What So Proudly We Hail: The American Soul in Story, Speech, and Song

by Kass, Amy A.; Kass, Leon R.; Schaub, Diana

• ISBN13: 9781610170062
• ISBN10: 1610170067
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-05-15
• Publisher: Isi Books

Summary

A book for educating citizens This wonderfully rich anthology uses the soul-shaping power of story, speech, and song to help Americans realize more deeply-and appreciate more fully-who they are as citizens of the United States. At once inspiring and thought-provoking, What So Proudly We Hailfeatures dozens of selections on American identity, character, and civic life by our country#x19;s greatest writers and leaders-from Mark Twain to John Updike, from George Washington to Theodore Roosevelt, from Willa Cather to Flannery O#x19;Connor, from Benjamin Franklin to Martin Luther King Jr., from Francis Scott Key to Irving Berlin. Developing robust American citizens involves educating the heart as well as the mind. It is not enough to understand our nation#x19;s lofty principles or know our history; thoughtful and engaged citizens require cultivated moral imaginations and fitting sentiments and attitudes-matters both displayed in and nurtured by our great works of imaginative literature and rhetoric. Featuring the editors#x19; insightful and instructive commentary, What So Proudly We Haililluminates our national identity, the American creed, the American character, and the virtues and aspirations of active citizenship. This marvelous book will not only be a fixture on bedside tables; it will also spark conversations in homes, schools, colleges, and reading groups everywhere.

Author Biography

Amy A. Kass, long-celebrated teacher of classic texts at the University of Chicago and senior fellow at Hudson Institute, has edited several anthologies, including The Perfect Gift: The Philanthropic Imagination in Poetry and Prose and (with Leon R. Kass) Wing to Wing, Oar to Oar: Readings on Courting and Marrying.

Leon R. Kass, professor emeritus at the University of Chicago and scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, is the author of The Beginning of Wisdom, The Hungry Soul, and Life, Liberty, and the Defense of Dignity. Dr. Kass has delivered the Jefferson Lecture for the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Diana Schaub is professor of political science at Loyola University Maryland and a member of the Hoover Institution’s Task Force on the Virtues of a Free Society. She is contributing editor to the New Atlantis.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. xi
National Identity: Why Should It Matter?
ôThe Man without a Countryö	p. 1
The Promised Land	p. 23
ôIn a Strange Countryö	p. 36
The American Creed
Declaration of Independence	p. 45
Gettysburg Address	p. 50
Publius, Federalist No. 10	p. 52
Mayflower Compact	p. 60
To the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island	p. 62
The American Character: Individuals Free and Equal
ôTo Build a Fireö	p. 67
ôA Father-to-Beö	p. 81
ôHarrison Bergeronö	p. 90
ôIdiots Firstö	p. 96
ôThe Man That Corrupted Hadleyburgö	p. 105
ôThe May-Pole of Merry Mountö	p. 145
ôDefender of the Faithö	p. 155
Toward A More Robust Citizenry: The Virtues of Civic Life
Self-Command and Self-Respect
ôProject for Moral Perfection,ö The Autobiography	p. 185
ôPandoraö	p. 193
ôTwenty-Two Days on a Chain Gangö	p. 220
ôThe Last Flogging,ö from My Bondage and My Freedom	p. 240
Law-Abidingness and Justice: Toward Public Order
ôThe Perpetuation of Our Political Institutionsö (Address to the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois)	p. 253
Letter from Birmingham Jail	p. 262
ôA Jury of Her Peersö	p. 277
Courage and Self-Sacrifice: Toward Country and Its Ideals
ôOn Roy Benavidez,ö from Why Courage Matters	p. 299
Letter to Sarah	p. 304
ôChamberlain,ö from The Killer Angels	p. 307
Speech to the Third Army	p. 320
ôThe Veteranö	p. 327
ôThe Devil and Daniel Websterö	p. 332
Civility, Tolerance, Compassion: Toward Neighbors
ôContractö	p. 349
ôThe Blue Hotelö	p. 360
ôThe Travelerö	p. 385
ôBartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Streetö	p. 393
Public-Spiritedness, Charity, Reverence: Toward the Public Goods
ôThe Open Boatö	p. 427
Veterans Day Speech to the Semper Fi Society of St. Louis	p. 449
Second Inaugural Address	p. 455
ôThe Deaconö	p. 458
ôThe Artificial Niggerö	p. 464
ôDosie, of Killakeet Islandö	p. 482
The Goals of Civic Life
Lifting the Floor
ôThe Ones Who Walk Away from Omelasö	p. 499
Writings on Education	p. 506
ôWhy Should a Colored Man Enlist?ö	p. 511
ôDemocracy and Educationö	p. 516
ôThe Talented Tenthö	p. 525
ôHe Who Spits at the Skyö	p. 533
ôThe Best Yearsö	p. 555
Elevating the Ceiling
ôThe Artist of the Beautifulö	p. 583
ôThe Little Man at Chehaw Station: The American Artist and His Audienceö	p. 603
ôHub Fans Bid Kid Adieuö	p. 610
ôLee in the Capitolö	p. 622
ôYeager,ö from The Right Stuff	p. 629
Address at Rice University on the Nation's Space Effort	p. 640
Preservation and Perpetuation
ôOld Folks' Christmasö	p. 647
ôEveryday Useö	p. 656
Farewell Address	p. 665
ôManhood and Statehood,ö from The Strenuous Life	p. 674
Speech on the Occasion of the 150th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence	p. 681
ôIn Our Youth Our Hearts Were Touched with Fireö	p. 691
Thanksgiving Proclamation	p. 699
ôTwo Thanksgiving Day Gentlemenö	p. 701
Making One Out of Many
Immigration and Assimilation
ôTrue Americanismö	p. 711
ôO K*A*P*L*A*N! My K*A*P*L*A*N!ö from The Education of H*Y*M*A*N K*A*P*L*A*N	p. 717
ôAria,ö from Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez	p. 723
Land of Lincoln: Adventures in Abe's America	p. 734
Songs for Free Men and Women
ôThe Star-Spangled Bannerö	p. 741
ô.The Star-Spangled Bannerö	p. 747
ôMy Country, 'Tis of Theeö	p. 749
ôAmerica the Beautifulö	p. 751
ôThe Battle Hymn of the Republicö	p. 753
ôGod Bless Americaö	p. 756
ôThis Land Is Your Landö	p. 758
Symbols
The Great Seal of the United States	p. 763
The American Eagle: Two Poems	p. 766
ôSong of the American Eagleö	p. 767
Herman Melville, ôThe Eagle of the Blueö	p. 769
The Flag: Willa Cather, ôThe Namesakeö	p. 771
Acknowledgments	p. 782
Sources and Credits	p. 784
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