09-23-2008, 07:01 PM
Sorkin can write better on a three-day 'shroom and crack hangover than most people can on a cup of coffee after a good night's sleep on the best hour of their day. I'm a huge fan of Sorkin's dialogue-writing skills, his stuff sparkles off the page.
The term American Exceptionalism has been so frequently misinterpreted, misunderstood, removed from its origins, or intentionally distorted, few in contemporary society recognize its original meaning. Lately it's been used as a weapon by critics until the only the negative meaning has currency. Sorkin is educated enough to know this.
Here's the Wikipedia intro:
American exceptionalism (cf. "exceptionalism" ) refers to the belief that the United States differs qualitatively from (note: "differs from", not "is superior to" ) other developed nations, because of its national credo, historical evolution, or distinctive political and religious institutions.
Certain persons view American exceptionalism as a product of veiled nationalistic chauvinism. The term can also be used in a negative sense by critics of American policies to refer to a willful nationalistic ignorance of faults committed by the American government. (See Anti-Americanism, Americanophobia, intolerance, racism, and ethnocentrism.) ...
The term was first used in respect of the United States by Alexis de Tocqueville in 1831...
...Thomas Paine's Common Sense for the first time expressed the belief that America was not just an extension of Europe but a new land, a country of nearly unlimited potential and opportunity that had outgrown the British mother country. These sentiments laid the intellectual foundations for the Revolutionary concept of American exceptionalism and were closely tied to republicanism, the belief that sovereignty belonged to the people, not to a hereditary ruling class. Alexis de Tocqueville stressed the advanced nature of democracy in America, arguing that it infused every aspect of society and culture, at a time (1830s) when democracy was not in fashion anywhere else... ....
That's just a small clip. There's an interesting debate about the pros and cons, and the different shadings of the meaning that evolved over the centuries. As seen in Wikipedia's exploration of its history:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Ex...ite_note-0
I'd understood it to mean our particular style of Western democracy doesn't automatically translate anywhere else you try to plant it, that there's something inherently unique about how it developed here (with a strong foundation in English Law, built by Enlightenment-era thinkers, enriched by immigrant who brought their own traditions and ambitions here) that isn't automatically reproducible elsewhere, But I also recognize its been used as justification for all kinds of nefarious things done in the name of liberty or prosperity or divine superiority, etc., until finally, the meaning of the term is as complicated and contradictory as America is.
sorkin is a valueable critic, but also a patriotic fan of history, as reflected in his scripts for west wing.
The term American Exceptionalism has been so frequently misinterpreted, misunderstood, removed from its origins, or intentionally distorted, few in contemporary society recognize its original meaning. Lately it's been used as a weapon by critics until the only the negative meaning has currency. Sorkin is educated enough to know this.
Here's the Wikipedia intro:
American exceptionalism (cf. "exceptionalism" ) refers to the belief that the United States differs qualitatively from (note: "differs from", not "is superior to" ) other developed nations, because of its national credo, historical evolution, or distinctive political and religious institutions.
Certain persons view American exceptionalism as a product of veiled nationalistic chauvinism. The term can also be used in a negative sense by critics of American policies to refer to a willful nationalistic ignorance of faults committed by the American government. (See Anti-Americanism, Americanophobia, intolerance, racism, and ethnocentrism.) ...
The term was first used in respect of the United States by Alexis de Tocqueville in 1831...
...Thomas Paine's Common Sense for the first time expressed the belief that America was not just an extension of Europe but a new land, a country of nearly unlimited potential and opportunity that had outgrown the British mother country. These sentiments laid the intellectual foundations for the Revolutionary concept of American exceptionalism and were closely tied to republicanism, the belief that sovereignty belonged to the people, not to a hereditary ruling class. Alexis de Tocqueville stressed the advanced nature of democracy in America, arguing that it infused every aspect of society and culture, at a time (1830s) when democracy was not in fashion anywhere else... ....
That's just a small clip. There's an interesting debate about the pros and cons, and the different shadings of the meaning that evolved over the centuries. As seen in Wikipedia's exploration of its history:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Ex...ite_note-0
I'd understood it to mean our particular style of Western democracy doesn't automatically translate anywhere else you try to plant it, that there's something inherently unique about how it developed here (with a strong foundation in English Law, built by Enlightenment-era thinkers, enriched by immigrant who brought their own traditions and ambitions here) that isn't automatically reproducible elsewhere, But I also recognize its been used as justification for all kinds of nefarious things done in the name of liberty or prosperity or divine superiority, etc., until finally, the meaning of the term is as complicated and contradictory as America is.
sorkin is a valueable critic, but also a patriotic fan of history, as reflected in his scripts for west wing.