James Wright Lecture in honor of Veterans Day - 4:30 pm on Friday, 11/11/11

Remembering Those “who have borne the battle”

Abraham Lincoln stressed our nation's obligation to all "who have borne the battle." It has been historically, and continues to be today, an obligation unevenly met. The historic understandings Americans have had of their wars, the narrative of the romanticized citizen soldier, the range of perceptions of the nature and result of the conflicts, the abstracting of sacrifice and even heroism, these finally influence the view of those who have fought. Our current wars and our current warriors do not fit easily into the dominant narrative of the American way of war.  This has consequences for those who are fighting these wars.

  • Who has fought in America’s wars?
  • How have Americans viewed and remembered those who have fought in the country’s wars?
  • How do veterans of our current wars fit into the dominant historical narrative?

Join us on November 11, 2011 at 4:30 pm in Room 3, Rockefeller Center at Dartmouth for the Rockefeller Center public program: 

with guest speaker – James Wright
President Emeritus and Eleazar Wheelock Professor of History,
Dartmouth College