Author: Ella Hogan

I find it very fitting that Samuel P. Huntington chose to begin his book on American national identity by discussing 9/11. This date holds such significance in the eyes of almost all Americans today, which I believe allows it to be key factor when thinking of American national identity. However, like all other turning points in American history, the way people feel about this horrible tragedy differs between those who experienced it and those who learn about it in history class. For example, I was only one year old when it happened so I don’t feel the same emotions as my older relatives who all have their stories of where they were when the first tower fell, or how they commuted home with strangers from the city when the trains weren’t running.

When breaking it down, it is hard to determine what one country’s national identity really is because no matter what there will be varying views on what it truly is. Like with the 9/11 example, it is a historical event to some, while a tragic memory of losing a loved one to others. There are other points in American history that have been deemed as defining our national identity, but they don’t all hold as true today. Farther down the line, I’m sure there will be other events that people will define as shaping our national identity. So, is national identity a fluid matter that changes after key events?

The film “Shane” depicts the unique social structure of the American West in the late 1800s. The use of intense fight scenes and the classic setting of the frontier made this a classic film, but when looking at the film from a socialogical standpoint there is much more to the plot. Of course when comparing the society in the film to the one that we live in today there are many clear differences. However, there are certain similarities that one could find. There’s a social divide between the men from the saloon and the Starrett family, which causes a lot of deaths. The way conflict is handles shows a lot about a society, and the way it was depicted in the film “Shane” seems to be very representative of how the old American West is thought of today.

Tocqueville had a very good prediction of the future of Native American civilization in North America. One comment about the Natives that stood out to me was that he said their two choices were to join civilization with the Europeans, or be wiped out. He had seen firsthand many of the tribes that were wiped out, and based on his choice in language he did not seem to be happy about it. This was odd to me considering most Europeans at the time did not seem to be empathetic to the Natives who they were kicking out of their homes and killing. This chapter especially gave me a little more respect for Tocqueville because he expressed genuine concern for the dismissiveness that the Europeans gave to the Native Americans.

The way that Tocqueville mentions that the Native Americans may have been able to avoid what was essentially genocide by joining the Anglo-American civilization makes me wonder how our society would be today had that happened. Since Native Americans had (and to the ones who are still here today still have) such a unique social structure, which varied greatly between tribes, it would have been an interesting transition to form a society that united such different cultures. Considering how important certain ways of life were to the Natives it is possible that there was practically no way for the two groups to merge in harmony, but I’d like to imagine it would have been a more peaceful option than destroying the majority of all Native Americans. Had that happened, our social structure would probably be very different today with essences of Native American communities ingrained in us, some examples being different hierarchical systems or change in war tactics.

Another anecdote that I found to be interesting was the time Tocqueville came across a young white girl being cared after by a Native American woman and an African American woman. The way he described how the young girl clearly had control over the adults solely based on her race was heartbreaking in a way, because it shows how from such a young age children were taught who had the “power”, which I believe continues today with racism, because when people have certain ideas instilled in them since birth it is very hard for them to change those beliefs.

Tocqueville uses this chapter to explain how humans specifically are naturally inclined to improve on themselves to achieve perfectibility. However, he uses equality as a contemporary example of something that has shifted the ideals of perfectibility, as this is a trait that he says has been around as long as mankind. I agree with him on this based on the foundations of evolution, which includes the idea of “survival of the fittest”. All species tend to improve over time, but mankind is unique in being able to make those changes through not only physical fitness, but also through actions and behavior. Raising the issue of equality as a factor that impacts ones striving for perfectibility is important since it changes how people strive to be better. For example, before women received equal rights to men, their standards were very different in terms of solely being relied on for “household tasks”, so once women were given more rights their lives changed by opening up many more opportunities in which they could aim to become better.