Away Down South: A History of Southern Identity

From the 17th-century Cavaliers and the iconic "Uncle Tom's Cabin," to Civil Rights museums and contemporary debates surrounding the Confederate flag, this work offers a captivating exploration of Southern identity through the lenses of history, literature, and popular culture. In this perceptive book, James C. Cobb employs dry wit and sharp insight to elucidate how the South first became both perceived and self-identified as distinct from the rest of America. Cobb illustrates how the romanticized myth of aristocratic Cavalier origins in Southern planter society, initially supported by both Northern and Southern writers, faced challenges from abolitionist critics of all races. Following the Civil War, defeated Southern whites clung to the Cavalier legend, intertwining it with the "Lost Cause" narrative, which fueled their determined efforts to reunite with the Union on their terms. Post-World War I, authors like Ellen Glasgow and William Faulkner, along with African American writers of the "Harlem Renaissance," questioned the New South's ideology by juxtaposing the glorified Southern past with its bleak contemporary reality. The Southern self-image evolved further during the Civil Rights movement, as the collapse of white supremacy disrupted the traditional "Southern way of life." Concurrently, African Americans began to openly embrace their regional and racial identities. As the new millennium approached, the South faced another identity dilemma amid global uniformity: if Southern culture permeates everywhere, does the New South equate to a No South? This significant work by one of America's leading Southern historians stands as a masterful synthesis, seamlessly blending comprehensive scholarship with thought-provoking insights.