lewis_parker

Excellent book. Learned a lot not only about Jefferson himself but also the American Revolution and the period thereafter up until his death. Sadly, it seems that we've learned little and progressed hardly at all with respect to government and politics. We seem to be engaging in the same essential arguments today as did the parties of Jefferson and Adams in the post revolutionary era. The only issue I had was the author's dismissal of a sexual relationship between Jefferson and Sally Hemmings. Of course I have the perspective of a African-American and the benefit of Dr. Eugene Foster's genetic study which was published in a 1998 issue of Nature about a year after this book was published and likely longer after Ellis finished his research. Ellis did an admirable job tackling Jefferson's hypocrisy with regard to slavery. He shows this as yet another facet of Jefferson's mental makeup, his ability to shield himself from the gritty reality of situations. Of course, there is no doubt Jefferson was a brilliant man. However, he did have the sad tendency to delude himself about some things, as well as a propensity to focus only on the ideal at the expense of the practical or pragmatic. This book is well worth the read.

2023-07-22 07:22