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OverviewWhy is the Smithsonian more than the ""Nation's Attic?"" Or more than a museum complex? As Wilton S. Dillon shows, the Smithsonian came to be the institution we know today under the twenty-year leadership of ""Sun King"" S. Dillon Ripley. Ripley aspired to reinvent the Smithsonian as a great university—with museums. Although little understood by the public at large, it began as a basic research center. The Smithsonian remains a key contributor to the world of higher learning and functions diplomatically as the ministry of culture for the United States. Dillon provides backstage insights into Ripley's quest for the wholeness of knowledge. He describes how he inspired its role as a ""theater of ideas as well as artifacts."" Under his tutelage, the National Mall became a playground for world intelligentsia, an ""intellectual free trade zone"" in the shadow of the nation's political capital. Dillon reminds us that interdisciplinary, international Smithsonian symposia foreshadowed twenty-first-century issues and trends. His descriptions of the educational rewards of balancing tradition with the avant-garde are inspiring. As Dillon reminds us, Ripley's twenty-year reign may well have helped spark the waning embers of the Enlightenment. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Wilton S. DillonPublisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd Imprint: Routledge Weight: 0.752kg ISBN: 9781032920443ISBN 10: 1032920440 Pages: 408 Publication Date: 14 October 2024 Audience: Professional and scholarly , Professional & Vocational Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Not yet available This item is yet to be released. You can pre-order this item and we will dispatch it to you upon its release. Table of ContentsReviewsAuthor InformationTab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |