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Time No Longer: Americans After the American Century
by
Patrick Smith
3.74 · Rating details · 19 ratings · 4 reviews
Why America’s founding myths no longer apply, and why we must reconsider the facts of our history
Americans cherish their national myths, some of which predate the country’s founding. But the time for illusions, nostalgia, and grand ambition abroad has gone by, Patrick Smith observes in this original book. Americans are now faced with a choice between a mythical idea of themselves, their nation, and their global “mission,” on the one hand, and on the other an idea of America that is rooted in historical consciousness. To cling to old myths will ensure America’s decline, Smith warns. He demonstrates with deep historical insight why a fundamentally new perspective and self-image are essential if the United States is to find its place in the twenty-first century.
In four illuminating essays, Smith discusses America’s unusual (and dysfunctional) relation with history; the Spanish-American War and the roots of American imperial ambition; the Cold War years and the effects of fear and power on the American psyche; and the uneasy years from 9/11 to the present. Providing a new perspective on our nation’s current dilemmas, Smith also offers hope for change through an embrace of authentic history. (less)
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Hardcover, 240 pages
Published May 27th 2013 by Yale University Press (first published January 1st 2013)
ISBN
0300176562 (ISBN13: 9780300176568)
Edition Language
English
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Nov 18, 2015Goatboy rated it it was amazing
I cannot think of a more timely book.
Wonderful intersection of political critique, anthropology, and history.
If we want to face forward into history and the 21st century we should take head of what Patrick Smith has so eloquently described as to our our country's self-held mythologies. (less)
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Sep 16, 2013Debby Hallett rated it it was amazing
Shelves: 5-star
A very important and insightful topic, that could have used a more coherent and well-edited prose. I found some passages unintelligible. Eg. "Everything ... seemed validated for its aspect of reiteration."
I wish the ideas had been presented more succinctly and the whole book had a better flow.
I usually rate books that change my thinking as 5 stars. This was definitely that. If I were rating only the quality of the book (separate from its impact), I'd give it three.
If the notion that America's belief in its exceptionalism has to do with how the country views its role in history (or more particularly, its role outside of history) this will be interesting to you. (less)
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May 29, 2015C. Scott rated it liked it
This book was not at all what I expected. I have become a great fan of Patrick Smith's columns on Salon about the Ukraine crisis over the last year. He is incredibly insightful in his critiques of US foreign policy. This book is not that.
Instead this book is a much bigger, loftier and philosophical criticism of the US and its own self-image. I didn't give this book a higher rating because I was expecting something much different. That's my fault, I was in the wrong head space for this. This book has a lot of deep, important critiques of how Americans see themselves. It is worth examination. (less)
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
In this essay collection, Smith (Somebody Else's Century) examines the dissonance between our nation's history and mythical conception of itself, combing what is termed the American Century for evidence. Expressly hoping to provoke the end of exceptionalism, he adduces America's fondness for ritual reenactments to demonstrate the shortcomings of event-specific historicism in light of big-picture history. In a clear and vivid voice, he draws attention to the effusive literary style of many early historical records and shows how science, not just religion, was swept into the perpetuation of certain myths. While he cogently outlines the importance of seeing society as a construct connected to its past, he loses ground when he leaps into the realm of political philosophy. His assertion that fundamentalist beliefs regarding markets, individuality, and government go largely uncontested is difficult to substantiate. Peering through the lens of myth-worship vs. historicism, Smith maligns certain abstract political notions because they have historically coincided with a Christian vision for the country and a reverence for the rugged American prototype; insufficiently acknowledged is that willingness to face the nation's history openly does not automatically discount certain abstract ideas. A thought-provoking collection, its conclusions step beyond what is substantiated by the material. (June)
Review
“I can think of no American historian of the current era who more powerfully captures the way myth has informed consciousness in shaping the American worldview since the founding.”—Mark Lytle, Bard College -- Mark Lytle
“Patrick Smith’s is a brilliant and profound meditation on the relationship of modern Americans to their history and their myths, the best book anyone has written on the United States as it today exists. A work that will last.”—William Pfaff, author of The Irony of Manifest Destiny.
-- William Pfaff
“An extremely ambitious book, Time No Longer brings together ideas about contemporary American politics and foreign policy with deep questions about the character and destiny of American society and some important ideas about how American attitudes to historical time will have to change. Patrick Smith makes a case that is bound to be controversial, but makes it bravely, thoughtfully and well. This should be an influential contribution to important national political and cultural debates.”—Godfrey Hodgson, author of The Myth of American Exceptionalism
-- Godfrey Hodgson
“An exceptionally insightful approach that gets well beyond the usual yes/no declinist discourse, and challenges the American exceptionalism frame, in ways that are both historically informed and geared to the challenges of this new century and the need for ‘a new idea of ourselves.’”—Bruce W. Jentleson, Duke University
-- Bruce W. Jentleson
"Controversial and thought-provoking."—Kirkus Reviews
― Kirkus Reviews
Won a Honorable Mention for the 2104 Los Angeles Book Festival in the General Non-Fiction Category. -- Los Angeles Book Festival ― JM Northern Media LLC Published On: 2014-03-13
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Product details
Publisher : Yale University Press (May 27, 2013)
Language : English
Hardcover : 240 pages
ISBN-10 : 0300176562
ISBN-13 : 978-0300176568
Item Weight : 1.1 pounds
Dimensions : 6.13 x 0.88 x 9.25 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #2,415,808 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
#1,155 in Historical Essays (Books)
#2,295 in Historiography (Books)
#119,440 in United States History (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.3 out of 5 stars 9 ratings
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Jay M.
4.0 out of 5 stars Thought Provoking & Controvertial
Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2019
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The author is very literate so his style takes a bit of getting used to but it’s a thought provoking book that really get you thinking about how Americans view history and America’s place in the world. In general, the books goes into how the revolutionary ideal of “America” is giving way to the US as simply another nation state. A controversial splash of cold water realism or advocacy of going quietly into the good night of history? Read and decide for yourself.
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Classical
5.0 out of 5 stars Good enough to read twice!
Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2017
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Patrick Smith's book was published in 2013 so it doesn't discuss the particular peculiar circumstances of 2017 US politics but it does go a long way in explaining how this unfortunate election happened in this country, at this time. In that way it is prescient and that's always a good test of validity for any thesis. The book is very clearly written and yet not simplistic in it's analysis or opinion. It's laid out very logically and Mr's Smith's thesis is, overall, very understandable. Congratulations to him for the accomplishment of this book. The breakdown of ideas into four distinct essays makes it easy to get a good hold on each of the ideas presented and makes it easy to go back and review previous material as the book progresses. I found myself doing that since each essay both stands alone and builds on the previous ones. I plan to reread this book again soon. I'll let it digest for a while then revisit. That's how good and important I found this book to be.
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Ancient Bookworm
5.0 out of 5 stars Shocking and enlightening
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2015
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A brilliant and important book. Smith compares America to the Greek boy Narcissus:
"This was America at the Cold War's end. It had spent fifty years staring at its own reflection, unable to see anything or anybody else."
2 people found this helpful
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Lauren Langman
5.0 out of 5 stars Its Time for Time No Longer
Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2013
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It forces us to leave the comfort of our mythical version of history, as a God ordained model of virtues and benevolence, a city on the hill for all to admire, and now we deal not with the myths, but how those myths have led us to perceptions of the world, and indeed ourselves, that now undermine the growth and prosperity of the country as its military bankrupts, our forgeign policies kills many and brings us hatred and animousity from vast multitudes. If concerned about the future, we must understand the past, and it never was the way we imagine.
25 people found this helpful
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William P. Lee
3.0 out of 5 stars Abstruse
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2014
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As an expat, I too have come to see that America is at a crossroads as the one super-power left standing. But Smith meanders too much as he attempts to explain how America historically vacillates between its biblical inspired role of saving the world for democracy - i.e., the American Century from the 1890s into the 2000s - and the realistic, pragmatic role it must now play in a multipolar world. In four essays, Smith attempts to build a case that America must move away from the ideological myth of America which has already mired us into two unwinnable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan this century alone. Further, we must be a strong nation that takes care of Main Street and respectfully build alliances with reemergent powers and not just a powerful nation that bullies the world to fit in with our notions of a correct world. Failing that, American will decline.
I prefer his articles analyzing current events. There, he makes his points concisely and clearly. Smith fails to do so here.
21 people found this helpful
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Roger Carlsen
5.0 out of 5 stars Parts so good that it makes up for areas of weakness
Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2014
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Two sections of this book were so good that I'm going to retread them. Then I'll revisit this review with more specifics.
2 people found this helpful
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brian cowden
5.0 out of 5 stars no problems -- Recommend!
Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2015
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Transaction exactly as it should be; no problems -- Recommend!
One person found this helpful
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Christine A.
1.0 out of 5 stars A disappointment in every way.
Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2016
'Time No Longer' was a total disappointment. There were no new insightful perspectives or useful information. This book was more like an effort to sound smart, rather than being smart. It was not worth it to try to get through the author's meandering and annoying verbiage.
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