Yankeedom (New England)
New Netherland (New York and New Jersey)
The Delaware Valley (Pennsylvania and Delaware)
The Chesapeake (Maryland and Virginia)
The Deep South (South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana)
The Gulf Coast (Florida and Texas)
The Ohio River Valley (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and West Virginia)
The Great Lakes (Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa)
The Heartland (Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas)
The Far West (California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska)
Each of these nations has its own unique identity and set of values, which have been shaped by its history, geography, and population. For example, Yankeedom is known for its Puritan heritage and its emphasis on education and hard work, while the Deep South is known for its history of slavery and its strong sense of tradition.
Kotkin argues that these eleven nations have been in conflict with each other since the founding of the United States, and that this conflict is the root of many of the country's political and social problems. For example, the Civil War was fought between the Deep South and the rest of the country, and the current debate over gun control is largely a conflict between rural and urban America.
Kotkin's book has been praised for its insights into the complex nature of American identity, but it has also been criticized for being too simplistic and for ignoring the ways in which the eleven nations have also cooperated and worked together. Nevertheless, "American Nations" is an important contribution to the debate about what it means to be American.
In addition to Kotkin's book, there are a number of other works that have explored the question of what it means to be American. Some of these works include:
"The American Character" by David Riesman
"The Lonely Crowd" by David Riesman, Nathan Glazer, and Reuel Denney
"Bowling Alone" by Robert D. Putnam
"Strangers in Their Own Land" by Arlie Russell Hochschild
These works have all contributed to our understanding of American identity, and they have helped to shape the ongoing conversation about what it means to be American.
