Description
Book SynopsisWritten in 1943, this work has been called a seminal analysis of the origins of American democracy. The author offers a critique of economic determinism with emphasis on the influence of ideology on the "Founders of Jeffersonian Democracy".
Trade ReviewAdair drew people to him because he quickened the imagination of all those around him. You left his presence with images and ideas buzzing, feeling yourself more alive just for sharing a few minutes with him. . . . When early Americanists decided that virtue was the principal concern of the founding generation, I realized that he had anticipated their interest, perhaps even fostered it. -- Joyce Appleby, UCLA
[Adair's] dissertation was a masterpiece, and it is no doubt the most cited unpublished doctoral dissertation of all time. He was years ahead of the rest of us. -- Forrest McDonald, University of Alabama; author of We the People
Table of ContentsChapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 A Polemical Prologue Chapter 3 The Constant and Universal Principles of Human Nature Chapter 4 According to Aristotle Chapter 5 The Desperate Debtor and the Hall of Mirrors Chapter 6 The High Toned Government Chapter 7 The Extended Republic Chapter 8 The Virtuous Farmer Chapter 9 Epilogue
