George Robert Twelves Hewes; a Boston shoemaker who participated in such key events of the American Revolution as the Boston Massacre and the Tea Party; might have been lost to history if not for his longevity and the historical mood of the 1830's. When the Tea Party became a leading symbol of the Revolutionary ear fifty years after the actual event; this 'common man' in his nineties was 'discovered' and celebrated in Boston as a national hero. Young pieces together this extraordinary tale; adding new insights about the role that individual and collective memory play in shaping our understanding of history.
#1104004 in Books 2001-07-04Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 .0 x .0 x .0l; #File Name: 0807009563163 pages
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A New Moral Calculus for our Heroes?By Herbert L CalhounOnce again; Dr. Wilkins has demonstrated his immense talents for mature; patriotic; deep thinking and eloquent writing. As he did in his autobiographical memoir he has again confronted the "mother" of all American problems; the beast that remains coiled in the nation's bosom: the history and practice of racism; and its companion and handmaiden; racist hypocrisy.By unraveling the moral and existential ambiguity and complexity these issues set up in the personal lives of our four most revered forefathers (what he refers to as the Virginia quartet); he has peered through the dense jungle of patriotic myths and stared this beast squarely in the eyes.By bringing more clearly into focus what they were thinking and how they acted on issues of race and slavery; Wilkins has demythologized Washington; Madison; Mason; and Jefferson; and in the process has forever elevated them above the plane of mere racist adulation and rationalization. He has done more. He has in the process "re-humanized" them; and has given us; not less; but more; reasons to revere them. For this feat alone he must be lauded. It is no mean trick to be able to accomplish this.However; had he stopped there; I would have no qualms with this manuscript. But he tried to do more -- perhaps too much more.Professor Wilkins' ultimate goal seemed to have been to square the circle between the immense theoretical contributions made by these men in the political sphere on the one hand; and the utter destructive legacy bequeathed to us as a result of their personal weaknesses in the social sphere; on the other.Just as we still live under the political freedoms provided by the former; we also continue to live under the social destructiveness and scourges of the latter. Just as the Constitution is a direct legagy of these patriots; so to is the racism that we have come to know in everyday practice a direct result of their hypocrisy.Despite failing at his goal; we must all be grateful to the author for the clarity with which he demonstrated through historical juxtaposition the contradictory (if not fatal) qualities in each of these founding patriots. He did it with grace; without even a hint of malice or bitterness and with great skill and honesty.My concern is with the calculus he has used to try to revolve these human contradictions; the calculus with which he tried to square the circle: by adding them together. How reasonable it must have seemed to the author that the good in these men should; in the end "be made" to cancel out the bad.But may I ask: of what good is it to raise the skeleton of slavery from the historical closet if it is only to be re-clothed in a different colored garment of the same old pedigree of exaggerated mythmaking? How easy it is to make such a mistake in a country where we desperately need more genuine heroes worthy of our adulation.But; if history has taught us anything; it is that moral complexity and existential ambiguity cannot be reduced to a simple additive calculus: The good; even in our most revered heroes; will never quite completely cancel out the bad.Unless; and until; theory is put into practice the good and the bad forever remain in different orbits. They remain in two different but parallel universes. Greatness is not to be found in the mere careful juxtaposition of good and evil; but in eliminating the latter; the evil.Although each of these theoretical giants saw the handwriting on the wall: That is; conceptually they each knew that slavery; racism and freedom could not long coexist; and could even possibly serve to destroy this country.Yet despite this; none among them had the moral courage to face this reality -- if only to possibly head it off. As a result; despite the lovely embroidery that Professor Wilkins has fashioned here; the Virginia quartet will forever remain theoretical giants and moral pigmies. Every American; and especially every Native and Black America must read this book. Five stars.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Thoughtful and ChallengingBy CustomerRoger Wilkins is uniquely qualified to write this book. It is thoughtful and challenging; especially to those of us in the white community. I hove grown in my thoughts and perspectives on race relations because of Mr. Wilkins' book.10 of 11 people found the following review helpful. Owning UpBy Mark SThis extraordinary volume shares the virtues of the men that provide its focus. It has the steady; right-thinking leadership of Washington. It has the learning and driving intensity of Madison. It has the cantankerous insistence on truthfulness of Mason. And it surely has much of the crafty elegance of Jefferson. With charity toward all and malice toward none; Wilkins manages the nearly impossible - a fully adult reflection on race and the American project.The issue of slavery and the founding fathers here is not the occasion for simple-minded evaluation and homiletics. It is the setting off point for a deep; careful; and powerful examination of the practical nature of political progress in the face of genuine human failing. Unflinching and realistic; mature and balanced; this book shames the shallowness of most public discourse and private apathy today; even as it honors the founding fathers with the respect of honest recognition.In one of the many extraordinary and too little known original writings this book reveals; George Mason wrote of slavery: "By an inevitable chain of causes and effects; providence punishes national sins; by national calamities." Breaking slavery's chain of national calamity certainly requires today - as it did then - more than words. Yet through the words in this carefully crafted reflection; Wilkins opens the opportunity for us to own our own past as a nation - and that must certainly help compel and direct action.
