In the Past Lane: Historical Perspectives on American Culture

Author of more than a score of books, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning People of Paradox, Kammen brings to this new text his perceptive intelligence and intellectual experience in a rich, sometimes overwhelming collection of nine essays. In the author's words, the book is ""a work about the historian's vocation, about history and culture in American public life, and about changing perceptions of the past in the United States."" Kammen's primary objective is to trace the evolving presumptions and prejudices that shape how we understand. He tackles gender prejudice among academics; the changing place of theology, which ""as a mode of understanding, came to be at least partially supplanted by history as a significant way of knowing"" and what he calls the ""heritage syndrome""--""an impulse to remember what is attractive or flattering and to ignore all the rest"" among others. Kammen is not shy of giving his opinions: he argues for ""cultural federalism--government support for cultural needs along with collaboration at all levels"" as a possible antidote to a kind of parochial anti-intellectualism. Business people, he contends, should become not just patrons of art, but patrons of history, saving important structures and fostering historical education. Of multiculturalism in museums he notes that ""there is a genuine risk of over-reaction that could result in presenting the public with visions of a segmented society utterly lacking in cohesion."" Because some of the essays were adapted from speeches for specialized audiences, In the Past Lane is sometimes more esoteric and demanding than is the norm for a general trade book. But the insights here will help any reader be a more responsible and productive user of our American history and culture. (Sept.)