Publisher's Synopsis
The idea that the cultural history of the United States has been shaped by religion(s) is a truism few would question. Scholars in American Studies, however, have been reluctant to engage this issue in a manner appropriate to its significance and complexity. This volume of scholarly articles approaches the challenges posed by the topic "religion in the United States" from an interdisciplinary perspective, examining the ways in which religious heterogeneity, a multitude of religious practices and holy scriptures - as well as resistance to such religiosity - are interwoven with American literature, culture, and history. The contributions address three general areas of interest: evangelical empowerment in the United States since the 1970s, religious interventions in major nineteenth-century American cultural conflicts, and contemporary negotiations of national/transnational narratives of religion and spirituality in fiction, film, and performance.
