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Chargement... The Lamp of Experience. Whig History and the Intellectual Origins of the American Revolutionpar TREVOR COLBOURN
   Aucun Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre.  ShieldmaidenOfRohan | Jul 7, 2012 |  aucune critique | ajouter une critique
In a landmark work, a leading scholar of the eighteenth century examines the ways in which an understanding of the nature of history influenced the thinking of the founding fathers. As Jack P. Greene has observed, "[The Whig] conception saw the past as a continual struggle between liberty and virtue on one hand and arbitrary power and corruption on the other." Many founders found in this intellectual tradition what Josiah Quincy, Jr., called the "true old English liberty," and it was this Whig tradition--this conception of liberty--that the champions of American independence and crafters of the new republic sought to perpetuate. Colbourn supports his thesis--that "Independence was in large measure the product of the historical concepts of the men who made it"--by documenting what books were read most widely by the founding generation. He also cites diaries, personal correspondence, newspapers, and legislative records. Trevor Colbourn is President Emeritus of the University of Central Florida. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
Discussion en coursAucunCouvertures populaires
 Google Books — Chargement...GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)973.3History and Geography North America United States Revolution and confederation (1775-89)Classification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne: (4.7)
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Trevor Colbourn utilizes books as insight into the ideas and theories of their readers and owners. _The Lamp of Experience_ illustrates his theory that modern historians can better understand the theories and ideologies of the founding fathers by looking into their private libraries, library usage, and reading patterns. He looks at the reading of Whig histories from both the colonies and England as important factors on the ideology espoused by the founding fathers--especially concerning their rights as Englishmen. The book is divided into two parts: "English heritage and the Colonial Historical View" and "Revolutionary Use of History".
The first part traces the transition of the Saxon Myth of political ideology through the Whig interpretation and creation of the common law as viewed by Whig colonists. The second part of the book looks at examples of important Whig colonists in New England, Pennsylvania, and the South. It then further breaks down the reading reading habits of important leaders in revolutionary theory from Thomas Jefferson and John Adams to Richard Bland and George Mason, from Pennsylvania down into the Southern colonies as windows into the Whig ideology that prompted men to stand up for their inherent rights as followers of the ancient constitutional tradition.
The book is a thorough and fascinating read on the reading habits of prominent men at the foundations of the United States. Colbourn discusses the background of "Whig ideology" in a manner that even those unfamiliar with the term can easily understand his premise. It's recommended to both the historian and average reader. (