I'm curious to know what folks here might make of recent efforts to
explore anew the notion of southern identity, especially Jim Cobb's
Away Down South. Here's a link:
http://www.us.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/HistoryAmerican/Cultural/?view=usa&ci=9780195089592
What do you think is the best way to explore this question? Cobb looks
at this both in terms of how southerners defined themselves and how
non-southerners (primarily northerners) went about the same enterprise
(and how these two endeavors interacted). What's the relevance of such
studies for historical interpretation/explanation/understanding?