Synopsis
A social history of Christmas, including an exploration of the source of traditions like the Christmas tree, a history of the celebration through the ages, and subversive readings of such seasonal classics as "A Visit From St. Nicholas".
| Details | | Publication Date: | 1996-11-01 |
| Size | | Length: | 381 pages | | Height: | 9.5 in | | Width: | 7.3 in | | Thickness: | 1.2 in | | Weight: | 25.6 oz |
Publisher's Note
Americans who complain about the modern-day commercialization of Christmas may be surprised to discover that dissatisfaction with the way the holiday has been observed is by no means a new phenomenon. In 1659 the Massachusetts General Court declared the celebration of Christmas to be a criminal offense. What the Puritans were trying to suppress was a season of excess rooted in the ancient agricultural cycle - rowdy public displays of eating and drinking, mockery of established authority, aggressive begging, and boisterous invasions of the homes of the wealthy. In The Battle for Christmas, Stephen Nissenbaum shows how in the early nineteenth century, with the growth of cities, these Christmas-season carnival revels became even more threatening as they turned into gang violence and even riots. Attempting to get Christmas out of the streets, a group of New Yorkers - Washington Irving among them - led a movement to transform it into a new style of celebration that would take place within the secure confines of the family circle, and be concerned especially with the happiness of children. We learn how two classic texts helped refashion the holiday: Clement Clarke Moore's "A Visit from St. Nicholas" and Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. And we are shown the child-centered Christmas epitomized by the family gatherings and gift-exchanges of the Sedgwick family in nineteenth-century Massachusetts and New York. The Battle for Christmas also explores the not-always-proud history of Christmas charity, and the story of Christmas among the slave community in the antebellum South - a celebration reminiscent of the carnival tradition. Throughout Nissenbaum looks at what America's way of celebratingChristmas over the years reveals about the broad forces transforming our culture. And he shows us as well how it has been both an instrument and a mirror of social change in America.
In 1659 the Massachusetts Bay General Court declared the celebration of Christmas to be a criminal offense. What the Puritans were trying to suppress was a holiday marked by boisterous invasions of the homes of wealthy. As recently as the early 19 century, Christmas reveling often resulted in violence and riots. In this book, Nissenbaum explores the not-always-proud history of Christmas in American culture. 46 illustrations.
Industry Reviews
"[A] timely reminder that Dikensian nostalgia was itself a commercial product, pandering to a modern Christmas spirit that from its earliest 19-th century beginnings constituted the literary heart of a secular shopping spree.
New York Times Book Review - Frances Stead Sellers (12/08/1996)
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