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    Thomas Jefferson: Author of America
    Thomas Jefferson: Author of America
    Thomas Jefferson: Author of America
    Ebook187 pages2 hours

    Thomas Jefferson: Author of America

    By Christopher Hitchens

    4/5

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    About this ebook

    "A balanced, readable portrait. A refreshing perspective.” —New York Times Book Review

    With intelligence, insight, eloquence, and wit, bestselling author Christopher Hitchens gives us an artful portrait of a complex, formative figure in American history and his turbulent era.

    In this unique biography of Thomas Jefferson, leading journalist and social critic Christopher Hitchens offers a startlingly new and provocative interpretation of our Founding Father—a man conflicted by power who wrote the Declaration of Independence and acted as ambassador to France yet yearned for a quieter career in the Virginia legislature. A masterly writer, Jefferson was an awkward public speaker. A professed proponent of emancipation, he elided the issue of slavery from the Declaration of Independence and continued to own human property. A reluctant candidate, he left an indelible presidential legacy.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOpen Road Integrated Media
    Release dateOct 13, 2009
    ISBN9780061753978
    Thomas Jefferson: Author of America
    Author

    Christopher Hitchens

    Christopher Hitchens was born April 13, 1949, in England and graduated from Balliol College at Oxford University. The father of three children, he was the author of more than twenty books and pamphlets, including collections of essays, criticism, and reportage. His book God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything was a finalist for the 2007 National Book Award and an international bestseller. His bestselling memoir, Hitch-22, was a finalist for the 2010 National Book Critics Circle Award for autobiography. The New York Times named his bestselling omnibus Arguably one of the ten best books of the year. A visiting professor of liberal studies at the New School in New York City, he was also the I.F. Stone professor at the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. He was a columnist, literary critic, and contributing editor at Vanity Fair, The Atlantic, Slate, The Times Literary Supplement, The Nation, New Statesman, World Affairs, and Free Inquiry, among other publications. Following his death, Yoko Ono awarded him the Lennon-Ono Grant for Peace.

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    • 4/5
      Having just visited Monticello and gone on the "extended tour", I was again intrigued by TJ. Picking up Hitchens (short, though compact) review of Jefferson's political career and his driving philosophies (as well as his personal deviances from these), was an interesting though incomplete and opinionated view of an incredible and flawed man. It primarily focuses on his (reluctant) political career from the drafting of the Declaration of Independence, his representation in France as the American Minister, his tenure as Secretary of State, and his Presidency. It is a great rambling summary of his political leanings (Republican as opposed to Federalist) and his interactions with his political adversaries and his great friends. Hitchens picks certain achievements as "America changing" and argues why. I was less familiar with his decision about the Barbary pirates and the creation of the US Navy and enjoyed learning this. While I've long been a fan of TJ and especially his focus on education, reading this only made me re-realize how human and brilliant and focused he was in so many directions. Not a perfect man, in many respects, but definitely one worthy of study and appreciation. Now onto his book on Gardening...
    • 4/5
      In this brief biography of Thomas Jefferson, Christopher Hitchens describes how Thomas Jefferson shaped (or authored) America. From the writing of the Declaration of Independance to his involvement in the Louisana purchase and the educating of Lewis and Clark for their formidable journey west Hitches leaves no major detail out. Due to it's briefness, at 188 pages, there are plenty of details that are left out. We don't get much talk of Jefferson's youth nor much of his personal life. I didn't miss the details while reading this book because it clearly wan't Hitchen's plan to tell us everything of Jefferson. Hitchen's suceeds in showing us the impact that Jefferson had on the formation of American and it's transition from a country of colonial origin to a modern country able to operate widely.
    • 5/5
      I thought it was a pretty fair treatment of Jefferson. I enjoyed the information regarding his formative years, and found some concepts quite thought provoking. #1- Hitchens, who does not cite any passages in the book, discusses the concept of separation of church and state. He says that pre revolution Virginia had state funded and sanctioned Episcopalian? church, which had full power over all citizens of the state. Resentment of this power resulted in TJ declaring secular government.#2 Without citing a source, Hitch tells us that TJ noted a lack of poetic and artistic creativity amongst black people (slaves). He believed this could be solved by a transfusion of white blood into the black person. 21st century readers will find this utterly ridiculous and racist, even if it was thought up 230 years ago. My logical extension of that idea is to inject myself with the blood of Albert Einstein or heaven forbid Michael Jordan, and I could be a "superman."#3 Hitch speaks to a clash of cultures between Saxon England and the post battle of Hastings Norman conqueror influence. I never explored the situation with any depth, being an American. I would like to explore that concept further. My present interpretation is thatthe anglos were a relatively undeveloped and perhaps tribal society, the the Normans were more sophisticated.I was also struck by the relative freedom that the early presidents had to make executive decisions like the Louisisana Purchase without the approval of Congress. It is intersting how government has progresses to the point where everything has to be discussed at length and approval granted by the legislative branch.Hitch provides a continetal view of the birth of the US, with obvious insight from the English side. He uses some pretty fancy words also, and I had to keep my dictionary nearby.
    • 4/5
      This slim and interesting volume has Hitchens’ peculiar voice with occasional strident undertones leaking through. I don’t mind, because he is one of the best writers around today who criticizes the religious excesses our country founders in at this point in history. While most of the biography had a dry tone, the first chapter dealing with religion had the most meat for me. Four stars.--Jim, 5/28/2010
    • 5/5
      A great biography by an outside but not unsympathetic Briton. Christopher Hitchen's style of analyzing people, events, and places within a historical context, tying them to events that came before or come after their passing gives it not only a relevance but a fresh take on what can usually be a stale piece on a Founding Father, and Hitchens' acerbic wit makes you want to read it simply to hear his opinions interwoven into the text ("The Declaration of Independence was one of the only poetically powerful documents to ever emerge from a committee.") Special commentary is given to Jefferson's original draft of the Declaration of Independence and its mention of slavery, a refutation of the classical take on Sally Hemmings, and Jefferson's involvement with French revolutionary politics.

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    Thomas Jefferson - Christopher Hitchens

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