Chapter 8, Summary and Analysis

"Watch Big Brother: What Textbooks Teach about the Federal Government" examines the textbooks' sycophancy when dealing with America's least noble actions. It begins by noting that there are two styles of textbooks. The "narrative" types, ten out of the twelve Loewen examines, focus on presidential administrations, while the two "inquiry" books use primary sources and include non-governmental issues. All imply the balance of powers has not changed since 1789 and that the federal government is people-friendly and manageable. Individuals and non-governmental bodies affect no changes in the social and economic arenas. Because the state is always heroic and clear of blemishes, textbooks become "handbooks for acquiescence".

College courses in political science depict the US as either politically motivated to maintain hegemony over other nations by any means, or economically motivated to retain an unfair proportion of the world's wealth (George Kennan's "realpolitik...