Liberty and Power: The Politics of Jacksonian America / Edition 2

by Harry L. Watson

Overview

As an engaging and persuasive survey of American public life from 1816 to 1848, Harry L. Watson's Liberty and Power remains a landmark achievement. Now updated to address twenty-five years of new scholarship, the book brilliantly interprets the exciting political landscape that was the age of Jackson-a time that saw the rise of strong political parties and an increased popular involvement in national politics. In this enduring and impressive work, Watson examines the tension between liberty and power that both characterized the period and formed part of its historical legacy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780809065479
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	05/02/2006
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	5.49(w) x 8.39(h) x 0.74(d)

About the Author

Harry L. Watson, a professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is the author of Jacksonian Politics and Community Conflict and An Independent People.

Editorial Reviews

This is a superb book-indeed, a model of its kind.” —Thomas P. Slaughter, Rutgers University

“A splendid achievement, sane, balanced, beautifully written.” —Michael F. Holt, University of Virginia

From the Publisher

Despite its subtitle, this is much more than just another study of Jacksonian-era politics. Instead, Watson has integrated recent literature and traditional themes to produce a persuasive and well-written survey of public life from 1816 to 1848. He shows how social, cultural, and economic factors interacted with politics, and stresses as a major theme the tension between liberty and power that both characterized the period and forms part of its historical legacy. His explanations of republican theory and the fight over the Bank of the United States are particularly clear, and there are also good sections on slavery, the Indians, and the changing role of women. Recent scholarship has dated well-known previous surveys of Jacksonian America. For now, this should be the volume of choice. For most libraries.-- Jonathan D. Sarna, Hebrew Union Coll.-Jewish Inst. of Religion, Cincinnati

Library Journal