Using W. Truettner (ed.) The West as America as a source of images, consider the ‘dream’ of America conveyed in the Columbus paintings, particularly those by Emanuel Leutze ( e.g. Columbus Before The Queen, 1843) and Peter Rothermel (Columbus Before The Queen, 1841; What sense of the ‘New World’ is created here and how? Look at the figures in the painting and their relationships – what do they suggest of the connotations of Columbus’s role? See the West as America site for various materials associated with this exhibition, including reviews, discussions, and essays.
Discuss the concept of ideology in relation to these paintings: ‘Ideology... is the embracing factor of our investigation... Ideologies, like myths, are based on a historical agenda that can be made to reveal itself. When viewed through a new perspective, images often yield this agenda—one taken for granted and therefore never acknowledged by nineteenth-century viewers.’ (West as America)
Using a presidential inaugural address or other major speech, analyse its use of rhetoric and in particular the different ways it draws upon certain ‘mythic’ perceptions of America. What images does it use? What references to the dream, to the future, to the people? Helpful examples may be found at PresidentialRhetoric.com.
Some have argued that hybridity represents the best hope for America as a diverse culture. Discuss the arguments for and against this position, using a range of examples. Use Chapter 2 as well.
How has any Hollywood film explored the concept of ‘new beginnings’ and what ideological implications emerge as a result? (Such diverse films as Trading Places, Sleepless in Seattle, Grand Canyon, or Crashcould be used.)
How does Sayles’s film Lone Starexamine relations between history, power and identity?
Examine how landscape has been used as a powerful aspect of the American ‘national narrative’ using a range of appropriate sources.
The New Americans – An excellent resource for examining specific immigrant stories in more detail.
