Date of Award
Spring 2018
Document Type
Thesis
Primary Advisor
Dr. K. Alan Snyder
Abstract
This thesis is a look into how Alexander Hamilton has been portrayed on stage in the musical Hamilton: An American Musical, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The goal of this research is to show that this musical is not history, but rather a commentary on current culture through one of America’s favorite stories (that of the Revolution.) In this show, past figures have been used to discuss the issues of modern America, and that is now being sold as history. This has been discovered through the analysis of primary and secondary sources of the time period, as well as through a listening to and understanding of the show. Through this analysis, it can be seen that anachronism is a real and present danger in the study of history, as modern ideas influence the story being told. While historically based art can be beautiful, it is often shaped into the story writers wish to tell rather than what had occurred.
Recommended Citation
Halsey, Adrianna C., "WHO LIVES, WHO DIES, WHO TELLS YOUR STORY: A CASE STUDY OF HAMILTON: AN AMERICAN MUSICAL TO UNDERSTAND THE EFFECT OF ENGAGING THE PAST IN THE CULTURE OF TODAY" (2018). Selected Honors Theses. 120.
https://firescholars.seu.edu/honors/120