World Literary Awards

← Back to Home

James T. Patterson

ジェームズ・ティー・パターソン

James T. Patterson

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1935-02-12 （Old Lyme, Connecticut, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
Historian, Professor
Active Years
1964-
Affiliations
Indiana University, Brown University (Ford Foundation Professor of History), University of Oxford (Harold Vyvyan Harmsworth Visiting Professor)

Education

Hotchkiss School
Country: United States
Preparatory school (secondary education)
Williams College
History
Degree: B.A.
Year of Graduation: 1957
Country: United States
Bachelor's degree (1957)
Harvard University
History
Degree: Ph.D. (Ph.D.)
Year of Graduation: 1964
Country: United States
M.A. (1961), Ph.D. (1964)

Awards

Frederick Jackson Turner Award
1966
Work: Congressional Conservatism and the New Deal: The Growth of the Conservative Coalition in Congress, 1933–1939
Organization: Organization of American Historians
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellowship
1968
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
Bancroft Prize
1997
Work: Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945–1974
Organization: Columbia University (Bancroft Prize)
Result: 受賞
Indiana University Teaching Award
Organization: Indiana University
Result: 受賞
Ohioana Award
1972
Work: Mr. Republican: A Biography of Robert A. Taft
Organization: Ohioana Library
Result: 受賞
National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship
Organization: National Endowment for the Humanities
Result: 受賞（複数回）

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945–1974

1996 American modern history (synthesis)

A wide-ranging synthesis of U.S. history from 1945 to 1974 covering political, cultural, and economic developments; praised for balance and readability.

Postwar AmericaPolitical historySocial change

The Dread Disease: Cancer and Modern American Culture

1987 Social history / History of medicine

Traces American societal responses to cancer from the 1880s to the 1980s, examining fear, social tensions, and the intersection of medicine and culture.

History of medicineSocial responseCultural history

Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush v. Gore

2005 Contemporary political history

An analytical history of U.S. politics from the Watergate era through the 2000 Bush v. Gore election.

Political changeContemporary history

Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its Troubled Legacy

2001 Legal history / Civil rights history

Examines the historical significance of Brown v. Board and the difficulties and legacy associated with its implementation.

Civil rightsHistory of educationLegal history

Freedom Is Not Enough: The Moynihan Report and America's Struggle over Black Family Life from LBJ to Obama

2010 Social history / Civil rights history

Uses the Moynihan Report as a focal point to trace political and social debates over Black family life from the 1960s through the Obama era.

Family policyRaceSocial policy

The Eve of Destruction: How 1965 Transformed America

2012 Contemporary history / year-focused history

Focuses on the year 1965 and argues how events of that year transformed American society and politics.

1960sSocial changePolitics

Mr. Republican: A Biography of Robert A. Taft

1972 Biography / Political history

A political biography of Robert A. Taft. Recipient of the Ohioana Award.

BiographyConservative politics

Congressional Conservatism and the New Deal: The Growth of the Conservative Coalition in Congress, 1933–1939

1967 Political history

Analyzes the formation and impact of the conservative coalition in Congress during the New Deal era. Winner of the Frederick Jackson Turner Award.

New DealCongressional politics

Bibliography

  • 1967 Congressional Conservatism and the New Deal
  • 1972 Mr. Republican: A Biography of Robert A. Taft
  • 1987 The Dread Disease: Cancer and Modern American Culture
  • 1996 Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945–1974
  • 2001 Brown v. Board of Education
  • 2005 Restless Giant
  • 2010 Freedom Is Not Enough
  • 2012 The Eve of Destruction

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Narrative, readable scholarly proseMeticulous research based on primary sources
Recurring Motifs
Intersection of political and social historyIntersection of medical history and cultureRace relations and education

Legacy

James T. Patterson is a historian known for wide-ranging, balanced, and readable works on postwar American history and other topics. He has influenced both scholars and general readers and received major awards such as the Bancroft Prize.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame

Archives

  • Brown University archives (possible collection of related materials)

Quotes

  • The historian helps people understand the 'pastness of the past.' We do this with thorough research from original sources. I don't believe that history can be instrumental as a guideline as to how you should act. But it will help you understand the immense variety and oddity of human nature.
    Source: Hotchkiss School article (quoted) (2011)

Trivia

  • His father was J. Tyler Patterson, who served as speaker of the Connecticut State House of Representatives.
  • After earning his B.A. at Williams College, he worked as a reporter for the Hartford Courant.
  • Taught at Brown University from 1972 to 2002 and held the Ford Foundation Professorship of History.
  • Won the 1997 Bancroft Prize for 'Grand Expectations.'