Originally published in German in 1988; the late Jürgen Heideking's exhaustive study of the debates over the ratification of the U.S. Constitution compares the methods used to call state ratifying conventions and explores everything that made up the ratification debate; from town meetings and festive culture to private correspondence and print media. In Heideking's view; the construction of a new political process was an unintended but key result of ratification debates over the federal Constitution. Heideking's work anticipated diverse strands of subsequent scholarship; this translation can claim to provide not only an invaluable account of the ratification debates but also a master narrative for integrating future studies.
#1665146 in Books F Thornton Miller 1991-11-29Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.04 x .98 x 6.09l; 1.23 #File Name: 0813913659319 pagesThe Wolf by the Ears Thomas Jefferson and Slavery
Review
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful. Highly RecommendedBy WALFour of the many reasons to read this excellent book are: a) It is written with conciseness; minimal use of terms that would be familiar only to specialists; and wit. Serious history doesn't get much more entertaining. b) Jefferson's relationship with slavery was complicated and evolved as he aged and the United States developed; and cannot be simplified. This book; untainted by political correctness and postmodern obfuscation; probably presents as clear a view of it as is now possible. c) Jefferson considered and wrote about most of the moral and political arguments for and against slavery. The book therefore provides a good overview of the arguments used in the political debates on slavery in the antebellum period. d) The book shows that Jefferson recognized that "states rights" and slavery were inseparable. The distancing one from the other is a more recent development.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Wild MagnoliaVery interesting read!5 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Exegesis over EisegesisBy James A. SullivanThere are history books which tell us what we want to hear (eisegesis). So often; these works contain a thin veneer of history while they aim to confirm in us our own contemporary prejudices. Miller's work on Jefferson is decidedly different. This book is a classic example of "exegesis" or uncovering the truth about Jefferson as calmly as possible. While it was written well before the DNA researches of Dr. Foster; 1999; it puts Sally Hemmings in perspective; while; more importantly; bringing forward Jefferson's own brand of "romantic friendship."Before Foster found a Y chromosome from the paternal side of Jefferson's family in Eston Hemmings's descendants; I was inclined to view the Jefferson-Cosway "affair" as circumstantial proof that dusky Sally could never have been a lover of Jefferson. But Miller shows convincingly that the alleged Jefferson-Cosway affair was clearly a type of romantic friendship with a non-genital cast. Conclusion: Jefferson's inner-sexuality was uplifted and refined; as far from Sally as it was from Eliot Spitzer.
