''These Truths: A History of the United States'' is a one-volume book of
American history
The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of Settlement of the Americas, the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Native American cultures in the United States, Numerous indigenous cultures formed ...
written by historian and ''
New Yorker
New Yorker or ''variant'' primarily refers to:
* A resident of the State of New York
** Demographics of New York (state)
* A resident of New York City
** List of people from New York City
* ''The New Yorker'', a magazine founded in 1925
* '' The ...
'' writer
Jill Lepore
Jill Lepore is an American historian and journalist. She is the David Woods Kemper '41 Professor of American History at Harvard University and a staff writer at ''The New Yorker'', where she has contributed since 2005. She writes about American ...
. It traces American politics, law, journalism, and technology from the
Age of Discovery
The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafari ...
through the
present day
The present (or here'' and ''now) is the time that is associated with the events perceived directly and in the first time, not as a recollection (perceived more than once) or a speculation (predicted, hypothesis, uncertain). It is a period of ...
, focusing on America's founding truths and their role in uniting, dividing, and transforming the nation. ''These Truths'' was published by
W. W. Norton
W. W. Norton & Company is an American publishing company based in New York City. Established in 1923, it has been owned wholly by its employees since the early 1960s. The company is known for its Norton Anthologies (particularly '' The Norton A ...
in September 2018.
Title
The book's title references the statement in the
Declaration of Independence
A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of ...
"we hold these truths to be self-evident," which introduces three political ideas that Lepore identifies as the founding pillars of the American experiment:
political equality
Political equality is the quality of a society whose voluntary members are of equal standing in terms of political power or influence. A founding principle of various forms of democracy, political egalitarianism was an idea which was supported by T ...
,
natural rights
Some philosophers distinguish two types of rights, natural rights and legal rights.
* Natural rights are those that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government, and so are ''universal'', '' fundamental'' an ...
, and the
sovereignty of the people. ''These Truths'' sets out to examine the extent to which the United States has lived up to its ideals.
Synopsis
The book is divided into four sections: "The Idea" (1492-1799), "The People" (1800-1865), "The State" (1866-1945), and "The Machine" (1946-2016). The idea of truth itself is a core theme of the book: Lepore traces how a number of technological and political forces—including newspapers, mass media,
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loa ...
, polling, and
political consulting
Political consulting is a form of consulting that consists primarily of advising and assisting political campaigns. Although the most important role of political consultants is arguably the development and production of mass media (largely tel ...
—have fundamentally altered the way that Americans define and understand what is true, ultimately eroding a shared understanding of empirical truth. The book also foregrounds the country's histories of
slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
and
systemic racism
Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded in the laws and regulations of a society or an organization. It manifests as discrimination in areas such as criminal justice, employment, housing, heal ...
, demonstrating how these injustices have distorted and undermined America's commitment to its founding truths.
Lepore illustrates the book's historical narrative by highlighting the stories of a variety of individuals, from well-known figures like
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
to women and people of color like
Jane Franklin Mecom and
Maria Stewart
Maria W. Stewart ( Miller) (1803 – December 17, 1879) was a free-born African American who became a teacher, journalist, lecturer, abolitionist, and women's rights activist. The first known American woman to speak to a mixed audience of ...
whose contributions are often overlooked in textbook accounts of American history.
Lepore also writes that ''These Truths'' "is meant to double as an old-fashioned civics book" that explains "the origins and ends of democratic institutions" such as the
two-party system
A two-party system is a political party system in which two major political parties consistently dominate the political landscape. At any point in time, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually refe ...
, the nominating convention, and the
secret ballot
The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential v ...
.
Reception
The book was released to widespread critical acclaim, receiving positive reviews in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
,
The
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...
''
''Washington Post'''','' and ''
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
.'' According to
Book Marks
Literary Hub is a daily literary website that launched in 2015 by Grove Atlantic president and publisher Morgan Entrekin, American Society of Magazine Editors Hall of Fame editor Terry McDonell, and Electric Literature founder Andy Hunter.
Con ...
, the book received a "positive" consensus, based on twenty critics: twelve "rave", five "positive", two "mixed", and one "pan". On
Books in the Media, the book was rated 4.60 out of 5, based on three critic reviews. In the November/December 2018 issue of ''
Bookmarks
A bookmark is used to keep one's place in a printed work. It can also refer to:
* Bookmark (digital), a pointer in a web browser and other software
* ''Bookmarks'' (album) by Five for Fighting
* ''Bookmarks'' (magazine), an American literary ma ...
'', the book was scored four out of five. The magazine's critical summary reads: "A sweeping narrative, yes, but equally an intimate one: the accounts of individuals shaping the course of history. ''These Truths'' is a well-timed book at a critical juncture in our history".
It also received the 18th annual
Arthur Ross Book Award
The Arthur Ross Book Award is a politics-related literary award.
History and administration
It was endowed in 2001 by Arthur Ross, an American businessman and philanthropist, for the purpose of recognizing books that make an outstanding contr ...
from the
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is a nonprofit organization that is independent and nonpartisan. CFR is based in New York Ci ...
and the 2018 Massachusetts Book Award.
References
Further reading
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External links
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2018 non-fiction books
American history books
History books about the United States
English-language non-fiction books
W. W. Norton & Company books
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