The United States of America is arguably the first nation in human history to be created consciously on the basis of Enlightenment ideals. Those ideals were captured with power and poetry in the Declaration of Independence and have animated millions of people to immigrate to this country seeking a better life. You’ll find no greater champions of American ideals than first generation immigrants.
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the rest of us. According to recent polling by the Wall Street Journal, patriotism has utterly collapsed as an important value for most Americans. Thomas Jefferson is often quoted as having said, “An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people.” By that measure, we’re failing future generations.
Today’s guest, Gordon Wood, is one the world’s leading experts on America’s revolutionary history and currently a professor at Brown University. Throughout his storied career, Gordon has earned a Pulitzer Prize, a National Humanities Medal, and the Bancroft Prize. Gordon has authored, co-authored, and contributed to dozens of books on the American Revolution, including his award-winning titles The Creation of the American Republic and The Radicalism of the American Revolution.
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Outline:
[0:00] Intro
[3:33] The Founding Fathers weren’t always a big deal
[8:49] America is a nation of ideology, not ethnicity
[11:16] Testing Enlightenment ideals for the first time
[15:12] How “United States” changed from plural to singular
[21:02] What are “these truths” and why are they “self-evident”?
[28:47] The Freemasons organized the opposition to monarchy
[32:11] English monarchy was radically liberal compared to France
[36:08] The Declaration of Independence is a long list of complaints
[44:57] The American colonies fought for the rights of English Constitution
[48:54] How do you organize 13 colonies to win a war?
[51:24] The American Revolution made slavery a central moral question
[1:01:48] Approach historical narratives holistically, not ideologically
[1:04:43] Can we regain the lost confidence of our fellow Americans?
[1:12:27] Outro
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