How did the United States change from a pluralistic organization—this United States—to a unified one? What does that change of language tell us about power and authority? Melissa M. Lee, Klein Family Associate Vice President of Political Science explores such questions in “From Pluribus to Unum? Civil War and Imagination in 19th-Century America,” a new paper co-authored with Nan Zhang of the Mannheim Center for European Social Research and Tilmann Herchenröder of the University of Oxford.
Lee says: “Rather than being a grammatical accident, the question of whether the United States has a plural or singular grammar has a larger meaning behind it. “In my department of political science and international relations, the way we talk is important. It reflects our values and what we think is important.”
To examine the shift from pluralism to singularity, Lee and colleagues looked at US Congressional speeches from 1851 to 1899 and newspaper editorials from 1800 to 1899. king or parliament, federal government or specific countries — is often a matter of debate, Lee says.
In the case of the United States, the question was ultimately resolved by a bloody civil war, Lee says. The victory of the Union in 1865 strengthened the claim of the federal government to have the power to rule over the individual states, but according to Lee’s research, this idea was adopted faster and faster in the north’ and gradually spread in the South, as seen by the plural use of ” United States e,” as opposed to the Northern convention of “United States e.”
Penn Today sat down with Lee for a Q & amp; A to discuss his research and what history can teach us about modern statecraft.
How did you become interested in this topic?
A lot of my work is about the country: What does it mean to be a country? Why are some countries better than others at managing people and providing goods and services?
My first book is about physical presence across the landscape. For example, in the United States, you are governed whether you live in Alaska or Washington, D.C. And that is not true in many places in the world.
In this paper, one of the aspects of government that we investigate is the issue of statehood, the idea that there is this body that can give the final authority, that will make the laws in the end.
In the United States, we no longer question whether there should be such an authority, that is where that authority resides takes on a certain meaning. Even now, we hear these states’ rights claims, even though the constitutional issue has been resolved. This really comes out in my broader work on what it means to be a country in this modern age. With this paper, you can think of it as: A country is a country if you consider it a country. People accept that the government exists and that the corporation has the power to control your life, make binding decisions about your life, throw you in jail, all kinds of things.
A lot of my work is about the country: What does it mean to be a country? Why are some countries better than others at managing people and providing goods and services?
My first book is about physical presence across the landscape. For example, in the United States, you are governed whether you live in Alaska or Washington, D.C. And that is not true in many places in the world.
In this paper, one of the aspects of government that we investigate is the issue of statehood, the idea that there is this body that can give the final authority, that will make the laws in the end.
In the United States, we no longer question whether there should be such an authority, that is where that authority resides takes on a certain meaning. Even now, we hear these states’ rights claims, even though the constitutional issue has been resolved. This really comes out in my broader work on what it means to be a country in this modern age. With this paper, you can think of it as: A country is a country if you consider it a country. People accept that the government exists and that the corporation has the power to control your life, make binding decisions about your life, throw you in jail, all kinds of things.
What do you see in the political discourse today that originated in this historical period and the central question against local authority?
For a while the South was indeed a strong state, but they only worked when the power of the state could further their interests, which was the protection of slavery. I think you see the same thing today, where you feel you support the government more when the government promotes your interests and you don’t support you otherwise.
As a Californian, I sometimes hear these stories about pockets of California that want to secede. If they don’t like what the federal government is doing, then they talk about division: ‘We are such a strong economy; we can go alone.’
You don’t hear that kind of talk when the government is doing good things for California. The way we feel about the power of the country often shows what the power of the government means in our lives and what it means for the implementation of our values as a strategy.
For a while the South was indeed a strong state, but they only worked when the power of the state could further their interests, which was the protection of slavery. I think you see the same thing today, where you feel you support the government more when the government promotes your interests and you don’t support you otherwise.
As a Californian, I sometimes hear these stories about pockets of California that want to secede. If they don’t like what the federal government is doing, then they talk about division: ‘We are such a strong economy; we can go alone.’
You don’t hear that kind of talk when the government is doing good things for California. The way we feel about the power of the country often shows what the power of the government means in our lives and what it means for the implementation of our values as a strategy.
In the paper you talk about ‘confounding factors,’ such as infrastructure and access to education, how can they help or hinder nation-building?
There is this opinion in the political science literature that contact is an important factor in educating people about the country’s ideology. You need to meet regularly with the government by interacting with the authorities and civil servants or tax collectors or the military, to get the people used to the idea that they will be ruled by an outside organization. And in our everyday lives, that’s how most people run for power: through everyday relationships. The more the government does that, the more effective it is in being able to meet the needs of the citizens, if the government wants to do so. It’s all about the government’s ability to reach the people it wants to rule. Is there a train? A navigable river? Infrastructure connects you to the wider world outside your village or town. It creates more opportunity for cosmopolitanism. It is important to think about this institution that is bigger than you can see. We are notoriously anti-government in the United States, as it is part of our identity as Americans to be suspicious of central authority. So, the way people met the government was not through the national tax collector. It was in the mail. If you were to meet a member of the federal government, it was usually someone who worked for the post office as a civil servant or acted as an agent on behalf of the post office. For most of the 19th century, the United States Postal Service is the federal government. Education is really interesting in terms of the establishment of the country and the power of the country, because education becomes a vehicle for introducing values. Schools do an important job for the government, which is to teach the common language, to teach the common values, to teach the same information. Saying the Pledge of Allegiance every morning builds the American spirit as a nation. Education also promotes a single national language. That does to have a very active situation. But the ive effect says nothing about how that power is used. It can be effective for suppressing people and is effective in giving and caring for people. This is where questions about assessing that power, how that power can be used, and who has access to that power become very important. There is also a very important distinction as to what constitutes ‘good status.’ People don’t really think that a lot of status is a good thing, do they? More police is not a good thing, especially if you are a victim of police abuse. I try to be very careful, to separate those things. It comes up a lot in my work because I have a math bias.
There is this opinion in the political science literature that contact is an important factor in educating people about the country’s ideology. You need to meet regularly with the government by interacting with the authorities and civil servants or tax collectors or the military, to get the people used to the idea that they will be ruled by an outside organization. And in our everyday lives, that’s how most people run for power: through everyday relationships. The more the government does that, the more effective it is in being able to meet the needs of the citizens, if the government wants to do so.
It’s all about the government’s ability to reach the people it wants to rule. Is there a train? A navigable river? Infrastructure connects you to the wider world outside your village or town. It creates more opportunity for cosmopolitanism. It is important to think about this institution that is bigger than you can see.
We are notoriously anti-government in the United States, as it is part of our identity as Americans to be suspicious of central authority. So, the way people met the government was not through the national tax collector. It was in the mail. If you were to meet a member of the federal government, it was usually someone who worked for the post office as a civil servant or acted as an agent on behalf of the post office. For most of the 19th century, the United States Postal Service is the federal government.
Education is really interesting in terms of the establishment of the country and the power of the country, because education becomes a vehicle for introducing values. Schools do an important job for the government, which is to teach the common language, to teach the common values, to teach the same information. Saying the Pledge of Allegiance every morning builds the American spirit as a nation. Education also promotes a single national language. That makes for a very practical situation. But success means nothing about how that power is used. It can be effective for suppressing people and is effective in giving and caring for people. This is where questions about assessing that power, how that power can be used, and who has access to that power become very important.
There is also a very important distinction as to what constitutes ‘good status.’ People don’t really think that a lot of status is a good thing, do they? More police is not a good thing, especially if you are a victim of police abuse. I try to be very careful, to separate those things. It comes up a lot in my work because I have a math bias.
Someone once told me that you learn what you are afraid of, what you fear or what you don’t understand. Coming of age during 9/11 and the Iraq War made me a little skeptical of what the government was doing. I think it pushed me to understand the power of the state, because the government used the power of the government to do very bad things. It became important in my development as a professional to understand, where does that power come from? What makes countries capable?
But government is this two-sided coin. On the other hand, especially as a person of color, I am very suspicious of national authority. On the other hand, the government can use its power to improve life, so I also feel very strong for public work. In college, I took two internships at the State Department because I was trying to understand what role diplomacy plays in U.S. policy. And after that I went to Bartolomeo in that place. I worked at a child welfare court for a while. I wanted to understand what public service is like at the local level.
Are there 52 or 50 states in USA?
I am skeptical of government, but under certain circumstances, government power can be used for good and those interactions with citizens can be beneficial. On the same subject : National Disability Employment Awareness Month – United States Department of State. This is a common practice in some of the work I do.
Someone once told me that you learn what you are afraid of, what you fear or what you don’t understand. Coming of age during 9/11 and the Iraq War made me a little skeptical of what the government was doing. I think it pushed me to understand the power of the state, because the government used the power of the government to do very bad things. It became important in my development as a professional to understand, where does that power come from? What makes countries capable?
Are there 52 United States?
But government is this two-sided coin. On the other hand, especially as a person of color, I am very suspicious of national authority. On the other hand, the government can use its power to improve life, so I also feel very strong for public work. In college, I took two internships at the State Department because I was trying to understand what role diplomacy plays in U.S. policy. And after that I went to Bartolomeo in that place. I worked at a child welfare court for a while. I wanted to understand what public service is like at the local level.
Is Puerto Rico part of the 52 states?
I am skeptical of government, but under certain circumstances, government power can be used for good and those interactions with citizens can be beneficial. Read also : The U.S. delegation has been unable to secure the release of Americans arrested in Venezuela. This is a common practice in some of the work I do.
What is the 52nd state?
You write how South America did not accept the North’s views immediately after it was conquered. To see also : Meet Philadelphia contact writers working on a variety of children’s books. Does that suggest that war has limited power to spread ideas?
How much of America does Japan own?
War is not really an effective way to spread ideas and make people adhere to these ideas. This is depressing in terms of public policy, especially when we are fighting conflicts abroad where the value lies. We think that one good use of American power is to bring freedom and democratic values, liberal values, free market values to other places. While I want to be careful about generalizing too much, I think my research suggests that we need to be more careful about whether fighting wars in the name of ideas will lead to acceptance of ideas. here more. We think of Japan and Germany as cases of these transitions that suddenly became democratic after authoritarianism, but they seem to be the exception based on what we know about interventionist power in other countries. We have not seen such success in terms of changing society, building a government, changing attitudes, changing values. They are famous cases, right? So, we tend to highlight these famous cases. It’s hard to get people to change their minds. It is possible that the people who will accept Western, liberal, democratic values are already people who are inclined to do it in the first place. We should not conclude that after the war has been very confusing, people will suddenly change their minds after they have been defeated. Changing the way people feel about such a fundamental part of authority takes a long time. In the United States, it took the better part of a century and a bloody civil war. As someone who studies foreign intervention, I think this suggests that we need to be careful about how we use military power to rebuild society. Depending on how long this change has taken how long for the United States, how quickly can we expect it to happen in a place like Afghanistan? How can we expect to rebuild these war-torn countries so quickly and expect them to work? This paper suggests that depending on our country for example, we should be humble about the methods of change in other areas. It’s easy to forget how long it took us.
War is not really an effective way to spread ideas and make people adhere to these ideas.
How much money does China own the US?
This is depressing in terms of public policy, especially when we are fighting conflicts abroad where the value lies. We think that one good use of American power is to bring freedom and democratic values, liberal values, free market values to other places. While I want to be careful about generalizing too much, I think my research suggests that we need to be more careful about whether fighting wars in the name of ideas will lead to acceptance of ideas. here more.
How much does Japan owe the US?
| We think of Japan and Germany as cases of these transitions that suddenly became democratic after authoritarianism, but they seem to be the exception based on what we know about interventionist power in other countries. We have not seen such success in terms of changing society, building a government, changing attitudes, changing values. They are famous cases, right? So, we tend to highlight these famous cases. | It’s hard to get people to change their minds. It is possible that the people who will accept Western, liberal, democratic values are already people who are inclined to do it in the first place. We should not conclude that after the war has been very confusing, people will suddenly change their minds after they have been defeated. Changing the way people feel about such a fundamental part of authority takes a long time. In the United States, it took the better part of a century and a bloody civil war. |
|---|---|
| As someone who studies foreign intervention, I think this suggests that we need to be careful about how we use military power to rebuild society. Given how long this change has taken for the United States, how quickly can we expect it to happen in a place like Afghanistan? How can we expect to rebuild these war-torn countries so quickly and expect them to work? | This paper suggests that following our national example, we should be humble about the processes of change elsewhere. It’s easy to forget how long it took us. |
| “From Pluribus to Unum? Civil War and Imagination in 19th-Century America” is from the American Political Science Review. | There are fifty (50) states and Washington D.C. The last two states to join the Union were Alaska (49th) and Hawaii (50th). Both were engaged in 1959. Washington D.C. is a federal district under the authority of Congress. Local government is run by the mayor and 13 members of the city council. |
| What are the 50th and 51st countries? AMERICA admitted Alaska and Hawaii as its 49th and 50th states in 1959. Since then, people have been speculating as to whether (or where) it would be the 51st, but this country is not has gone 57 years without taking a new break—the longest such break. in American history. | United States: 50 states and the District of Columbia. Continental United States: 49 states (including Alaska, except Hawaii) located on the North American continent, and the District of Columbia. |
| As a territory of the United States, 3.2 million Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens. However, despite being subject to U.S. federal laws, Puerto Rican islanders cannot vote in presidential elections and have no electoral representation in Congress. As a U.S. territory, it is neither a state nor a sovereign state. | Puerto Rico’s status leaves it at a disadvantage compared to the 50 states that exist today. It has its own constitution and government, but only because the US government allows it. |
Is Japan still under US control?
Japan: $912.4 billion (6.4 percent)
Is Puerto Rico the 51st state?
| Why is Japan important to the United States? Japan represents a major market for many U.S. goods and services, including agricultural products, chemicals, insurance, pharmaceuticals, movies and music, commercial aircraft, nonferrous metals, plastics, appliances medical and scientific and mechanical. | |
| China holds more than $1 trillion of U.S. national debt. That’s a large portion of the $7.6 trillion in Treasury bills, notes and bonds held by foreign countries. Another $29 trillion in national debt is owned by the U.S. people. or by the U.S. government. | Country Name |
| The value of the U.S. Holdings ($Billions) | Cayman Islands |
| 1,217.1 | |
|---|---|
| Japan |
821.6
Is Puerto Rico a US state now?
Canada
What is the 52nd state of the United States?
705.3
What is the 52nd state?
Ireland
498.3
What does a Kickstarter do?
The occupation finally ended in 1952 with the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty, which restored sovereignty to Japan.
How does Kickstarter give you money?
June 11, 2017
