Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism
This paper analyses the commercial and institutional context in which Jeremy Belknap founded the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1791-1792. It reads his “Four Dissertations” of 1792 as a series of methodological and theoretical arguments in favor of the unique chronology and thematic content of...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Association Française d'Etudes Américaines
2020-02-01
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| Series: | Transatlantica |
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| Online Access: | http://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/13032 |
| _version_ | 1797402704057729024 |
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| author | Agnès Delahaye |
| author_facet | Agnès Delahaye |
| author_sort | Agnès Delahaye |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper analyses the commercial and institutional context in which Jeremy Belknap founded the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1791-1792. It reads his “Four Dissertations” of 1792 as a series of methodological and theoretical arguments in favor of the unique chronology and thematic content of American history. It argues that Belknap’s overall historical project is the origin of American exceptionalism as a historical practice, based on an exclusive focus on settlement and expansion as the engines of history, and on the experiences of American settlers since their arrival on the continent, as the only sources on which to build a relevant paradigm of the American character. His legacy is problematic, but it represents a crucial avenue of postcolonial inquiry, in which the structuring effects of exceptionalist historiography can be studied. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T02:28:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-eb771128c13d45eca61e60b30a467bc3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1765-2766 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T02:28:04Z |
| publishDate | 2020-02-01 |
| publisher | Association Française d'Etudes Américaines |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Transatlantica |
| spelling | doaj.art-eb771128c13d45eca61e60b30a467bc32023-12-06T15:50:25ZengAssociation Française d'Etudes AméricainesTransatlantica1765-27662020-02-01210.4000/transatlantica.13032Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American ExceptionalismAgnès DelahayeThis paper analyses the commercial and institutional context in which Jeremy Belknap founded the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1791-1792. It reads his “Four Dissertations” of 1792 as a series of methodological and theoretical arguments in favor of the unique chronology and thematic content of American history. It argues that Belknap’s overall historical project is the origin of American exceptionalism as a historical practice, based on an exclusive focus on settlement and expansion as the engines of history, and on the experiences of American settlers since their arrival on the continent, as the only sources on which to build a relevant paradigm of the American character. His legacy is problematic, but it represents a crucial avenue of postcolonial inquiry, in which the structuring effects of exceptionalist historiography can be studied.http://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/13032Jeremy BelknapexceptionalismNew Englandhistoriographyearly AmericaAtlantic history |
| spellingShingle | Agnès Delahaye Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism Transatlantica Jeremy Belknap exceptionalism New England historiography early America Atlantic history |
| title | Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism |
| title_full | Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism |
| title_fullStr | Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism |
| title_full_unstemmed | Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism |
| title_short | Jeremy Belknap and the Origins of American Exceptionalism |
| title_sort | jeremy belknap and the origins of american exceptionalism |
| topic | Jeremy Belknap exceptionalism New England historiography early America Atlantic history |
| url | http://journals.openedition.org/transatlantica/13032 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT agnesdelahaye jeremybelknapandtheoriginsofamericanexceptionalism |