
The Comparative Imagination
On the History of Racism, Nationalism, and Social Movements
George M. Fredrickson(Author)
University of California Press
1st Edition
Will be published approx. on 8. July 2000
Book
Paperback/Softback
241 pages
978-0-520-22484-1 (ISBN)
Description
In this collection of essays, an eminent American historian of race relations discusses issues central to our understanding of the history of racism, the role of racism, and the possibilites for justice in contemporary society. George M. Fredrickson provides an eloquent and vigorous examination of race relations in the United States and South Africa and at the same time illuminates the emerging field of comparative history--history that is explicitly cross-cultural in its comparisons of nations, eras, or social structures. Taken together, these thought-provoking, accessible essays--several never before published--bring new precision and depth to our understanding of racism and justice, both historically and for society today. The first group of essays in The Comparative Imagination summarizes and evaluates the cross-national comparative history written in the past fifty years. These essays pay particular attention to comparative work on slavery and race relations, frontiers, nation-building and the growth of modern welfare states, and class and gender relations.
The second group of essays represents some of Fredrickson's own explorations into the cross-cultural study of race and racism. Included are new essays covering such topics as the theoretical and cross-cultural meaning of racism, the problem of race in liberal thought, and the complex relationship between racism and state-based nationalism. The third group contains Fredrickson's recent work on anti-racist and black liberation movements in the United States and South Africa, especially in the period since World War II. In addition, Fredrickson's provocative introduction breaks significant new intellectual ground, outlining a justification for the methods of comparative history in light of such contemporary intellectual trends as the revival of narrative history and the predominance of postmodern thought.
The second group of essays represents some of Fredrickson's own explorations into the cross-cultural study of race and racism. Included are new essays covering such topics as the theoretical and cross-cultural meaning of racism, the problem of race in liberal thought, and the complex relationship between racism and state-based nationalism. The third group contains Fredrickson's recent work on anti-racist and black liberation movements in the United States and South Africa, especially in the period since World War II. In addition, Fredrickson's provocative introduction breaks significant new intellectual ground, outlining a justification for the methods of comparative history in light of such contemporary intellectual trends as the revival of narrative history and the predominance of postmodern thought.
More details
Edition
First Edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Berkerley
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
408 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-520-22484-1 (9780520224841)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
George M. Fredrickson is Robinson Professor of United States History at Stanford University, and author of several books, including Black Liberation: A Comparative History of Black Ideologies in the United States and South Africa (1995), The Arrogance of Race: Historical Perspectives on Slavery, Racism, and Social Inequality (1988), The Black Image in the White Mind (1987), and White Supremacy: A Comparative Study in American and South African History (1981). He was president of the Organization for American Historians for 1997-98.
Content
Introduction
PART ONE. HISTORIOGRAPHICAL EXPLORATIONS
1. The Status of Comparative History
2. The Frontier in South African and American History
3. From Exceptionalism to Variability:Recent Developments in Cross-National Comparative History
4? Planters, Junkers, and Pomeschiki
PART TWO. RACE AND RACISM IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE
5. Understanding Racism: Reflections of a Comparative Historian
6. Race and Empire in Liberal Thought: The
Legacy of Tocqueville
7? Black-White Relations since Emancipation:The Search for a Comparative Perspective
PART THREE. TWENTIETH-CENTURY FREEDOM STRUGGLES
8. Reform and Revolution in American and South African Freedom Struggles
9? Prophets of Black Liberation
1O. Nonviolent Resistance to White Supremacy:The American Civil Rights Movement and the South African Defiance Campaigns
11. From Black Power to Black Consciousness
Notes
Index
PART ONE. HISTORIOGRAPHICAL EXPLORATIONS
1. The Status of Comparative History
2. The Frontier in South African and American History
3. From Exceptionalism to Variability:Recent Developments in Cross-National Comparative History
4? Planters, Junkers, and Pomeschiki
PART TWO. RACE AND RACISM IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE
5. Understanding Racism: Reflections of a Comparative Historian
6. Race and Empire in Liberal Thought: The
Legacy of Tocqueville
7? Black-White Relations since Emancipation:The Search for a Comparative Perspective
PART THREE. TWENTIETH-CENTURY FREEDOM STRUGGLES
8. Reform and Revolution in American and South African Freedom Struggles
9? Prophets of Black Liberation
1O. Nonviolent Resistance to White Supremacy:The American Civil Rights Movement and the South African Defiance Campaigns
11. From Black Power to Black Consciousness
Notes
Index