Matthew Frye Jacobson argues in this text about America's racial odyssey, that race resides not in nature but in the contingencies of politics and culture. In ever-changing racial categories we glimpse the competing theories of history and collective destiny by which power has been organized and contested in the USA. Looking at the field of "whiteness studies" and linking it to traditional historical inquiry, Jacobson shows that in the USA, nation of immigrants, "race" has been at the core of civic assimilation: ethnic minorities in becoming American were reracialized to become Caucasian. He provides a counter-history of how nationality groups such as the Irish or Greeks became Americans as racial groups like Celts or Mediterraneans became Caucasian. Jacobson tracks race as a conception and perception, emphasizing the importance of knowing not only how we label one another but also how we see one another, and how that racialized vision has largely been transformed in the 20th century.

When the British wrested New Amsterdam from the Dutch in 1664, the truth about its thriving, polyglot society began to disappear into myths about an island purchased for 24 dollars and a cartoonish peg-legged governor. But the story of the Dutch colony of New Netherland was merely lost, not destroyed: 12,000 pages of its records–recently declared a national treasure–are now being translated. Drawing on this remarkable archive, Russell Shorto has created a gripping narrative–a story of global sweep centered on a wilderness called Manhattan–that transforms our understanding of early America.
The Dutch colony pre-dated the “original” thirteen colonies, yet it seems strikingly familiar. Its capital was cosmopolitan and multi-ethnic, and its citizens valued free trade, individual rights, and religious freedom. Their champion was a progressive, young lawyer named Adriaen van der Donck, who emerges in these pages as a forgotten American patriot and whose political vision brought him into conflict with Peter Stuyvesant, the autocratic director of the Dutch colony. The struggle between these two strong-willed men laid the foundation for New York City and helped shape American culture. The Island at the Center of the World uncovers a lost world and offers a surprising new perspective on our own.

The rulers of Venice prided themselves on their unique brand of justice, which was a source of both ridicule and admiration for foreign commentators. Dr Shaw uncovers what this special justice meant for ordinary subjects by studying the history of one of the oldest magistracies of the city, a body responsible for handling petty market crime and small claims litigation. This volume examines how changing ideas about justice at the level of the political elite were related to judicial and policing practices in the courtroom and on the street. It shows how failure to invest in the state bureaucracy allowed corruption to flourish and effectively delegated power to private interest groups such as the guilds. At the same time, the volume reveals that the bottom level of civil justice was fast, cheap and accessible. Everyone had the chance to be heard, and the poor and disadvantaged could hope for justice along with the rich and powerful. This volume will be essential reading for historians of Venice and specialists in the history of early modern cities, and also of wider interest to scholars interested in the connections between economic, legal and social structures.

《吴经熊与近代中国法制》内容简介：东吴大学创办于1901年，作为中国最早的西制大学，在近代中国教育史上占有独特的地位。半个世纪中，东吴大学英才辈出。吴经熊便是具有代表性的杰出人物。他在近代中国的法学教育、法学研究、法制建设、法律实践以及对外法学交流等方面都起过引领性的作用。孙伟博士的《吴经熊与近代中国法制》正是旨在深度解读吴经熊法学人生的佳作。