Myth and the greatest generation : a social history of Americans in World War II / Kenneth D. Rose.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rose, Kenneth D. (Kenneth David), 1946-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

World War, 1939-1945--Social aspects--United States.

World War, 1939-1945.

United States--Social conditions--1933-1945.

United States.

Social conditions.

Physical Description:

xvii, 361 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Routledge, [2008]

Summary:

Myth and the Greatest Generation calls into question the popularly held view that the World War II era was a more honorable and patriotic time in American culture than any that has existed since. Analyzing news reports, memoirs, novels, films, and other cultural artifacts of the era, author Kenneth Rose takes a close look at the extreme stresses that occurred on both the home and battle fronts during the war to show that underneath all of the nostalgia heaped upon them by history, the people of the "greatest generation" were only human. From race riots to juvenile delinquency; from social unrest to absenteeism from wartime employment; from rampant infidelity to a blossoming American black market, Myth and the Greatest Generation shows us that the picturesque revision of the World War II era that Americans have become comfortable with is far from historical fact, and that the best way to honor survivors of the "Good War" is to see them clearly.

Contents:

World War II Timeline xiii

Part I Americans Abroad

1 Fairness, Savagery, Delight, Trauma, and Vice 11

2 Combat Remembered 45

3 Why We Fight 61

Part II Americans at Home

4 Gearing Up for War 81

5 The Home Front and Its Discontents 105

6 Life at the Margins 129

Part III Americans and the Culture of World War II

7 Popular Culture 163

8 The Literature of War 185

Part IV Americans and the End of the War

9 Haunted Forests and Death Camps, Kamikazes and Atomic Bombs 207

10 Going Home 225.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 257-342) and index.

ISBN:

9780415956765

0415956765

9780415956772

0415956773

OCLC:

79861180