1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910780925803321

Autore

Berns Walter <1919->

Titolo

Making patriots [[electronic resource] /] / Walter Berns

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Chicago, : University of Chicago Press, c2001

ISBN

1-282-42614-1

9786612426148

0-226-04451-3

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (165 p.)

Disciplina

320.54

Soggetti

Patriotism - United States - History

Citizenship - United States - History

Political rights - United States - History

Freedom of religion - United States - History

Political science - United States - History

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Includes index.

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. Classical Patriotism, Especially the Spartan -- 2. God before Country? -- 3. Commerce and Country -- 4. Educating Young Patriots -- 5. Lincoln, Patriotism's Poet -- 6. "What Country Have I?" -- 7. The Patriot's Flag -- Epilogue -- Index of Names

Sommario/riassunto

Although Samuel Johnson once remarked that "patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels," over the course of the history of the United States we have seen our share of heroes: patriots who have willingly put their lives at risk for this country and, especially, its principles. And this is even more remarkable given that the United States is a country founded on the principles of equality and democracy that encourage individuality and autonomy far more readily than public spiritedness and self-sacrifice. Walter Berns's Making Patriots is a pithy and provocative essay on precisely this paradox. How is patriotism inculcated in a system that, some argue, is founded on self-interest? Expertly and intelligibly guiding the reader through the history and philosophy of patriotism in a republic, from the ancient Greeks through contemporary life, Berns considers the unique nature of patriotism in



the United States and its precarious state. And he argues that while both public education and the influence of religion once helped to foster a public-minded citizenry, the very idea of patriotism is currently under attack. Berns finds the best answers to his questions in the thought and words of Abraham Lincoln, who understood perhaps better than anyone what the principles of democracy meant and what price adhering to them may exact. The graves at Arlington and Gettysburg and Omaha Beach in Normandy bear witness to the fact that self-interested individuals can become patriots, and Making Patriots is a compelling exploration of how this was done and how it might be again.