America and the Americas
Breaking away from the limited perspectives of American history long prevalent in Britain, Alistair Hennessy contributes to a clearer understanding of historical processes which have too often been considered as unique to the United States.
In his introductory chapter to The Comparative Approach to American History edited in 1968, C. Vann Woodward commented on the striking paradox of a nation that professes historical parochialism at the same time as it practices cosmopolitan involvement. Subsequent contributions compared United States history with that of many other parts of the world, especially Europe, but there was an odd reluctance to make comparisons with the rest of the Americas. The American Revolution, for instance, was discussed with scarcely any mention of the independence movements in Central and South America which, between 1808 and 1830, liberated an area three times the size of the United States.
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