THE END OF THE MYTH

Ever since this nation's inception, the idea of an open and ever-expanding frontier has been central to American identity. It was the foundation of the United States' belief in itself as an exceptional nation—democratic, individualistic, forward-looking. Today, though, America has a new symbol: the border wall.

In THE END OF THE MYTH, acclaimed historian Greg Grandin explores the meaning of the frontier throughout the full sweep of U.S. history. For centuries, he shows, America's constant expansion—fighting wars and opening markets—served as a “gate of escape,” helping to deflect domestic political and economic conflicts outward. But this deflection meant that the country's problems, from racism to inequality, were never confronted directly. And now, the combined catastrophe of the 2008 financial meltdown and our unwinnable wars in the Middle East have slammed this gate shut, bringing political passions that had long been directed elsewhere back home.

It is this new reality, Grandin says, that explains the rise of reactionary populism and racist nationalism, the extreme anger and polarization that catapulted Trump to the presidency. America has a new symbol: the border wall. It may or may not be built, but it will survive as a rallying point, an allegorical tombstone marking the end of American exceptionalism.

Greg Grandin is the author of Fordlandia, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the National Book Critics Circle Award. His other widely acclaimed books include Empire's Workshop, Kissinger's Shadow, and The Empire of Necessity, which won the Bancroft Prize in American History. He is a professor of history at New York University.