I was called out in an email by a reader (this is not an attack as I respect this reader and hence why I am not revealing their identity) who asked me about my belief in American Exceptionalism and my respect for Gordon S. Wood. The reason being, Dr. Wood’s in his most recent – and by the way excellent book – Empire of Liberty, book writes on page 50, “the myth of American Exceptionalism.” Obviously there is more to it but not enough to go into it. My good friend asked why I did not finally relent that there is no such thing as “American Exceptionalism” and accept that we are no better or worse than anyone else.
First, I had to remind my good friend about the nature of my insistence of American Exceptionalism. It is not what some think it is, I want to preserve some American Myths. Gasp!, MYTHS???
Yes, myths. Second, I needed to refer him to Peter Novick’s That Noble Dream: The “Objectivity Question” and the American Historical Profession. More specifically pages 3-5 of the Introduction. As Novick observes, “My use of the term [myth], in accordance with current practice, implies nothing about the truth or falsity of what is being discussed. Rather it is a device to illuminate the important functions which “historical objectivity” has served in sustaining the professional historical venture; and since myths are by definition sacred…”
Myths in this modern context have nothing to do with being false or true, but instead they are events that were unchallenged or sacred for a period of time. This is what Dr. Wood was speaking of. His statement is not a declaration for those who wish to pile on to the Anti-American pile; you know, the cultural relativistic folks. So myths indeed can be events that are not considered untrue.
I believe that every culture is POTENTIALLY “exceptional,” of course, but I simply do not believe many equal our own accomplishments, especially when considered within our limited existence.
I think it good that we question these “myths” so long as we do not dismiss them.
I find it quite difficult to understand how anyone could objectively deny the truth of American Exceptionalism. It is, in my opinion, just another manifestation of the left’s anti-American neurosis, guilt, and self-loathing.
Richard I don’t entirely agree. When looking at American historiography there have been movements (like Romanticism for example) that produced historians who perpetrated historical literature full of half-truths and sometimes outright lies. I am more concerned with those who, and I know you are also concerned, seek to destroy our history because they are ideologically against the idea of American Exceptionalism. I appreciate the post!
Point well-taken Chris. I realize there are extremes.
“I am more concerned with those who, and I know you are also concerned, seek to destroy our history because they are ideologically against the idea of American Exceptionalism.”
That, specifically, was my point. Keep up the good work.
I am a big believer in the importance o Myth I believe it conceys a message of social value washington”I canno tell a lie. The Meltin Pot. The frontier cowboy. . I also become woreried at swipes at history The on going blaming of Columbus for genocide As if he made a decision to carry germs over the ocean to spread smallpox, and the other highly contagious diseases.. Even saying he ws not a great discovererer I do not understand the why some peole need to do this. He bravesd mutiny, running out of food and ailing someplace that was quite exotic and dangerous for that time.
Wow! First, before I start my comment, let me say you’ve done a terrific job. I will have to read more of your site. It seems like you’ve accomplished what I am only aspiring to.
Second, thanks for writing this article. I just finished reading another Gordon S. Wood history, Revolutionary Characters. I really enjoyed the book, but Wood used the phrase “myth of American Exceptionalism” and my eyebrows went up. It seemed as though he wasn’t so much saying that America is not exceptional as that some historians in the 1800′s (and later) took exception to the concept of Americans being “exceptional”. Unlike the founders who sought to serve with “indifference” and separate themselves from personal ambition, those that followed stopped trying. Still, his use of the term “myth” troubled me. I believe as you do, that not “many [cultures] equal our own accomplishments, especially when considered within our limited existence.”
Wood uses Aaron Burr as an unabashedly grasping ambitious politician. I think Burr is more representative of today’s politico.
Anyway, I wanted to find out more of what Wood might have meant and found your site. I also found this quote from Wood:
“We can’t solve our current disputes over religion by looking back to the actual historical circumstances of the Founding; those circumstances are too complex, too confusing, and too biased toward Protestant Christianity to be used in courts today, and most of them are remote from or antagonistic to the particular needs of the twenty-first century. We do not, and cannot, base American constitutional jurisprudence on the historical reality of the Founding. . . . What Founders’ intent should we choose to emphasize? That of the deistic Jefferson and Madison? Or that of the churchgoing Washington and Adams, with their sympathies for religion? Or that of the countless numbers of evangelical Protestants who captured control of the culture to an extent most of the Founding elite never anticipated?”
This made me even more suspicious of his take on the Founders. Unfortunately, I don’t have the rest of the context. The quote came from an article in the NY Times Review of Books.
I’d love to hear more of your thoughts on Wood. I will be going through the rest of your articles on American Exceptionalism as well as linking to your site.
This looks like a fantastic body of work. Well done. Thanks for taking the time to publish it.
Sincerely,
Martin
Martin, thanks for the kind words and post! Please come back often and always feel free to express your thoughts. Also I visited your blog and loved it and thus added it to my blog roll over there >>>.
I believe that quote from Wood is from his review of “George Washington’s Sacred Fire” by Peter A. Lillback. I have not read the review in a long time.
I don’t remember the context of the statement above, but on its face value I tend to agree with him. The Founders beliefs and writings on Religion indeed represented a “complex” array of circumstances and thoughts. For every quote I can give representing, on its own terms, the religious belief of the Founders, someone else could produce obsure quotes and writings to contradict my own findings, and that is what Wood’s is saying, essentially.
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Now, were the Founders Christian? Absolutely. That means Jefferson, Franklin, Washington, Adams, et al. Were they deists, yes, but not in the sense that is usually attributed to them. The 18th Century was a time of great reflection on Religion in terms of is dogmas and its rhetoric, as Franklin would have said. It was the impact of the Enlightenment on the Founders.
The Founders were Christians and our Constitution was based on Natural Law which is essentially a Judeo-Christian philosophy that all Founders believed in, hence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights…,” to quote the Declaration which is the first step towards the Constitution. Those “inalienable rights” came from God. They also believed that a Republic could only last if its people remained virtuous and the role of Religion in that endeavor was crucial.
I will actually be posting soon an essay on the Founders and Religion in reaction to a Social Justice education article I recently encountered.
Hope to see you around here often Martin!
Chris
How did the discussion of America’s Exceptionalism become a non negotiable concept? A love it or leave it field of battle. I doubt that the “Left” side of the political spectrum views this country as evil or a malignancy on the face of the globe just like I believe the “right” side of the political spectrum does not have blinders that only allow for single bits of information. Some ideas, does anyone disagree that these events were not exceptional? The writing of the U.S. Constitution, This county’s involvement in World War 2, Our industrial might of the early 20th Century, Our ability to eradicate small pox, Polio, putting a man on the moon? Likewise, our country is not virginal either, slavery, lynching’s, treatment of Indians Governmental abuse of power, Times of supporting dictators that ruled against our own values. These are all blotches in our history.