AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM

I follow many people on social media and one of those whom I respect a great deal is Robert Reich, an American academic, author and political figure. Reich's facebook page and twitter account is a rich source of humour and insight, particularly on the current political, social and economic situation in the United States. I find Reich's views to coincide with my own: hence, my appreciation of his ease in expressing these views and the accuracy of his observations. I'm not suggesting, by any means, that Reich is completely correct in his musings, but I agree with most.

Reich's credentials are impressive. He has degrees in law and economics from some of the most prestigious universities in the world. He served as Secretary of Labour ( Canadian spelling mine ) under President Bill Clinton, and has served in advisory capacities to President Obama. He is a regular contributor to some of the best publications in the world and on television. And, as mentioned above, is a regular contributor on social media.

Today, Reich tweeted a satirical piece directed to the people of Denmark, apologizing for Trump's recent musing about the purchase of Greenland from the Danes and ending with the phrase that most Americans "care deeply about the world." I came to that phrase with a jarring thud and quickly composed a polite and careful rebuttal on the thread, in which I expressed my view that, while Reich and his twitter followers may indeed "care deeply about the world", the vast majority of Americans did not. I cited my own experience with American travelers in several countries and of American travelers visiting Canada. If you log on to Robert Reich's twitter or facebook accounts, you can read my comment for yourself: I was pleased to have inspired a lengthy discussion, all of it quite civil and most agreeing with me and apologizing for the American attitude to the world, and some disagreeing, but in a most polite and interesting way. I enjoyed the discussion.

But the discussion has got me to thinking. Why do I and so many others believe that Americans have a woeful lack of knowledge of the world ? Why do Americans have the general perception that the world is, as I described it, "droll … amusing … inferior" in comparison to the United States? Why do so many Americans not bother to get passports and go to explore other parts of the world? Why do Americans fear the world so much? The answer to these questions lies in the concept of "American Exceptionalism."

American Exceptionalism ( hereafter cited as AE ) is a concept as old as America itself. The earliest settlers to America were largely Puritans, whose beliefs and world view was very Calvinistic. The framers of the US Constitution were influenced by a belief in AE. But the term really gained significance in the mid 19th and early 20th centuries. Alexis de Tocqueville used the term to try to explain why the emergent American nation was so different to most of intellectual and enlightened Europe. Later, Joseph Stalin was credited with using the term in order to describe why the United States would never be a convert to Marxism. And, most recently, President Ronald Reagan used the term several times in an effort to give voice and vision to the "Reagan Revolution" sweeping America and lasting into our present time.

Reagan's vision was taken from Lincoln and many other writers and thinkers. He was fond of using phrases like "a beacon of hope", "a shining city on a hill", and "the world's last best hope" in describing what America was and what its mission on earth was to be. It swept him into office and kept him there for two terms, and allowed for his successor, George HW Bush, to be president for one more term: an astonishing 12 years for the "Reagan Revolution" and AE to take hold. So popular and so pervasive was AE that even more liberal or moderate presidents, such as Clinton, Bush Jr. and Obama, have cited AE as a reality.

The modern interpretation of AE is as follows: America is NOT simply another nation among many on earth. America is NOT just one member of the international family of nations. It IS, in fact, the best of nations. It does more, it creates more, it thinks more than any other nation. It is inherently greater than all other nations. Its opinion matters more than any other nation. It's strength is unrivalled by others, and others must fear its power and wrath. It is a belief in the almost infallible nature of American thought and deed. And it has a divinely inspired mission to convert the rest of the world to its belief system and way of life.

That, of course, is a very broad stroke with a heavily opinionated brush. But there are those who will, I'm sure, nod their heads in full agreement with my description. In fact, my former students might remember a unit in a course I taught at GL Roberts. The course was the old ELI or English Literature course at the OAC level. One of the units in that course was entitled "The Wilderness and the Promised Land." It featured a general survey of the so-called "Covenant Theology" pervasive in American Literature as it originated from the Old Testament and in early Puritan Colonial writing right up until the modern period, with novels such as "The Great Gatsby" and "The Grapes of Wrath." I was inspired to teach this unit because of two sources: first, a course I took as an undergrad at the University of Western Ontario taught by the wonderful professor Dr. Geoffrey Rans. And second, as a collaboration with my colleagues at Roberts, notably Larry Simpson ( from whom I stole the title of the unit ), Ross Garnett and the late Geordie Guile. Those fine teachers helped my formulate the unit, and, as most young teachers do, I ran with their ideas and added my own.

Essentially, the unit's thesis was that Americans, right to the present day, consciously or unconsciously, subscribe to the notion of Americans being exceptional, indeed "chosen" for greatness. The AE allows Americans to advance, exploit and rule. They become rich, they become powerful, they become admired because of this AE. Or so they think.

There's no doubt that America has done and created many marvelous things. They are, indeed, a great nation. But they are not the only great nation on earth. And they are not the only ones who have done and created marvelous things. The world tends to shake its head when it hears Americans speak of their AE. And, in these charged times, AE has never been louder, never been more brash, never been more of a threat to the peace and stability of the whole world.

Thus, Robert Reich's promise that most Americans "care deeply about the world" rings hollow. It's interesting that Mr. Reich himself has not commented on the thread on his own tweet or facebook post. It would be most interesting to hear what he might have to say about all this AE stuff. And I would be immensely flattered if he had something to say in response to my post. I respect Mr. Reich very much …. but even he is victim of the AE.