Intellectual Life in America: A History

This historical study of intellectuals asks, for every period, who they were, how important they were, and how they saw themselves in relation to other Americans. Lewis Perry considers intellectuals in their varied historical roles as learned gentlemen, as clergymen and public figures, as professionals, as freelance critics, and as a professoriate.

Looking at the changing reputation of the intellect itself, Perry examines many forms of anti-intellectualism, showing that some of these were e...