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19 reviews for:
"most Blessed of the Patriarchs": Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination
Annette Gordon-Reed, Peter S. Onuf
19 reviews for:
"most Blessed of the Patriarchs": Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination
Annette Gordon-Reed, Peter S. Onuf
I was SO intrigued by Annette Gordon-Reed when I heard her interviewed on a podcast a few years ago. She described Jefferson as embodying the crucial paradox of the founding of the U.S. - a white believer in individual freedom but also a slave-owner, who strategized about how to abolish the "peculiar institution" and condemned its effects on ethics and culture of his beloved Virginia, and yet who was intimately surrounded by its privileges from cradle to grave. Literally, his first memory was of being handed up by a African American man on a cushion into a wagon, and the last act on his deathbed was to ask his African American enslaved valet to rearrange the cushions supporting him there. His decades-long intimate relationship with Sally Hemings (a fascinating person herself! who negotiated her relationship with Jefferson when she was 14 years old, which was then a lot "older" than it would be now) was at the center of the second half of his life, although he never wrote about it and barely spoke of it to his white family and friends. But admittedly this book is about more than his life as an owner of enslaved human beings. It's a thematic biography, which I found interesting to contrast to a chronological one, exploring his thought and personal life - with chapters on "Home," "Virginia," "France," "Music," "Privacy and Prayers," as well as "Plantation" and "Politics" (the most boring, if you ask me). He was conflict-avoidant, a terrible farmer, a constant scholar, irresponsible with money, a lover of fine art and wine, devoted to his family, a distant father, a private homebody, an ambitious climber and performer, a man of privilege who never questioned his place at the center of his family and plantation, and yet also who recognized that slavery was the poisoned heart of his new state and new nation. Gordon-Reed posits this as a very American way to be, both then and now, and all the more fascinating wrapped up in a single person. I'm now reading her book about the history the Hemings family, a perfect (essential?) companion to the Jefferson biography.
What was Thomas Jefferson?
The epitaph he composed for himself mentioned three accomplishments, "Author of the Declaration of Independence [and] of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom & Father of the University of Virginia," but it makes no mentions of his two terms as U.S. president, his governorship of Virginia during the Revolution, or his service as Ambassador to France from 1785 to 1789.
There is another side. Jefferson was a father to three daughters by his first wife, Martha Wayles Jefferson: Martha (Patsy), Maria (Polly), and Lucy. He fathered three sons and a daughter by his mistress, Sally Hemings: Beverly, Madison, Edson and Harriet--whose elevation in the American consciousness is directly tied to co-author Annette Gordon-Reed's Pulitzer Prizewinning scholarship. Jefferson was master of Monticello, a home he built and re-built on a hill outside Charlottesville. And let's not forget, Jefferson was a master of enslaved human beings, which included his mistress, her siblings, and his four progeny who remained in slavery until his death.
In other words, Jefferson was a Patriarch.
This book is focused on the personal side of Jefferson's patriarchy, explaining how is view of himself as a widower, landowner, benevolent slave owner and politician contributed to his ability to adopt such seemingly hypocritical roles as the father of American freedom/slaveowner, political hack who had a hand in savaging John Adams and Alexander Hamilton but took exception when his own personal life was dragged into the political realm.
Gordon-Reed and Onuf bring to life the inner Jefferson here.
The epitaph he composed for himself mentioned three accomplishments, "Author of the Declaration of Independence [and] of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom & Father of the University of Virginia," but it makes no mentions of his two terms as U.S. president, his governorship of Virginia during the Revolution, or his service as Ambassador to France from 1785 to 1789.
There is another side. Jefferson was a father to three daughters by his first wife, Martha Wayles Jefferson: Martha (Patsy), Maria (Polly), and Lucy. He fathered three sons and a daughter by his mistress, Sally Hemings: Beverly, Madison, Edson and Harriet--whose elevation in the American consciousness is directly tied to co-author Annette Gordon-Reed's Pulitzer Prizewinning scholarship. Jefferson was master of Monticello, a home he built and re-built on a hill outside Charlottesville. And let's not forget, Jefferson was a master of enslaved human beings, which included his mistress, her siblings, and his four progeny who remained in slavery until his death.
In other words, Jefferson was a Patriarch.
This book is focused on the personal side of Jefferson's patriarchy, explaining how is view of himself as a widower, landowner, benevolent slave owner and politician contributed to his ability to adopt such seemingly hypocritical roles as the father of American freedom/slaveowner, political hack who had a hand in savaging John Adams and Alexander Hamilton but took exception when his own personal life was dragged into the political realm.
Gordon-Reed and Onuf bring to life the inner Jefferson here.
I loved the approach of creating a tapestry of ideas and subjects that were loosely woven together. And not your typical biography. Only complaint was that it was quite dry and a little to serious.
Jefferson:
"There is not a young man now living in the United States who will not die an Unitarian."
About Jefferson:
The patriot, fresh from Freedom's councils come,
Now pleased retires to lash his slaves at home;
Or woo, perhaps, some black Aspasia's charms,
And dream of freedom in his bondsmaid's arms.
"There is not a young man now living in the United States who will not die an Unitarian."
About Jefferson:
The patriot, fresh from Freedom's councils come,
Now pleased retires to lash his slaves at home;
Or woo, perhaps, some black Aspasia's charms,
And dream of freedom in his bondsmaid's arms.
emotional
informative
slow-paced
Annette Gordon-Reed is the premier scholar right now when it comes to Sally Hemmings and Thomas Jefferson. Her insight and background give a totally different view of the story with minimal use of bias. This book entails research on more of Thomas Jefferson and his view on different topics that gives a great view into his thought process regarding politics, music, and the visitors that came to visit Monticello. This was one of the first books recommended for me to read when I wanted to learn more about Thomas Jefferson than what we learn in public schools. I placed Jefferson on a pedestal when I learned about him and it was a shock when I got the full story Annette makes it much easier to understand both sides of the story and how Jefferson himself grappled with certain issues. Her grasp on the topic is phenomenal and her storytelling is vivid. I recommend this to anyone who is remotely interested in earning more about Jefferson and those closest to him, both emotionally and physically, enslaved and free.
Thomas Jefferson has slowly lost the luster that surrounded him from my early years of High School and College. I don't think I really like the man. That said, this biography makes an earnest attempt to explain the man and I think it does a good job. Jefferson was a man of his age.
Jefferson:
"There is not a young man now living in the United States who will not die an Unitarian."
About Jefferson:
The patriot, fresh from Freedom's councils come,
Now pleased retires to lash his slaves at home;
Or woo, perhaps, some black Aspasia's charms,
And dream of freedom in his bondsmaid's arms.
"There is not a young man now living in the United States who will not die an Unitarian."
About Jefferson:
The patriot, fresh from Freedom's councils come,
Now pleased retires to lash his slaves at home;
Or woo, perhaps, some black Aspasia's charms,
And dream of freedom in his bondsmaid's arms.
Two historians I respect wrote a book about Thomas Jefferson. In some ways it didn't tread particularly new ground but did attempt to reveal a Jefferson from his own words and actions that is complicated and in some ways undefinable. They are attempting to transcend the modern labeling of a founding father from the 18th century and tease apart why Jefferson didn't act in ways we would have wanted him to.
The book doesn't excuse his actions as a slave holder but acknowledges his inconsistencies without making an overt judgement.
So nothing earth shattering or spectacular but I did enjoy reading Jefferson's eloquent burn of Hamilton. Seriously. Amazing.
The book doesn't excuse his actions as a slave holder but acknowledges his inconsistencies without making an overt judgement.
So nothing earth shattering or spectacular but I did enjoy reading Jefferson's eloquent burn of Hamilton. Seriously. Amazing.
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Learned some interesting things, but I didn't feel very strongly about it either way.