Emotions in American History: An International Assessment(3 European Studies in American History)

The study of emotions has attracted anew the interest of scholars in various disciplines, igniting a lively public debate on the constructive and destructive power of emotions in society as well as within each of us. Most of the contributors to this volume do not hail from the United States but look at the nation from abroad. They explore the role of emotions in history and ask how that exploration changes what we know about national and international history, and in turn how that affects the methodological study of history. In particular they focus on emotions in American history between the 18th century and the present: in war, in social and political discourse, as well as in art and the media. In addition to case studies, the volume includes a review of their fields by senior scholars, who offer new insights regarding future research projects.

Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations Acknowledgments Notes on Contributors Introduction: Emotions and History Jessica C. E. Gienow-Hecht Approaches to the Study of Human Emotions Chapter 1. Emotions History in the United States: Goals, Methods and Promises Peter Stearns Chapter 2. Emotions and the History of Everyday Life Alf Lüdtke Emotions and War Chapter 3. The Corruption of Civic Virtue by Emotion: Anti-imperialist Fears in the Debate on the Philippine-American War (1899-1902) Fabian Hilfrich Chapter 4. The Mobilization of Emotions: Propaganda and Social Violence on the American Home Front During World War One Jörg Nagler Chapter 5. Hanoi Jane, Vietnam Memory, and Emotions Andreas Etges Emotions Art and the Media Chapter 6. ”Stop Them Damned Pictures...” - Political Cartoons, the Study of Emotions, and the Construction of the Anglo-American Relationship Stefanie Schneider Chapter 7. Emotions of Comparisons Perceptions of European anti-Americanism in U.S.-Magazines of the 1920s Adelheid von Saldern Chapter 8. Emotions and Nineteenth Century American Art Bettina Friedl Emotions and Society Chapter 9. A Horrifying Experience? Public Executions and the Emotional Spectator in the New Republic Jürgen Martschukat Chapter 10. Emotions, American Society, and Discourses on Sexuality Michael Hochgeschwender Chapter 11. Does Every Vote Count In America? Emotions, Elections, and the Quest for Black Political Empowerment Britta Waldschmidt-Nelson The View from the Other Side: Emotions and Psychology Chapter 12. The Fortunes of Emotion in the Science of Psychology and in the History of Emotions Horst Gundlach Index

About the Author :
Jessica C. E. Gienow-Hecht is Professor of History at the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies at the Free University of Berlin.