Anderson and Cayton express the view that the circumstances and outcomes of wars not often considered in the discourse of American history had in fact more impact on the shaping of the United States than those wars commonly considered influential.   Those conflicts typically thought of as “minor interruptions” were instead critical turning points steering future events.  

 

“The constraints of the accustomed grand narrative, centering on wars of liberation and marginalizing the rest, make it difficult if not impossible to appreciate the degree to which American notions of rights and liberty are culture-bound products of specific, contingent historical circumstances.  We hope, therefore, that this alternative telling may encourage our fellow citizens to consider past events and present values in light of what seems to us the distinctly American dilemma: how to exercise power legitimately and productively in a world made up of peoples who do not universally embrace individual freedom or affirm the desirability of egalitarian democratic governance.”

 

The authors describe the turning points through the stories of individuals central to the action.  The initial encounters with the Indians of the seventeenth century are described through Samuel de Champlain.  The early territorial expansion and struggle with imperialism are described through William Penn.  The evolution of Washington’s engagement and leadership describe the formation of the republic.  Andrew Jackson highlights the influence of a populist and the revised approach for handling the natives.  Antonio López de Santa Anna serves as protagonist for an examination of why the formation of a counterpart republic failed in Mexico, and the story of Ulysses S. Grant provides the backdrop for the Mexican-American war and how it influenced Grant in the Civil War and later as President still dealing with westward expansion and Indian relations.  Douglas MacArthur’s story introduces the Spanish-American war which shapes MacArthur’s thinking all the way up to the surrender and military control of Japan.  

 

I found the story of Grant most interesting and informative, and perhaps the most compelling support for the authors’ thesis.  The story of Champlain suggests a tremendous impact with respect to the European treatment of the American continents.  The epilog, which introduces a few pages of Colin Powell’s story, seems offered only to introduce another leader struggling with the big questions already familiar to these other men.  

 

 

Fred Anderson and Andrew Cayton