America: Myth and Reality, 1850-1950

I have always been fascinated by the disconnection and mutual reinforcement of myth and reality in the development of the American "national character". Unlike its European antecedents, America had to develop its own mythology in tandem with the unfolding of its history. This makes it extremely difficult to separate fact from fiction, as well as collective societal beliefs from reality. In other words, it's hard to tell where art stops. Ken Burns, a master of the manipulation of images, myth, and reality has created what are essentially "photo stories" that jump back and forth over the American myth-reality gap with breathtaking facility.

I would like to present a photo story concerning the epoch in which the American Empire may be construed as undergoing its final burst of vitality before consuming itself.

The video below is titled "America: Myth and Reality, 1850-1950". The images are selected from all over the Internet; the music is the sextet arrangement of Aaron Copland's Short Symphony.