Myth America, Vol. 1

The idea for Myth America grew out of our won teaching experiences. In continuously dealing with students who for the most part were beginning their collegiate study of American history, we found that a thematic approach to the nation’s past was stimulating. The theme of myth as threads within the diverse tapestry of cultural experience proved to be especially engaging.

The selected historical myths discussed and analyzed in Myth America can best be understood as a series of false beliefs about America’s past. They are false beliefs, however, that have been accepted as true and acted upon as real, and in that acting they have acquired truth. Therefore, myths remain both true and false simultaneously. In fact, the making of myths is a process by which a culture structures its world and perpetuates its grandest dreams.

Patrick Gerster is Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences at San Jose City College.

Nicholas Cords is Professor Emeritus at Lakewood Community College/Century College.