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Re‐thinking American Exceptionalism
Author(s) -
Duquette Elizabeth
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
literature compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.158
H-Index - 4
ISSN - 1741-4113
DOI - 10.1111/lic3.12067
Subject(s) - american exceptionalism , exceptionalism , order (exchange) , literature , american literature , key (lock) , epistemology , history , aesthetics , philosophy , psychology , sociology , law , art , political science , politics , computer science , economics , computer security , finance
American exceptionalism has been an organizing concept in American literary and cultural studies for decades, but recent years have witnessed the proliferation of new approaches to this topic. After an introduction to the history of American exceptionalism, the essay traces the arguments of several key figures in this debate, especially Carl Schmitt and Giorgio Agamben, in order to provide an introduction to the utility of their claims for literary scholars.