Themes in North Dakota History
In his History of North Dakota, historian Elwyn B. Robinson identified themes in North Dakota history:
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- Dependence
- Radicalism
- Economic disadvantage
- The "too-much mistake"
- Adjustment
Robinson's history is to date the only comprehensive history of the state, but his analysis has drawn fire. His assertion of a "too-much mistake" in particular, is controversial. By this Robinson meant that North Dakota had too many farms, railroad miles, roads, towns, banks, schools, government institutions, churches, and people for suitable living in a subhumid grassland. Either the state will revert to a natural grassland, have a future similar to its past, or come to grips with the "too-much-mistake" and rationally control government and the advantages of new technology. Some politicians, including Joe Satrom, blame the book for (un)inspiring a generation of leaders to lower their expectations for the state's future.
The land has been a central theme in North Dakota literature. In fiction, poetry, autobiography, drama, history, travel publications and websites, the same themes appear over and over regarding the land: its beauty, unforgivingness, solace, starkness, sameness, and the hard work it requires to survive and thrive. Many of the state's writers focus on the relationship of the people and the land. The landscape has barely changed since first impressions were recorded, and the relationship between people and land has likewise changed little.
Read more about this topic: History Of North Dakota
Famous quotes containing the words themes, north and/or history:
“In economics, we borrowed from the Bourbons; in foreign policy, we drew on themes fashioned by the nomad warriors of the Eurasian steppes. In spiritual matters, we emulated the braying intolerance of our archenemies, the Shi’ite fundamentalists.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)
“The North American system only wants to consider the positive aspects of reality. Men and women are subjected from childhood to an inexorable process of adaptation; certain principles, contained in brief formulas are endlessly repeated by the press, the radio, the churches, and the schools, and by those kindly, sinister beings, the North American mothers and wives. A person imprisoned by these schemes is like a plant in a flowerpot too small for it: he cannot grow or mature.”
—Octavio Paz (b. 1914)
“America is the only nation in history which miraculously has gone directly from barbarism to degeneration without the usual interval of civilization.”
—Georges Clemenceau (1841–1929)