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Agent of Empire: William Walker and the Imperial Self in American Literature

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Brady Harrison's AGENT OF EMPIRE is an interesting and sorely needed approach to the underappreciated subject of William Walker, "the Gray-Eyed Man of Destiny," the Nashville-born doctor/lawyer/journalist who became president of Nicaragua in 1855. Harrison examines the role of Walker--and more commonly, the archetype of the American Imperialist-Adventurer, which Walker symoblizes--in popular culture. Harrison's thesis is that the Walker character is an important reflection of various ideas of the American "hero" and how the icon has developed into what might properly be called the American "antagonist." On the plus side, nobody has ever quite written something along these lines before; as a professor of English and History with a special emphasis in popular culture, film, and interdisciplinary studies--not to mention a Walker expert myself--I am very pleased to see a recent study of Walker and one that takes the unusual approach of contextualizing the filibuster as a cultural force. Harrison's writing style is strong, and his interpretations of texts convincing. He has even dug up some stories and books that I either didn't know about or knew the titles and nothing else; for that accomplishment alone, Harrison deserves a tip of the hat. On the downside, the subject itself is so specialized that few people outside a few scholars are destined to read AGENT OF EMPIRE. Perhaps this is not unusual for an academic tome, but it is significant that Harrison accurately observes the way the Walker icon endures cycles of discovery and obscurity, thereby not remaining a constant warning--or inspiration--to American tendencies towards interventionism, imperialism, and international hegemony. A bit more discussion of Walker's life would help make the book slightly more useful to general readers. More problematical is the omission of certain key texts; Harrison goes into great detail in his coverage of Richard Harding Davis' Walker-inspired works, but there needs to be more discussion of Alfred Neuman's STRANGE CONQUEST and Robert Houston's THE NATION THIEF, important novels about Walker. Of Alfred Leland Crabb's DINNER AT BELMONT (1942) there is no mention, nor of a recent "alternative history" novel, the name and author of which escape me at the moment, two works that feature Walker as a prominent character. Even more curious is the total omission of the 1972 film BURN!, in which Marlon Brando plays Sir William Walker, a British imperialist in the Caribbean. While it is true that BURN changes so much around that it is only nominally related to the real Walker, this same charge could be made against some of the stories Harrison does discuss. Initially I theorized that Harrison had never heard of BURN!, but I don't see how that could be; in a footnote he mentions Leonard Maltin's TV MOVIES dismissive review of the movie WALKER (1987), an entry that references BURN! Maybe Harrison was unable to secure a copy of the movie, but it has been released on video (out of print now, alas) and is the subject of sufficient critical attention (Danny Peary's CULT MOVIES, to name one) to warrant at least a cursory mention.

Be that as it may, Harrison has taken an important early step. I hope he will revise and republish his study one of these days and help finally establish William Walker as one of the key figures in US history.

In Agent of Empire Harrison introduces us to William Walker, an imperialist who's successes and failures eventually lead to his rise as the dictator of Nicaragua. From his ascendancy to his execution Harrison explores what has made Walker such an interesting case study in the complex history of American imperialism. Harrison does an excellent job of exploring the many stories directly and loosely based upon the exploits and personal character of William Walker. Through poetry, novels, movies, fiction and non-fiction Harrison weaves his way through all of it helping us to understand the times and prevailing philosophies that helped create a man like Walker. This book is well researched and the writing is inviting and thought provoking.