From West to East

California and the Making of the American Mind

• Author(s): Stephen Schwartz,
• Publisher: Free Press
• Pages: 566
• ISBN_10: 0684831341
  ISBN_13: 9780684831343
  
• Language: en
• Categories: History / United States / General , History / United States / State & Local / General , History / United States / State & Local / West (AK, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT, NV, UT, WY) , Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural & Social , Social Science / Customs & Traditions ,

Description:... In FROM WEST TO EAST Stephen Schwartz dispels the myth that American national culture developed first in the East and spread westward across the frontier. He reveals that there was a parallel American founding in 16th Century California - a truly multicultural society that produced a unique cultural mix of Spanish, Asian, European and Native American influences. Preserved by geographic isolation and fantastic natural wealth the states unique phantasmagorical 'mentality ' has become a powerful force in shaping American identity.
Schwartz chronicles the state's turbulent life from its discovery by the Spanish through the Civil War, the Great Depression and the birth of modern radicalism as a 'style' in the Beatnik revolution and the Berkeley Free Speech Movement. Bringing in some of the key figures of American history, this ambitious epic draws a vivid portrait of the near-mythical, intoxicating landscape of California.