books offer hard-won hope that can help point people in the direction of a more perfect union. History and Hope in American Literature will be of interest to students and practitioners of American literature and history.