Scots-Irish Immigrants in America

 

By Nancy Beardsley
The late Johnny Cash was a preeminent¹ symbol of country music in America. He was also Scots-Irish, a product of the Southern rural culture where that music was born.

James Webb says "country music came out of this culture, and yet it's a uniquely American phenomenon right now."

That's just one of many ways the Scots-Irish shaped America writer James Webb in his book "Born Fighting". Their ranks also include the frontiersman Davy Crockett, actor John Wayne, General George S. Patton, writer Mark Twain and Presidents Andrew Jackson, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. James Webb is Scots-Irish himself, and he wrote "Born Fighting" partly out of pride in his heritage. "And I also kept thinking about the way that particularly new immigrant groups over the past 25 or 30 years tend to think that white America is a monolith, that there are not all of these stratifications in it. And I basically said, I want this culture to take its place in American history for the contributions that it's made."

Not to be confused with the English or the Irish Catholics, America's Scots-Irish immigrants were descended² from the Celtic tribes of Scotland. They came to the New World by the hundreds of thousands starting in the 1700s, many by way of Northern Ireland. They became one of the dominant³ groups in the Appalachian Mountains of the American southeast, then fanned out across the country:

"It's always been a restless, keep moving culture, which worked against them in terms of ownership and passing things on to their families, but If you want someone to go out and settle wilderness⁴, this is the culture you want to call on." said Mr. Webb.

And while they've intermarried with other groups, James Webb says the Scots-Irish can still be distinguished⁵ by core traits that helped define working-class America. "Many of them are very religious, and the core of the Christian⁶ right actually comes out of the culture. And yet on the other hand, it's rebellious⁷, it's hedonistic. It's famed for moonshine (liquor brewed⁸ illegally). A lot of the great whiskey came out of the Appalachian Mountains, and that's how NASCAR racing⁹ evolved. The moonshine runners were famed for the way they could take those mountain roads, and they put it into a different format¹⁰."

The Scots-Irish have also been fierce fighters, their military skills forged in Scotland by centuries of struggle with England. One of their great heroes was the thirteenth century Scotsman William Wallace, portrayed¹¹ by Mel Gibson in the movie Braveheart. James Webb says "He was able to rally the common people to his side when the English king wanted to conquer the country. And he epitomizes the character the Scots-Irish brought with them to here."

Scots-Irish immigrants accounted for at least one third of the troops in the American Revolutionary War, Mr. Webb believes their history in Scotland made them not only combative¹², but committed to populist democracy. "They had a sort of fundamentalist Christianity that came in and threw out the structure of the Catholic Church. They replaced it with a form of populist religion, with elected representatives in their church structure. And this unique combination created an extreme individualism and a notion that no individual had an obligation to obey a government edict if it violated his sense of morality or ethics¹³."

James Webb says Andrew Jackson exemplified those values, winning the Presidency¹⁴ in 1828 with a platform that emphasized patriotism¹⁵ and the dignity of the common man. He's a leader revered¹⁶ by Democrats¹⁷. More than a century later, the author believes an icon¹⁸ of the Republican Party reaffirmed that tradition. President Ronald Reagan took office celebrating the power of individuals to help themselves. Mr. Reagan famously said "government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem!"

Mr. Webb says "I think Reagan was probably the most Jacksonian President since Andrew Jackson. They both had the ability, I think, to motivate the average American, to show them they were valued and as a result to do things that people thought might have been impossible."

James Webb says the Scots-Irish remain an important political force in the United States. Many are among the swing voters in Ohio and other states so critical in recent Presidential elections. He calls them the molten core of the America spirit, a rebellious people who still defy definition, even as they continue to help define America.

For focus, I'm Nancy Beardsley.

注释：
preeminent 卓越的
rural 田园的
uniquely 独特地
phenomenon 现象
frontiersman 边远居民
monolith 独块巨石
stratification 阶层的形成
descend 遗传
hedonistic 快乐主义的
moonshine 私酿烈酒
portray 描绘
combative 好战的
populist democracy 大众型民主

1 preeminent   

adj.卓越的，杰出的

参考例句：

• Washington was recognized as the preeminent spokesman of American Negroes by 1895. 到1895年,华盛顿被公认为美国黑人的卓越代言人。
• He is preeminent because his articles are well written. 他的文章写得很漂亮,卓尔不群。

2 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

3 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

4 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

5 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

7 rebellious   

adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的

参考例句：

• They will be in danger if they are rebellious.如果他们造反，他们就要发生危险。
• Her reply was mild enough,but her thoughts were rebellious.她的回答虽然很温和，但她的心里十分反感。

8 brewed   

调制( brew的过去式和过去分词 )； 酝酿； 沏（茶）； 煮（咖啡）

参考例句：

• The beer is brewed in the Czech Republic. 这种啤酒是在捷克共和国酿造的。
• The boy brewed a cup of coffee for his mother. 这男孩给他妈妈冲了一杯咖啡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

10 format   

n.设计，版式；[计算机]格式，DOS命令:格式化(磁盘)，用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据；v.使格式化，设计，安排

参考例句：

• Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
• The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。

11 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 combative   

adj.好战的；好斗的

参考例句：

• Mr. Obama has recently adopted a more combative tone.奥巴马总统近来采取了一种更有战斗性的语调。
• She believes that women are at least as combative as are.她相信女性至少和男性一样好斗。

13 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

14 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

15 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。

16 revered   

v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A number of institutions revered and respected in earlier times have become Aunt Sally for the present generation. 一些早年受到尊崇的惯例，现在已经成了这代人嘲弄的对象了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Chinese revered corn as a gift from heaven. 中国人将谷物奉为上天的恩赐。 来自辞典例句

17 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。