The Irony of Southern History
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10239587 |
|---|---|
| Authors | C Vann Woodward (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1953 |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 3 |
| Publication date | 1953-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Journal of Southern History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-4642 • E-ISSN: 2325-6893 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/2954306 |
| OpenAlex | W579958685 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 9 |
before it, as it does at present, the regional historian is likely to be oppressed by a sense of his unimportance.1 America is the all-important subject, and national ideas, national institutions, and national policies are the themes that compel attention. Foreign peoples, eager to know what this New World colossus means to them and their immediate future, are impatient with details of regional variations, and Americans, intent on the need for national unity, tend to minimize their importance. New England, the West, and other regions are occasionally permitted to speak for the nation. But the South is thought to be hedged about with peculiarities that set it apart as unique. As a standpoint from which to write American history it is regarded as eccentric and as a background for a historian something of a handicap to be overcome. Of the eccentric position of the South in the nation there are admittedly many remaining indications. I do not think, however, that this eccentricity need be regarded as entirely a handicap. In fact, I think that it could possibly be turned to advantage by the southern historian both in understanding American history and in interpreting it to non-Americans. For from a broader point of view it is not the South but America that is unique among the peoples of the world. This eccentricity arises out of the American legend of success and victory, a legend that is not shared by any other people of the civilized world. The collective will of this country has simply never known what it means to be confronted by complete frustration. Whether by
Art · CONTEST · Genealogy · Irony · Legend · Literature · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Subject (documents · Victory · American Constitutional Law and Politics · American History and Culture · History · Law
| Unique citing works | 9 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,14 |
| Citation span | 1961 - 2013 (53) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 8 |