Joyce, Davis D. 1940–

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Joyce, Davis D. 1940–

PERSONAL:

Born June 19, 1940, in AR; son of A.A. (in cattle sales) and Gladys Marie (a teacher and homemaker) Joyce; married, September 26, 1975; wife's name Carole Jane (a dancer, choreographer, and writer); children: Elizabeth, Bret, Barry, Kent, Kirk. Education: Eastern New Mexico University, B.S., 1961; New Mexico State University, M.A., 1963; University of Oklahoma, Ph.D., 1968; University of Chicago, M.Div., 1986. Politics: "Left-wing Democrat." Religion: "Occasional Unitarian Universalist." Hobbies and other interests: Rock and roll music, science fiction, prehistoric fiction, baseball.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Ada, OK. Office—Department of History, East Central University, Ada, OK 74820. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, began as assistant professor, became associate professor of history, 1966-83; East Central University, Ada, OK, began as associate professor, became professor of history, 1987, became professor emeritus. University of Keele, visiting professor, 1981; L. Kossuth University, Soros Professor of American Studies, 1994-96. Ada Arts and Heritage Authority, president.

MEMBER:

American Association of University Professors, Oklahoma Association of Professional Historians, Oklahoma Historical Society, Kiwanis.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Teaching Excellence Award, East Central University, 1992; McCasland Award for Excellence in Teaching Oklahoma History, Oklahoma Heritage Association, 1997.

WRITINGS:

Edward Channing and the Great Work, Nijhoff, 1974.

History and Historians, University Press of America (Lanham, MD), 1983.

(With Michael Kraus) The Writing of American History, revised edition, University of Oklahoma Press (Norman, OK), 1985.

(Editor) Edward Channing's "A History of the United States," University Press of America (Lanham, MD), 1993.

(Editor) "An Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before": Alternative Views of Oklahoma History, University of Oklahoma Press (Norman, OK), 1994.

(With Tibor Glant) United States History: A Brief Introduction for Hungarian Students, Kossuth University (Debrecen, Hungary), 1996.

(With Palmer Boeger) East Central University: The Wagner Years, 1969-1989, East Central University Press (Ada, OK), 2001.

Howard Zinn: A Radical American Vision, Prometheus Books (New York, NY), 2003.

(Editor) Alternative Oklahoma: Contrarian Views of the Sooner State, University of Oklahoma Press (Norman, OK), 2007.

Contributor to history and social science journals.

SIDELIGHTS:

Davis D. Joyce told CA: "By the time I began my career as a professional historian, I felt that research and writing are as vital a part of that job as teaching is, and that the two can enrich each other. I still believe that and try to practice it in my career. One of my major fields of interest is American historiography: the study of historians and their differing interpretations of history. I can, and do, put my work in that area to use directly in the classroom.

"Radical historian Howard Zinn has been one of my greatest influences, both professionally and personally. I am excited that my next book will be a study of his life and historical writings."

Howard Zinn: A Radical American Vision, the first biography of Zinn, describes Zinn's childhood in a poor Jewish immigrant family, his attraction to socialist ideals, and the moment that radicalized him—being abused by police during a Communist rally in New York City in 1940. As a young historian, Zinn concluded that the profession of history could never be objective, and that the historian's proper task was to expose the injustices in American society in order to encourage progressive change. Though Joyce discusses the events of Zinn's life, the bulk of the book focuses on Zinn's writings. For Journal of Southern History critic Lee W. Formwalt, "Joyce's admiration for Zinn prevents him from making a critical appraisal of Zinn's work." Mike Boles, writing in History: Review of New Books, also noted Joyce's bias, but found Howard Zinn a "useful overview of Zinn's oeuvre and social activism."

Joyce also brings a radical perspective to his volume about his home state in Alternative Oklahoma: Contrarian Views of the Sooner State. The book chronicles the contributions of Oklahomans who played a role in socially progressive causes. Included are discussions of participants in the Red Dirt music movement, led by Woody Guthrie; the Native American civil rights movement, led by Joseph Bruner; the antinuclear movement; and the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender rights movement. Each essay in the book, according to Journal of Southern History contributor Amy Carreiro, "offers insight into an overlooked or misunderstood aspect of Oklahoma's history."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, July-August, 1994, K. Blaser, review of "An Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before": Alternative Views of Oklahoma History, p. 1785.

History and Theory, February, 1985, review of History and Historians, p. 113.

History: Review of New Books, June 22, 2004, Mike Boles, review of Howard Zinn: A Radical American Vision, p. 133.

Journal of American History, December, 1975, review of Edward Channing and the Great Work, p. 727; June, 1995, Joseph A. Stout, Jr., review of "An Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before," p. 278.

Journal of Southern History, August, 1995, Keith L. Bryant, Jr., review of "An Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before," p. 644; February 1, 2006, Lee W. Formwalt, review of Howard Zinn, p. 229; May 1, 2008, Amy Carreiro, review of Alternative Oklahoma: Contrarian Views of the Sooner State, p. 504.

Publishers Weekly, September 1, 2003, review of Howard Zinn, p. 75.

Reference & Research Book News, November 1, 2007, review of Alternative Oklahoma.

Western Historical Quarterly, summer, 1995, Bob L. Blackburn, review of "An Oklahoma I Had Never Seen Before," p. 255.