Description: FREE SHIPPING UK WIDE Patriots and Cosmopolitans by John Fabian Witt Ranging from the founding era to Reconstruction, from the making of the modern state to its post-New Deal limits, Witt illuminates the legal and constitutional foundations of American nationhood through the stories of five patriots and critics., each of whom came up against the power of national institutions to shape the directions of legal change. FORMAT Hardcover LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description Ranging widely from the founding era to Reconstruction, from the making of the modern state to its post-New Deal limits, John Fabian Witt illuminates the legal and constitutional foundations of American nationhood through the little-known stories of five patriots and critics. He shows how law and constitutionalism have powerfully shaped and been shaped by the experience of nationhood at key moments in American history. Founding Father James Wilsons star-crossed life is testament to the capacity of American nationhood to capture the imagination of those who have lived within its orbit. For South Carolina freedman Elias Hill, the nineteenth-century saga of black citizenship in the United States gave way to a quest for a black nationhood of his own on the West African coast. Greenwich Village radical Crystal Eastman became one of the most articulate critics of American nationhood, advocating world federation and other forms of supranational government and establishing the modern American civil liberties movement. By contrast, the self-conscious patriotism of Dean Roscoe Pound of Harvard Law School and trial lawyer Melvin Belli aimed to stave off what Pound and Belli saw as the dangerous growth of a foreign administrative state. In their own way, each of these individuals came up against the power of American national institutions to shape and constrain the directions of legal change. Yet their engagements with American nationhood remade the institutions and ideals of the United States even as the national tradition shaped and constrained the course of their lives. Author Biography John Fabian Witt is Professor of Law and History, Columbia University. Table of Contents Introduction: The Features of American Nationhood I. Creations The Pyramid and the Machine: Founding Visions in the Life of James Wilson II. Exits Elias Hills Exodus: Exit and Voice in the Reconstruction Nation III. Critiques Internationalist Beginnings: Crystal Eastman and the Puzzle of American Civil Liberties IV. Reactions The King and the Dean: Melvin Belli, Roscoe Pound, and the Common-Law Nation Epilogue: Law and the National Frame Notes Acknowledgments Index Review Extremely stimulating, consistently interesting. -- Christopher Tomlins, American Bar FoundationImpressive and ingenious, a model of scholarship in legal history. -- Mark Tushnet, Harvard Law SchoolAn elegantly written, broad-ranging and imaginative take on American nationalism from one of the best of the new generation of legal historians. -- Mary Dudziak, University of Southern California School of LawA must-read about fascinating individuals whose lives should be better known, since they vividly illuminate the history of American civil liberties and law. -- Nadine Strossen, President, American Civil Liberties UnionBrimming with fresh insights, a rare marriage of style and substance. -- William Forbath, University of Texas School of LawLegal historians have long debated the relationship between Americas origins as a constitutional state founded upon a legal text and its history as a nation-state animated by a pluralism of cultures and traditions. In this elegant and arresting new book, Professor John Witt describes how this interaction explains the "bounded contingency" of American legal development, which emphasizes the "the many possible paths open to legal and constitutionaldevelopment" and "the many possible national identities open to self-described Americans" that are bounded by "American nationhood." Professor Witts project charts a new course in American legal historiography by focusing on the ways in which America channeled and transformed global influences during critical periods in the nations history. * Harvard Law Review *There is no more central legal issue in debate these days than whether we are unique among the nations of the world for our structure of laws and liberties or whether we change them as convenient fashion dictates. This collection of four answers by...John Fabian Witt illuminates that question as well as provokes those of us who think we already have the answer...It does not give away the books focus to reveal that Witt does believe the American nationhood is rooted both in fundamental concepts of law and in the changing interpretation of those laws by an increasingly activist network of courts and, most provocatively, by a self-interested scrum of lawyers. Other nations are governed by laws, to be sure, Witt concedes. Yet he argues America is different. -- James Srodes * Washington Lawyer *In the study of U.S. history, legal history is often neglected. No doubt, the complex nature of the subject is one explanation. Witt, a professor of law and history at Columbia University, cracks this barrier...This informative, readable book brings forth a new perspective. -- J. J. Fox Jr. * Choice *There are some books that simply take your breath away for their daring. Patriots and Cosmopolitans is one of these. In this work the author covers the entire sweep of legal and constitutional history, from the founding generation to the late twentieth century. He tackles private law, lawyering, politics, reform, and legal theory; as well as war, peace, race, gender, and ideas of nationalism...Witt tells his stories well...His argument itself is proof that well-written and forcefully argued legal history can still elevate, inspire, and improve our thinking. -- Peter Charles Hoffer * The Historian * Review Quote There is no more central legal issue in debate these days than whether we are unique among the nations of the world for our structure of laws and liberties or whether we change them as convenient fashion dictates. This collection of four answers by...John Fabian Witt illuminates that question as well as provokes those of us who think we already have the answer...It does not give away the books focus to reveal that Witt does believe the American nationhood is rooted both in fundamental concepts of law and in the changing interpretation of those laws by an increasingly activist network of courts and, most provocatively, by a self-interested scrum of lawyers. Other nations are governed by laws, to be sure, Witt concedes. Yet he argues America is different. Details ISBN0674023609 Author John Fabian Witt Short Title PATRIOTS & COSMOPOLITANS Publisher Harvard University Press Language English ISBN-10 0674023609 ISBN-13 9780674023604 Media Book Format Hardcover Imprint Harvard University Press Subtitle Hidden Histories of American Law Place of Publication Cambridge, Mass Country of Publication United States DOI 10.1604/9780674023604 UK Release Date 2021-01-07 AU Release Date 2021-01-07 NZ Release Date 2021-01-07 Pages 416 DEWEY 973 Illustrations 8 halftones Audience Professional & Vocational Year 2007 Publication Date 2007-02-28 US Release Date 2007-02-28 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! 30 DAY RETURN POLICY No questions asked, 30 day returns! FREE DELIVERY No matter where you are in the UK, delivery is free. 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ISBN-13: 9780674023604
Book Title: Patriots and Cosmopolitans
ISBN: 9780674023604
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Publication Year: 2007
Subject: Law, History
Item Height: 210 mm
Number of Pages: 416 Pages
Language: English
Publication Name: Patriots and Cosmopolitans: Hidden Histories of American Law
Type: Textbook
Author: John Fabian Witt
Item Width: 140 mm
Format: Hardcover
