Journal of American HistoryVol. 93 Iss. 4 (2007)
"The Cause of Her Grief": The Rape of a Slave in Early New England
Wendy Anne Warren
Warren spins a haunting, poignant, and unforgettable narrative out a short excerpt from a seventeenth century travelogue. While the essay reveals the social dynamics of seventeenth century New England, Warren is correct when acknowledging that the work is a commentary on the writing of history as much as anything else.
"A Rare Phenomenon of Philological Vegetation": The Word "Contraband" and the Meanings of Emancipation in the United States
Kate Masur
Masur demonstrates how General Benjamin F. ButlerÍs description of fugitive slaves as contraband of war exposed the fraught status of blacks during the Civil War. Although often redundant, MasurÍs analysis of grassroots sentiments may well balance the existing historiographical preoccupation with ideological treatises.
The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti: A Global History
Lisa McGirr
McGirr successfully uses the trial and execution of Sacco and Vanzetti to illustrate the global networks of radicalism and to demonstrate the importance of the United States in the mind of global radicals.
REVIEWED BY
Ben Wright
If you have questions or comments, or if you would like to submit a review of a journal, please send an email to Ben Wright at bgw2108@columbia.edu.