Democratic Empire

DEMOCRATIC EMPIRE DEMOCRATIC EMPIRE

The United States Since 1945

Democracy and empire often seem like competing, even opposing, concepts. And yet, since the end of World War II, the United States has integrated elements of both in the process of becoming a dominant global power. Democratic Empire: The United States Since 1945 explores the way democracy and empire have converged and been challenged both at home and abroad, surveying the nation’s recent cultural, political and economic history. This account pays particular attention to mass media, the fine arts, and intellectual currents in the era of the American Dream. Concise and engagingly written, Democratic Empire presents a unique analysis of US history since 1945 and the egalitarian and imperial forces that have shaped contemporary America.

JIM CULLEN is chair of the History Department of the Fieldston School in New York. He is the author of numerous books, among them The American Dream: A Short History of an Idea that Shaped a Nation (Oxford University Press, 2003) and Essaying the Past: How to Read, Write and Think about History, Third Edition (Wiley Blackwell, 2016). He lives in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York with his wife and four children.

DEMOCRATIC EMPIRE The United States Since 1945 Democracy and empire often seem like competing, even opposing, concepts. And yet, since the end of World War II, the United States has integrated elements of both in the process of becoming a dominant global power. Democratic Empire: The United States Since 1945 explores the way democracy and empire have converged and been challenged both at home and abroad, surveying the nation's recent cultural, political and economic history. This account pays particular attention to mass media, the fine arts, and intellectual currents in the era of the American Dream. Concise and engagingly written, Democratic Empire presents a unique analysis of US history since 1945 and the egalitarian and imperial forces that have shaped contemporary America.

Throughout its history, an enduring, though often challenged, belief in the American Dream has provided the United States with a strong national identity. The force of the Dream has functioned like an electric current, surging in ways that have been both channeled and impeded in the pursuit of national goals. Alternating Currents: The United States since 1945 explores the perceptions as well as the realities of that power at home and abroad. The narrative incorporates cultural, political, and social history to provide a comprehensive narrative of recent America, and gives particular attention to mass media, the fine arts, and intellectual currents of the times. Concise and engagingly written, Alternating Currents presents a unique analysis of U.S. history since 1945 and the energies that have shaped contemporary America.

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