H. W. Brands

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H.W. Brands
University of Texas
Notable students
Main interestsAmerican history

Henry William Brands Jr. (born August 7, 1953) is an American historian. He holds the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned his PhD in history in 1985. He has authored more than thirty books on U.S. history. His works have twice been selected as finalists for the Pulitzer Prize.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Born in 1953, Brands grew up in

Portland metropolitan area. He attended Jesuit High School, where he was a three-sport athlete and National Merit Scholar. Brands enrolled at Stanford University, where he studied mathematics and history. After receiving his undergraduate degree in history in 1975,[4] he worked for a year doing sales in his family's cutlery business before returning to Jesuit High School to teach mathematics. He taught at the high school for the next five years. While doing so he earned an MA in liberal studies from Reed College in 1978, followed by an MS in mathematics from Portland State in 1981. During this period he came to realize that he wanted to write for a living, and determined his love of history might provide an avenue for him to do so.[5] He enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin to study under historian Robert A. Divine. He wrote his dissertation on the Eisenhower administration and its foreign policy during the Cold War, earning his PhD in history in 1985.[6]

Academic career

While working on his doctorate, Brands taught social studies and math courses - world history, U.S. history, algebra, and calculus—at Kirby Hall School and

oral historian at the University of Texas School of Law. The following year he taught at Vanderbilt University. In 1987 he accepted an academic post at Texas A&M University
, where he remained for the next seventeen years. He made the daily commute from his home in Austin to teach in College Station. In 2005, he joined the faculty at the University of Texas at Austin, where he was formerly the Dickson Allen Anderson Centennial Professor of History and Professor of Government and now holds the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History.

Writings

Examples of Brands' biographical histories include his biographies on

Progressive Movement; and Franklin D. Roosevelt, covering the Great Depression, the New Deal, the Second World War, and the ascension of the U.S. as an international power.[7]

Brands at the LBJ Presidential Library in 2015

He holds a progressive view of the nation's founders and the

United States Constitution, arguing that the founders were at heart radicals who were willing to challenge the status quo in search of a better future. That being so, he believes that Americans today should not be constrained by the views of self-government held by the founders. "In revering the founders we undervalue ourselves and sabotage our own efforts to make necessary improvements in the republican experiment they began. Our love of the founders leads us to abandon and even betray the principles they fought for."[8] He believes the framers would not want the Constitution to be interpreted by the idea of original intent, and believes that we are in error when we view the founders in a "deified" way.[5] "The one thing that [the Founders] did have was an audacity to challenge conventional wisdom."[9]

Brands believes that Americans place too much importance on the individual in the White House. "We have this very interesting relationship with the presidents where the president is supposed to be one of us, but on the other hand he represents everybody so he is sort of above all of us. We make too much of presidents, but we can hardly help ourselves."[10] Though noting how the power of the presidency has increased greatly since the start of the twentieth century, when the United States emerged as a significant world power and U.S. foreign policy became far more important, Brands believes that popular focus on the president is excessive. "We have a cult of the president, where we make too big a deal of the president."[11]

In addition to his works on U.S. history, Brands has written books on the economic development of the United States and biographies of key leaders in corporate America. His books are known for their readability and narrative thrust.

The Presidents (2005), 10 Days That Unexpectedly Changed America (2006), America: The Story of Us (2010), The Men Who Built America (2012), The World Wars (2014), and The Eighties (2016). His writings have been published in several countries and translated into German, French, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.[6]

Personal life

Brands's son

U.S. foreign policy
.

Bibliography

Brands has also co-authored various editions of various history textbooks, including America: Past and Present, and American Stories: A History of The United States.

Title Year ISBN Publisher Subject matter Interviews, presentations, and reviews Comments
Cold Warriors: Eisenhower's Generation and American Foreign Policy 1988 Columbia University Press Foreign policy of the Dwight D. Eisenhower administration
The Specter of Neutralism: The United States and the Emergence of the Third World, 1947-1960 1989 Columbia University Press
India and the United States: The Cold Peace 1990
Twayne Publishers
India–United States relations
Inside the Cold War: Loy Henderson and the Rise of the American Empire, 1918-1961 1991 Oxford University Press Loy W. Henderson
Bound to Empire: The United States and the Philippines 1992 Oxford University Press Philippines–United States relations
The Devil We Knew: Americans and the Cold War 1993 Oxford University Press Cold War history of the United States
Into the Labyrinth: The United States and the Middle East, 1945-1993 1994
McGraw-Hill
United States foreign policy in the Middle East
The United States in the World: A History of American Foreign Policy 1994
Houghton Mifflin
Foreign policy of the United States
The Reckless Decade: America in the 1890s 1995 St. Martin's Press 1890s in the United States Booknotes interview with Brands on The Reckless Decade, February 25, 1996, C-SPAN
Since Vietnam: The United States in World Affairs, 1973-1995 1995
McGraw-Hill
The Wages of Globalism: Lyndon Johnson and the Limits of American Power 1995 Oxford University Press Foreign policy of the Lyndon B. Johnson administration
TR: The Last Romantic 1997 Basic Books Theodore Roosevelt Presentation by Brands on T.R.: The Last Romantic, October 18, 2002, C-SPAN
What America Owes the World: The Struggle for the Soul of Foreign Policy 1998 Cambridge University Press Foreign policy of the United States Shortlisted for the Lionel Gelber Prize, 1999[13]
The Foreign Policies of Lyndon Johnson: Beyond Vietnam 1999 Texas A&M University Press Foreign policy of the Lyndon B. Johnson administration Edited by Brands
Masters of Enterprise: Giants of American Business from John Jacob Astor and J. P. Morgan to Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey 1999 Free Press
Critical Reflections on the Cold War: Linking Rhetoric and History 2000 Texas A&M University Press Edited by Brands and Martin J. Medhurst
The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin 2000 Doubleday Benjamin Franklin Presentation by Brands on The First American, October 5, 2000, C-SPAN Finalist for the 2001
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography[14]
The Use of Force after the Cold War 2000 Texas A&M University Press Edited by Brands
The Selected Letters of Theodore Roosevelt 2001
Cooper Square Press
Theodore Roosevelt Edited by Brands
The Strange Death of American Liberalism 2001 Yale University Press
The Age of Gold: The California Gold Rush and the New American Dream 2002 Doubleday
California Gold Rush
Presentation by Brands on The Age of Gold, September 19, 2002, C-SPAN
Woodrow Wilson 2003 Times Books Woodrow Wilson American Presidents series
Lone Star Nation: The Epic Story of the Battle for Texas Independence 2004 Doubleday
Andrew Jackson: His Life and Times 2005 Doubleday Andrew Jackson Presentation by Brands on Andrew Jackson: A Life and Times, October 9, 2005, C-SPAN
Presentation by Brands on Andrew Jackson: A Life and Times, November 8, 2013, C-SPAN
The Money Men: Capitalism, Democracy, and the Hundred Years' War Over the American Dollar 2006
W. W. Norton
Interview with Brands on The Money Men, October 29, 2006, C-SPAN
Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt 2008 Doubleday Franklin D. Roosevelt, Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, first and second terms, Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, third and fourth terms Presentation by Brands on Traitor to His Class, November 10, 2008, C-SPAN
Washington Journal interview with Brands on Traitor to His Class, December 17, 2008, C-SPAN
Presentation by Brands on Traitor to His Class, Pritzker Military Museum & Library, January 22, 2009
Finalist for the 2009
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography[15]
American Colossus: The Triumph of Capitalism, 1865-1900 2010 Doubleday Economic history of the United States#Late 19th century Presentation by Brands on American Colossus at the Pritzker Military Museum & Library on November 4, 2010
American Dreams: The United States Since 1945 2010
Penguin Press
History of the United States (1945–1964), History of the United States (1964–1980), History of the United States (1980–1991), History of the United States (1991–2008) Presentation by Brands on American Dreams, June 16, 2010, C-SPAN
Greenback Planet: How the Dollar Conquered the World and Threatened Civilization as We Know It 2011 University of Texas Press United States dollar, International use of the U.S. dollar
The Murder of Jim Fisk for the Love of Josie Mansfield 2011
Anchor Books
Jim Fisk, Josie Mansfield American Portraits series
The Heartbreak of Aaron Burr 2012
Anchor Books
Aaron Burr Presentation by Brands on The Heartbreak of Aaron Burr, May 10, 2012, C-SPAN American Portraits series
The Man Who Saved the Union: Ulysses Grant in War and Peace 2012 Doubleday Ulysses S. Grant, Ulysses S. Grant and the American Civil War, Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant Presentation by Brands on The Man Who Saved the Union, October 28, 2012, C-SPAN
Reagan: The Life 2015 Doubleday Ronald Reagan Presentation by Brands on Reagan: A Life, June 5, 2015, C-SPAN
Presentation by Brands on Reagan: A Life, October 17, 2015, C-SPAN
The General vs. the President: MacArthur and Truman at the Brink of Nuclear War 2016 Doubleday Relief of Douglas MacArthur Presentation by Brands on The General vs. the President, October 27, 2016, C-SPAN
Heirs of the Founders: The Epic Rivalry of Henry Clay, John Calhoun and Daniel Webster, the Second Generation of American Giants 2018 Doubleday
John Calhoun, Daniel Webster
Interview with Brands on Heirs of the Founders, March 2, 2019, C-SPAN
Dreams of El Dorado: A History of the American West 2019 Basic Books American frontier Presentation by Brands on Dreams of El Dorado, October 22, 2019, C-SPAN
The Zealot and the Emancipator: John Brown, Abraham Lincoln and the Struggle for American Freedom 2020 Doubleday John Brown, Abraham Lincoln and slavery, Abolitionism in the United States Presentation by Brands on The Zealot and the Emancipator, October 22, 2020, C-SPAN
Our First Civil War: Patriots and Loyalists in the American Revolution 2021
Anchor Books
American Revolution, Patriots, Loyalists Interview with Brands on Our First Civil War, November 15, 2021, C-SPAN
The Last Campaign: Sherman, Geronimo and the War for America 2022
Anchor Books
William Tecumseh Sherman, Geronimo, Apache Wars
Founding Partisans: Hamilton, Madison, Jefferson, Adams and the Brawling Birth of American Politics 2023 Doubleday Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams Presentation by Brands on Founding Partisans, June 30, 2023, C-SPAN

References

  1. ^ "2001 Finalists". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  2. ^ "2009 Finalists". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  3. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 17 March 2014. Nominated Finalists are selected by the Nominating Juries for each category as finalists in the competition.
  4. ^ Muscolino, Joe (2013-05-28). "Behind the Books with H.W. Brands, Author of The Man Who Saved the Union". Biographile. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  5. ^ a b C-Span In Depth interview, 3 July 2005
  6. ^ a b "H.W. Brands Biography". BookBrowse. 5 July 2011.
  7. ^ H. W. Brands (2012-08-16). "Hauenstein Lecture: The Cost of Greatness". Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  8. Atlantic Monthly
    .
  9. ^ Walker, Tim (13 September 2002). "The World as He Knows It: H.W. Brands' "The Age of Gold" is his 16th book in 15 years -- and he has only just begun". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  10. ^ H. W. Brands (2013-03-07). "Hauenstein Lecture: Persona of the Presidency". Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies. Retrieved 2014-03-12.
  11. ^ Brands, H.W. (2012-11-30). "Don't Dare to Be Great: The Paradoxes of Presidential History". SMU Center for Presidential History. Archived from the original on 2014-07-06.
  12. ^ Vognar, Chris (28 January 2011). "Interview: H.W. Brands writes history for real people". Dallas News. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  13. ^ "The Lionel Gelber Prize - 1999". The Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy in the University of Toronto. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  14. ^ "Finalist: The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, by H.W. Brands (Doubleday)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  15. ^ "Finalist: Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, by H.W. Brands (Doubleday)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved December 26, 2023.

External links