A Glimpse of America

滕柱The Commercial Press · ChinaOct 2021

3.4

Word count: 46K words
Chapters: 18

Summary

Today, it is safe to say, everyone knows there is a great nation in the world called the United States of America. Barely more than a century has passed since its founding, yet its complete political institutions, outstanding figures, flourishing scholarship, and advanced agriculture, industry, and commerce have earned it a place among the first-rank nations of the world. Its products are shipped and sold across the globe. Its raw materials, after meeting domestic needs, are still exported in large quantities to other countries. Its government is not only stable in itself, but each of its actions is enough to influence the policies of other nations and the peace of the world.

Editor's review

This book is one volume in the Commercial Press "A Glimpse" series, sketching in concise strokes the overall picture of the United States during its first century and more as a nation. The author, Teng Zhu, unfolds his account across political institutions, notable figures, scholarship, and agriculture, industry, and commerce, emphasizing that American products are shipped worldwide, its raw materials exported in large quantities, and its government's actions capable of influencing the policies of other nations and world peace, presenting the image of a rising great power. The prose carries the argumentative style of popular Republican-era reading matter, clearly organized and suited to quickly building a basic understanding of the United States. The book is short and can serve as general reading or be read alongside A Glimpse of India in the same series to appreciate the differences between two accounts of society. One caveat: the book records observations from the author's own era, some judgments carry the perspective of their time, and today's United States has changed greatly; readers should treat it as a historical text rather than a current handbook on the country.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who want a quick overview of the basic features of the United States
Readers interested in Republican-era observations of foreign lands
Readers who need short works to supplement their world knowledge
Those who enjoy comparing books within the same series

Not a good fit for

Policy researchers who need contemporary U.S. data
Academic readers expecting in-depth institutional analysis
Readers lacking basic knowledge of American history

Reading tips

Skim the table of contents first to grasp the overall structure, then read in sections on politics, economy, and scholarship
Note the era in which particular judgments were written and reflect on how things differ today
Read alongside A Glimpse of India and compare the two authors' material and style
After reading, summarize in your own words the image of America in the author's eyes to test your understanding

About the publisher

The Commercial Press China · Founded in 1897

The Commercial Press is a publisher known for classic works and academic publishing, with titles spanning Eastern philosophy, foreign literature, world history, social culture, and applied psychology. Its list includes classical commentaries such as Zhu Xi's Collected Commentaries on the Analects and Wang Bi's Commentary on the Zhouyi, as well as modern annotated translations like Zhuangzi with Modern Notes and Translation. In foreign literature it offers War and Peace and Crime and Punishment, while in world history it carries Braudel's The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II. Applied psychology is represented by Irvin D. Yalom's Existential Psychotherapy, and ethical texts include a Greek-Chinese-English edition of the Nicomachean Ethics. Its authors and translators include Zhu Xi, Wang Bi, Yalom, Braudel, and translators such as Huang Zheng, Zhang Yiling, Shen Dongyu, and Tang Jialong, balancing the editing of original texts with academic translation.

版权信息
第一章美国形势大概
第二章美国东部
第三章美国第一大城：纽约
第四章美国的京都：华盛顿
第五章独立厅所在地：菲列德尔菲亚
第六章铁城与煤市：匹兹堡与尉尔克思巴拉
第七章美国文学的中心点：波士顿
第八章从波士顿到布法罗，去看世界第一瀑布尼亚加拉
第九章从布法罗到全国铁路的中心点：芝加哥
第十章由芝加哥到旧金山黄石公园的美景
第十一章华人最多的旧金山
第十二章美国最长的河：密西西比河
第十三章密西西比河上源的林业与麦子
第十四章密西西比河中流区域的草原（东部）
第十五章密西西比河中流区域的草原（西部）
第十六章密西西比河下流域的棉带
第十七章密西西比河河口处的糖带

FAQ

Is the content very different from today's United States?

Quite different. Written in the Republican era, the book describes the political, economic, and social conditions of that time; since then the United States has undergone many major changes, and its population, industries, and policies are all different now. Read the book's judgments against their historical background and treat it as a historical observation rather than a guide to today's America.

Is this book suitable for middle school students?

Fairly suitable. The language is plain, the organization clear, and the book short, helping middle school students build a basic framework for understanding the United States. Its expressions colored by their era can serve precisely to prompt children to think about "observing the other" and the limits of any age, but parents or teachers should point out when it was written so that old judgments are not mistaken for present conditions.

Why does the book particularly emphasize America's influence on the world?

This reflects the observational perspective of the author's era. The book notes that American products are shipped worldwide, raw materials exported in large quantities, and government actions affect other nations' policies and peace, reflecting the reality of America's rising national strength and expanding international influence at the time. The author closes the book on this note to show that this young nation can no longer be ignored, and this judgment itself bears a distinct mark of its time.

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About the author

滕柱 Author

Teng Zhu: publicly available information about this author is limited. Basic biographical details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not clearly recorded, so little can be said about his life. Within the library's holdings, only one work appears under his name, A Glance at America (Meiguo yi pie), which is classified under world history; this suggests an interest in foreign history and observations of other countries. On the basis of the available evidence, it can be confirmed that he enters the view of Chinese readers through this single work, which offers a general survey-style introduction to American society and belongs to the broader tradition of writing about foreign lands within world history. Because further historical sources are lacking, it is difficult to judge the full range of his writing style or his later influence; readers seeking a deeper understanding must still rely on the narrative of the book itself to grasp his observational perspective and prose characteristics.