The short-term ‘reign’ of the United States as leader of the world, policeman of the world, is being seriously challenged not only by pundits all over the world but by even political scientists and analysts in the United States itself. In fact, many are seriously opining that the United States is in decline-that it has lost its sense of direction, has taken itself too seriously, and has led the world for its own profit and well-being while disregarding the realities of other nations and peoples. The article attempts to trace the reasons for this sudden reversal of popularity of the DisUnited States of America.
Th is study focuses upon the topic of the formation of an image of the Czech nation in the United States of America during the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century. This process was hindered not merely by the geographical distance, small numbers of the Czech speaking populace and the absence of an independent Czech state but also by the polysemy of the term “Bohemian”, which was commonly used in the American environment to refer to Czechs. The principal role in the process under research was played by the direct interaction of American society with the Czech emigrant community. Yet, even on the threshold of the 20th century, the sense of familiarity with the Czech ethnic group within the USA remained problematic and, in fact, was restricted regionally with regard to the distribution of Czech immigration. Despite more information becoming available and the signifi cant importance of Czech immigrants in some regions, there did not emerge a specifi c national stereotype of a Czech person, and Czech nationality was included in broader categories.
This article analyses critical responses to William Styron’s "The Confessions of Nat Turner", claiming that the reception of the novel was strongly determined by the question of race and the different perception-and-interpretation of a “common” history by black and white Americans. I demonstrate that the polemics about Styron’s novel resulted not only from an entirely different understanding by white and black critics of the question as to what literature is essentially and what social role it has to perform, but also from the incompatible implementation of historiography, in the realm of which both sides placed the novel. I argue that, as a result, the critical controversies about "The Confessions" were drawn along the so-called “color line”, a category which traditionally defined Americans according to their race.
The author’s attention in the present article is focused on the attitude of Puritan colonists in seventeenth century New England towards family issues, as well as its origin, structure and functions in a broader religious and social context. Following the example of colonial authors the study discusses in particular the activities that were associated with religious upbringing and education of children and the relations between family members.
PL
Przedmiotem zainteresowania w artykule jest stosunek siedemnastowiecznych kolonistów purytańskich w Ameryce Północnej do kwestii rodziny, jej pochodzenia, struktury i funkcji pełnionych w szerszym kontekście religijnym i społecznym. Na przykładzie dzieł ówczesnych autorów ukazana została w szczególności jej rola związana z wychowaniem religijnym i edukacją dzieci oraz relacjami między członkami rodziny.
The present reflections address a text which resists any attempts at unambivalent categorization in terms of its genre. John Mattenson’s most recent book offers its reader not only a fascinating intellectual experience but also an intimate inside journey. In A Worse Place Than Hell the biographies of five main protagonists – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., John Pelham, Walt Whitman, Arthur B. Fuller, Louisa May Alcott – are the canvas, upon which the Author paints the biography of an adolescent country at the brink of a collapse. It is a (hi)story of the rite of passage from partisan egotism to civic responsibility, a social development that made America’s maturity possible. After Fredericksburg, the ultimate catastrophe was averted owing to the ethical integrity of individuals whose faith would redeem the initiative that America had stood for – and still stands – since 1776. Matteson’s book may still help inspire yet another ethical awakening in the nation fragmented more severely than ever since the end of the Civil War.
PL
Niniejsze rozważania dotyczą tekstu, który opiera się wszelkim próbom jednoznacznej gatunkowej kategoryzacji. Rygorystyczna pod względem akademickim i wierna historycznym szczegółom, najnowsza książka Johna Mattensona – arcydzieło życiopisania (life-writing) – proponuje czytelnikowi nie tylko fascynujące doświadczenie intelektualne, ale także intymną podróż do wnętrza samego siebie. W Miejscu gorszym niż piekło biografie pięciu głównych bohaterów – Olivera Wendella Holmesa Jr., Johna Pelhama, Walta Whitmana, Arthura B. Fullera i Louisy May Alcott – stanowią płótno, na którym autor, laureat nagrody Pulitzera, maluje biografię młodzieńczego kraju na skraju upadku. Jest to opowieść o rytuale przejścia od egoistycznej stronniczości do obywatelskiej odpowiedzialności, historia społecznych przemian, które przeprowadziły Amerykę w dojrzałość. Po klęsce pod Fredericksburgiem, ostatecznej katastrofie Unii udało się zapobiec dzięki prawości jednostek. Głęboka moralność pojedynczych Amerykanów odkupiła wyrosłą z wiary inicjatywę, która powołała Amerykę do istnienia, i na której – od 1776 – roku Ameryka nieustannie wzrasta. Książka Johna Mattesona, która ujrzy światło dzienne na początku roku 2021, jest ważnym głosem w debacie o roli Stanów Zjednoczonych, mogącym zainspirować kolejne etyczne przebudzenie w narodzie, który od zakończenia wojny secesyjnej nie doświadczył tak głębokich jak dziś podziałów.
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