ABSTRACT
This chapter examines foreign and domestic attitudes to the US and places the country within historical contexts. It describes six cultures that have created an American civilization over time and continue to influence debates about national identity, values and institutional change. The term "American civilization" describes an advanced society, which occupies a specific geographical space and has been settled historically by many different peoples. US foreign policy is frequently attacked by its enemies, allies and domestic critics. US ethnic culture reflects the diverse origins of the population. Immigrants to the US were often analyzed in terms of "ancestral groups". The need in the political-legal culture for balance and compromise illustrates the degree of abstraction that is involved in defining "the US" and "Americanness". Media culture has historically grown from simple methods of production and communication to complex modern technologies, online Internet services, a very diverse audience and market, and a change from analog to digital means of production and transmission.
