Light and Liberty: Thomas Jefferson and the Power of Knowledge

Description

Although Thomas Jefferson's status as a champion of education is widely known, the essays in Light and Liberty make clear that his efforts to enlighten fellow citizens reflected not only a love of learning but also a love of freedom. Using as a starting point Jefferson's conviction that knowledge is the basis of republican self-government, the contributors examine his educational projects not as disparate attempts to advance knowledge for its own sake but instead as a result of his unyielding, almost obsessive desire to bolster Americans' republican virtues and values. Whether by establishing schools or through broader, extra-institutional efforts to disseminate knowledge, Jefferson's endeavors embraced his vision for a dynamic and meritocratic America. He aimed not only to provide Americans with the ability to govern themselves and participate in the government of others but also to influence Americans to remake their society in accordance with his own principles. Written in clear and accessible prose, Light and Liberty reveals the startling diversity of Jefferson's attempts to rid citizens of the ignorance and vice that, in the view of Jefferson and many contemporaries, had corroded and corrupted once-great civilizations. Never wavering from his faith that "knowledge is power," Jefferson embraced an expansive understanding of education as the foundation for a republic of free and responsible individuals who understood their rights and stood ready to defend them. Contributors: Cameron Addis, Austin Community CollegeJoyce Appleby, University of California, Los AngelesChristine Coalwell McDonald, Tuxedo Park SchoolRobert M. S. McDonald, United States Military AcademyJohann N. Neem, Western Washington UniversityAndrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy, Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies, MonticelloCraig A. Reynolds, Virginia Commonwealth UniversityRichard A. Samuelson, California State University, San BernardinoFrank Shuffelton, University of RochesterBrian Steele, University of Alabama, BirminghamGaye Wilson, Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies, Monticello Contents Introduction '' The Yeomanry of the United States Are Not the Canaille of Paris'': Thomas Jeverson, American Exceptionalism, and the ''Spirit'' of Democracy To Divuse Knowledge More Generally through the Mass of the People'': Thomas Jeverson on Individual Freedom and the Distribution of Knowledge Consistent in Creation: Thomas Jeverson, Natural Aristocracy, and the Problem of Knowledge The Jeverson Gospel: A Religious Education of Peace, Reason, and Morality West from West Point: Thomas Jeverson's Military Academy and the ''Empire of Liberty'' Thomas Jeverson, Colporteur of the Enlightenment ''Presenting to Them Models for Their Imitation'': Thomas Jeverson's Reform of American Architecture Recording History: The Thomas Sully Portrait of Thomas Jeverson Afterword: Light, Liberty, and Slavery Notes on Contributors Index