October 01, 2021
‘Illinois Authors’ event to explore Midwest’s connections to American, world history
CARBONDALE, Ill. – An upcoming virtual event hosted by Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute will explore Illinois’ role in American and world history.
Kristin Hoganson, an author and professor of history at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, will join the institute for a virtual conversation at 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 7.
Institute director John Shaw will interview Hoganson about her book “The Heartland: An American History,” which outlines the rural Midwest’s connection to and impact on world history contrary to the myth of an isolated and unchanging so-called “heartland.” The book links the history of Illinois to larger developments in the United States and the world, providing an unexpected perspective of the state’s history.
Hoganson joined the University of Illinois faculty more than 20 years ago after teaching at Harvard University and studying at Yale University. Her other books include “Consumers’ Imperium: The Global Production of American Domesticity, 1865-1920;” “American Empire at the Turn of the Twentieth Century;” and “Fighting for American Manhood: How Gender Politics Provoked the Spanish-American and Philippine-American Wars.”
“We are eager to examine Professor Hoganson’s deeply researched, creatively rendered, and strikingly original depiction of Illinois history,” Shaw said. “She places the Prairie State at the epicenter of American and even global history, not as a distant outpost.”
The event – which will be held via live Zoom webinar – is free and open to the public. Registration is required at paulsimoninstitute.org/events to receive the link to the webinar. Attendees are encouraged to submit questions for Hoganson with their registration or email questions to paulsimoninstitute@siu.edu.
The event is part of the institute’s “Illinois Authors” series, a venue for book events and author discussions focusing on the state’s history, politics, economics, sports and culture.