Class Note 1945. I ended our last Class Note with a salute to our country’s 250th birthday, the semiquincentennial of America. I graduated in 1976, when we were celebrating the bicentennial, and I do not remember being amazed by how young our country is. Now that I have had my 50th reunion, my perspective on the youth of our nation has changed. As the celebrations took place across the nation this summer, we were constantly reminded that our democracy is still suffering growing pains. We are a young country, and our founding fathers had an enormous task to create documents that ensured the survival of what has become a democratic vision for many and a great nation. To help us understand all this, the Hood Museum has put together a thought-provoking exhibit. “Revolution Reconsidered: History, Myth, and Propaganda explores how visual representations of the American Revolution became, and remain, potent carriers of national history and identity. Beginning with Dartmouth’s role in the Revolutionary era, the exhibition revisits well-known images of the American Revolution and traces the reappearance and repurposing of Revolutionary imagery to the present day. It asks how each generation reshapes our understanding of U.S. art and history.” With the upcoming midterm elections, it will be fascinating to see how the youngest generation of voters will or will not reshape our history, as the older generations continue to have their impact. The class of 1945, you, the members of the “greatest generation,” have shaped our country with your patriotism and courage, and now it is time for others to follow your lead. You have been celebrated for your resilience, immense sacrifices, and your role in building modern America. May those qualities once again emerge in the actions of all Americans, and be celebrated, as we reflect on the last 250 years. Enjoy the fall wherever you are and remember the brilliant colors of Hanover this time of year. Please send me news.
—Martha Johnson Beattie ’76, 6 North Balch St., Hanover, NH 03755; (603) 667-7611; mbeattie76@gmail.com