American Biography

Catalog description

Analysis of signal figures of both genders and of different racial/ethnic backgrounds from a variety of eras and fields, from business leaders and inventors to labor leaders and social reformers, from presidents to creative artists. Perennial questions that will be addressed include what constitutes a significant life and the relative roles in a life of one's personality and choices -- and of fate -- along with such structural factors as one's race, class, gender, geographic region and particular generation. Various biographical schools of thought will also be addressed, along with variations on biography, notably autobiography and memoir.