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Nature's Nation
Literary Criticism
- GenresAmericana
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1967
About the author
Perry Miller
114 books20 followersPerry Miller was an American intellectual historian and Harvard University professor. He was an authority on American Puritanism, and one of the founders of what came to be known as 'American Studies'. Alfred Kazin once referred to him as "the master of American intellectual history."
In his most famous book, The New England Mind: The Seventeenth Century (1939), Miller adopted a cultural approach to illuminate the worldview of the Puritans, unlike previous historians who employed psychological and economic explanations of their beliefs and behavior.
At Harvard, he directed numerous PhD dissertations; among his most notable students were historians Bernard Bailyn and Edmund Morgan. Margaret Atwood dedicated her famous book The Handmaid's Tale to Perry Miller. He had been a mentor to her at Harvard.
His major works included:
• (1933) Orthodoxy in Massachusetts, 1630-1650
• (1939) The New England Mind: The Seventeenth Century
• (1949) Jonathan Edwards
• (1953) The New England Mind: From Colony to Province
• (1953) Roger Williams: His Contribution to the American Tradition
• (1956) Errand into the Wilderness
• (1956) The American Puritans [editor]
• (1957) The American Transcendentalists, their Prose and Poetry
• (1957) The Raven and the Whale: Poe, Melville and the New York Literary Scene
• (1958) Consciousness in Concord: The Text of Thoreau’s Hitherto “Lost Journal”
• (1961) The Legal Mind in America: from Independence to the Civil War
• (1965) The Life of the Mind in America: From the Revolution to the Civil War
In his most famous book, The New England Mind: The Seventeenth Century (1939), Miller adopted a cultural approach to illuminate the worldview of the Puritans, unlike previous historians who employed psychological and economic explanations of their beliefs and behavior.
At Harvard, he directed numerous PhD dissertations; among his most notable students were historians Bernard Bailyn and Edmund Morgan. Margaret Atwood dedicated her famous book The Handmaid's Tale to Perry Miller. He had been a mentor to her at Harvard.
His major works included:
• (1933) Orthodoxy in Massachusetts, 1630-1650
• (1939) The New England Mind: The Seventeenth Century
• (1949) Jonathan Edwards
• (1953) The New England Mind: From Colony to Province
• (1953) Roger Williams: His Contribution to the American Tradition
• (1956) Errand into the Wilderness
• (1956) The American Puritans [editor]
• (1957) The American Transcendentalists, their Prose and Poetry
• (1957) The Raven and the Whale: Poe, Melville and the New York Literary Scene
• (1958) Consciousness in Concord: The Text of Thoreau’s Hitherto “Lost Journal”
• (1961) The Legal Mind in America: from Independence to the Civil War
• (1965) The Life of the Mind in America: From the Revolution to the Civil War
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 5, 2013
This book consists of a collection of historian Perry Miller's classic and previously unpublished essays, intending a synthesis of Miller's "central ideas and his scholarly principles." The compilation traces the development of an American intellectual identity from the Puritans to the nature-centered romanticism of Emerson, Thoreau, and Melville. Miller's writings are strongly situated within a context of religious conflict, controversy,and uncertainty that aims to dispel nationalistic myths. A significant work for historiography, but not the most animated reading experience.
March 5, 2024
3/5 Stars (%55/100)
It was okay in general. I do agree with Miller's opinions and some of them were really interesting. Since nature has a really important place in American history and culture, it is nice to find a very informative source. Miller explores how the American landscape has influenced the development of national identity, literature, art, and philosophy. He argues that from the earliest settlers to the modern era, Americans have had a profound and complex connection to nature, which has shaped their beliefs, values, and institutions. Miller traces this relationship through various historical periods, highlighting key figures and movements such as the Transcendentalists and the conservation movement. He contends that understanding America's "nature nation" is essential for comprehending its cultural and intellectual history.
It was okay in general. I do agree with Miller's opinions and some of them were really interesting. Since nature has a really important place in American history and culture, it is nice to find a very informative source. Miller explores how the American landscape has influenced the development of national identity, literature, art, and philosophy. He argues that from the earliest settlers to the modern era, Americans have had a profound and complex connection to nature, which has shaped their beliefs, values, and institutions. Miller traces this relationship through various historical periods, highlighting key figures and movements such as the Transcendentalists and the conservation movement. He contends that understanding America's "nature nation" is essential for comprehending its cultural and intellectual history.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews