Have a unifying rather than a divisive story. Tell the story of our country and away that sell shorter National Greatness nor white watches are national since land of hope is the name of the book. Lots of questions or politics. It might be in an unusual way this book is clearly intended to speak to just a moment pretty slick could it be a better time to hear from him about how to approach these questions. He is first and foremost a teacher and he holds chair in the street of liberty at the university of oklahoma and is admired by scores of students past and present also one of the great writers of American History. His book the master himself, the master list rather than in the modern american was judged bush book for the organization of american historians the best. Among other wonderful books from American History are the students good view of u. S. History in fighting the human person in the market fast, and why place matters. Geography and civic life in modern american printed is also an historian active in the service of his country. He served for 11 years and the National Council of humanities. It is the Advisory Board of the National Endowment of humanities and he is a member of the u. S. I tell you in order to challenge myself to pronounce that word. The Commission Planning the official public commemoration of americans 250th anniversary in 2026. Bill is a graduate of st. Johns college and he received his phd in history from john hopkins and with his latest book, is made an extraordinary contribution for us to understand ourselves. Let hope is describes itself as limitation to the Great American story and it just felt will kind of gap there is been there is not exactly a shortage of books about American History course accessible narrative of the part of the american story that understands itself is an invitation to the american looking to become a fullerton citizen of this country is something that we are certainly always in need of an it will be very simple but well talk about the book orbit and he and i will then chat about it briefly and then we will invite all of you into the conversation for questions and answers. Lets welcome bill mcclay. [applause]. Bill this is the new and improved day. I am finding my way around. [laughter]. Is wonderful to be here printed this is an institution that i hold very dear and have for many years i think the fact that theyve evolved to this important post is a very good sign about the future. So i will stick this appear. Because i may not be using it. [laughter]. Youve all mentioned it in his introduction some of what i was going to say about reasons why wrote the book because for somebody in the academy to do or read a book like this is pretty insane composition. Not anything that will help your career. And it didnt seek to use it to do that did but it seems to me that are we okay push work okay. It didnt seem to me that we do have a problem. The profession, historic profession of which i am a part, as many think many advances, i dont trust a historical pass but we may do that in the questionandanswer but it made many of them particularly in articulating the experiences of the inarticulate of the marginalized of those who have been neglected by historical studies in the past. But the result which is not necessarily the intention intended result with the result has been a fragmented fractured incoherent discontinuous understanding of our path. One that they failed to convey to young people, the larger arc of that history is a you all but it. It reflects the outlook of writers like la howard, who somewhat of a questionably researched and politically and then just People History of the United States has killed almost 3m copies. Its approaching 2 million. It is been treated as this authoritative even as some of the public and private high schools out of this respectable classroom. So the gist of this, is that we are losing a general grasp from the public many of her own history. Professional American History analogy is made it, many advances in the breath of sophistication of its approaches to topics that have been neglected in the past. But what now is neglected is a broad shared historical consciousness, Public Knowledge that we need to be able to think of ourselves as a coherent and political entity and think of ourselves as citizens and to prepare people for citizenship printed not just in terms of the civic 11 understanding of the citizenship as a particular political lights and responsibilities but in the sense of membership in being members of the society, members of the country and part of a great story of which americans story is constituted. So this is a state of affairs that cannot go on without producing serious consequences. The great nation needs and deserves a great narrative printed need to convey that narrative to the rising generations and to do so effectively. If it is to sustain itself. In face the challenge that are inevitably thrown up in the future. It goes without saying that this story, this retelling cannot be a fairytale. Cant whitewash the past and it has to be truthful to be convincing but there is necessary connection between a truthful account, no necessary contradiction between the truthful account and an aspiring one especially when the subject is American History. We have ceased to provide that. Either truthful or convincing or inspiring in our schools today. So this combination of truthfulness and inspiration is really what i was after inland hope which the title itself i think begins to convey. I will pack that a little bit more quite as ago. I hope you will forgive me, i will read some passages from the book beginning and give you the sensor the feel of it, the flavor of it read that the tone an addiction of it. Because that was one of the hardest thing was to find the right pitch that would be accessible to High School Students because after all they are ultimately, ultimately this is Adult High School textbook. I am happy and delighted and amazed at the reception that it has gotten with the general readers with the adult reading public for lack of a better term. It is really meant for young people. It is meant to compete with the large enough and hyper extensive textbooks there and offer. So the underlying aim for the book are clear and the outset which is an epigraph that i borrowed from an essay. Right american writers, for younger people probably havent encountered that name. I recommend him. His great radical in the 1920s. In the fullness of time, came to a more vivid appreciation of this country in a profound sense of connection to his past. Then we just redo from this essay by the way this passage, the title of the book was the first think that a road which was sort of unusual. Never been there before the slicing wrote but i sort of epitomizes this title, so i put up my computer monitor and linda hope and headed there in front of me then the other thing i added was this. It required from the side propped up by a piece of cardboard this monitor. Every generation rewrites the path, and easy times histories or less of an ornamental art but in times of danger, were driven to the written record by pressing need to find answers to the riddles of today read we need to know what kind of firm ground other man belonging to generations before us have found to stand on. Despite the changing conditions, theyre not very different from ourselves and their thoughts with the grandfathers of our thoughts they managed to make decision situations to meet them sometimes quite lightheartedly in some measures to make their own prevail. We need to know how they did it. And this is continuing with those passages. This part i was especially interested in. In times of change in danger there is a quicks sense of fear which has reasoning and a sense of continuity generations gone before and can stretch like a lifeline across the scary presence and get his past that idiot dilution of the exceptional now read capital and now that blocks the thinking. That is why in times like ours when old institutions are caving in and replaced by news institutions, not necessarily in accord with preconceived hopes, political thought has to look backwards as well as for words. Quite appropriate incident. To our moment. Note that passage marked out that they are arguing in a sense of living connection to the past it can be studying and reassuring, a source of subsidence even in times of great of people. In a sense that sense of connection with the past can free us. From the illusion we live in a time so different from all of their times as to be completely without president s from the illusion that the past has nothing whatsoever to teach us. The struggle against pretty world road to think about this study flow, dramatic and unsettling events and Technological Innovations from the past irrelevant in young people think are especially tempted it to think this way because frankly they have less experience that means i have nothing but the present in comparison to pass those disparities, is in it didnt dilution, the idiotic but call it an idiot dilution recommends the capitals of the past something necessary not nearly desirable. It should add to the weight of these observations and to tell you the years in which he wrote these words. 1941. This was a truly frightening moment in the history of the world and into the western world particularly. His work and control of the european continent. Very faint european civilization seem to hang with red. He couldve been forgiven for thinking at this time that the past in the midst of this unprecedented war, at the past had nothing to teach such a moment. But thats not what he said printed part of the point of looking backwards, as he counsels us to do, is that in doing so we not only recover a sense we came from but to free ourselves from our mental imprisonment in the present. This provincial conviction that we have that what we are seeing and experiencing and believing today that represents the pinnacle of Human Knowledge and human possibility. The natural or inevitable state of human beings. When we learn to incorporate the best of her imagination, even as we become far less accessible to idiot delusions. Become better people and more appreciative citizens. So we need a different kind of textbook on the does not condescend to the past. But instead reaches back to it seemed to recover the groups of our great story and present that in its fullness. Not nearly as brutality and failure for not neglecting those things either. But it was triumphant grantor and world historical exceptional importance. Needs to take into account the importance of history and shared memories and make possible our cohesion as people and make it possible for us to Work Together towards the achievement of common goals and common goods needs to teach us how to balance criticism with appreciation, an old road i like very much. Take into account the perennial challenge as well as the conditioning role of circumstances and context. In the making of laws in the context of policy and politics. Above all it needs to understand historical knowledge is an essential element of the life of the citizens and knowledge not only of institutions and rights, put a sense of membership. Both belonging and obligation. In addition the book is unusual and the extent that it asked its Young Readers to reflect on the meaning of the past. Try to show them how to think historically, understand that history is not just an indisputable and selfexplanatory details and instead histories are reflective past and calls to the depth of our humanity. Does not tell us what to think about the past and almost never presents us with a simple morality play. Fitting white hats against black cats. Means learning to appreciate complexity, once in context. The circumstances in which historical actors are constrained to act. Means asking questions and asking them again and again and again asking fresh questions at the expense of life causes fresh questions to horizon runs. We talk now about the books more specific distinctive. First of all, this is a book. The tangible physical object rather than intangible collection of pixels on a flickering sprain. Thanks to my publisher, wonderful efforts in the meat into a very handsome book. I do take credit for the selection of the cover art. It is a handsome book one that i hope the people continue to have personal libraries, the future that it will make its way into theirs. Their family collections. By taking a stand with the permanence of the traditional printed and bound the book, i developed, stands against the growing tendency of publishers and School Systems to rely on digital materials only. In confined students experiences of reading to the ever more omnipresence, screens as you will see this as a matter of no small visual significance. It can be altered in the blinking of night. In the permanence of this book a printed book, land of hope, of the durability of the subject, is addressed. Also land of hope was not written by a committee although youre looking at the committee. It was put together like a hostage no, it was meant to please different constituencies and Interest Groups stakeholders and Political Action committees and all the other local interested parties. The book was written by me. I love myself for having a fully automatic without a gang of graduate students or research assisting process. The book reflects that fact. Readers will hope, here in its pages the human voice of an actual author. And on imitation of the voice of god and echo chambers thats been added. In the writing not been dumbed down. Knowing some cases it has been signified and i have taken pains to make it lively as possible. And i will let you be the judge printed money of the books are headed that in the title. As mentioned title was the first think i wrote about the book and it does express some of the emphases that i knew i wanted to hereto as i proceeded first there is the word land. America is the land. It is not only an idea. True, is in some respects, the expression of an idea or ideas about liberty and equality and selfrule and other such things in the universal standards that are set out in our declaration of independence. Which in turn initiated it the greater class for liberty equality etc. And nations of the world and its not the historical input that transcends athletic and the international. It is a world wide influence even to todays protests in hong kong. But todays also particular nation, the particular structure and history. Which in turn means that his particular triumphs and sufferings and the sacrifices, and our memories of these things. If they are important actors that god holds together. Precisely there and sacrifices and sufferings and victories minimal humanity and of ourselves. This alone in some cases. Arlington National Cemetery commanding our devotion, and only because of the nobility of the american idea, because the remains of our brave countrymen for some of our fathers and brothers in relatives are there. And second, there is the third version total of hope as part of the books argument printed entire western hemisphere seem to be inhabited by people who came from somewhere else. Most willingly with one great exception to that some people came in bondage for the most willingly. Restless and exploratory and unwilling to settle to the conditions from which they were born drawn by the prospect of a new beginning. Laurel freedom in the space to pursue their omissions and waste and the old world to submit. Hope is a very powerful world. The word has theological and secular as well as spiritual meanings. All of these meetings exist in abundance in america. Nothing about american better defines the ambiguity of hope. Dozens of and initially given to us tonight, cannot be a final word about them. We can never settle for that. Bucolic qualities are more american than this. And its the spiritual quality above all else. An inspirational they cannot possibly be adequately accounted for in the merely notarial terms. Of course hope and opportunity are not synonymous, and success being the land of hope sometimes being a land of disappointment. The vanished hopes. This is unavoidable for the nation that professes ideals created makes itself vulnerable when it falls short of them. Sometimes very far short of them as we often happen. But we should not be surprised by this. Just as we should not to be surprised to discover that many of our heroes turn out to be deeply flawed human beings, there flawed. To believe otherwise, is simply to be naive. Much of what passes for cynicism is a little bit more than i eat, is indeed disguised printed in america itself is far too compelling the force to be defeated for long by such passing sentiments. And finally theres a theme also in the title of story. America has a story. It is vitally important that our young people be appointed with the story. How we organize the world. We are at our core remembering a story making creatures. In stories order to place we find meaning in the flow of events. For legal history and literature. The really the refinement of the basic human need and then polls. So now let me give you a fuller sense of the book by pretending experts excerpts. Important but problematic. Perhaps the single most sensitive subject is a place of slavery in the nations past. The challenge is one of balance insisting on the waiting importance of slavery without exaggerating its enduring significance. If theres a tendency among young to imagine the slavery was you meekly American Institution but this is the fourth profound the missing conception. The United States not create racism for racial prejudice the these evils are as old as Human History. The default position of human nature. Having a history that is touched by these evils and having participated in them is also a country that has larger history of which can be proud of seeking to overcome such things. It how does one deal with the failures of the constitutions framework to deal with the problems to slightly at the time of the countrys beginning. The slavery already been deeply matched in the economy. Glaring contradictions to our nations commitment to equality and selfrule is expressed in the declaration of independence. In