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Anonymous
Posted January 18, 2002
For a recent college history course, I was 'forced' to read this book and give an oral presentation as well as a five-page written review of it. At first I was afraid that I would be terribly bored by it, but the book gives such a refreshingly different point of view from the 'textbook' opinion that I was immediately intrigued. The Federalists of the early nineteenth century are often given a bad rap in today's history books. They are typically seen as power-hungry men who were disgruntled simply because they were out of power, contrary personalities who disagreed with the Republicans merely for the sake of being disagreeable. Linda Kerber does an excellent job of providing another perspective. Through the generous use of the writings of a wide variety of Federalists, she shows that these men often had very logical reasons behind their dissenting viewpoints, that it is possible to 'account for the opposition to Jefferson on grounds other than the obvious one of partisanship.' Kerber convincingly shows that altogether, the complaints of the Federalists added up to one thing: the Republicans were undermining the stability of established societal institutions, and they doing so under the false pretenses of preserving the nation. Among other things she discusses the very important issues of slavery, education, and scientific study in coming to her conclusions. The book as a whole is very engaging and well-written. The documentation that she included for all her sources impressed me. I thought the weakest aspect of the book was Chapter 5, where Kerber makes a lengthy and somewhat confusing digression to cover a single Congressional decision. Other than this, the book kept a firm grasp on my attention, and I would recommend it to anyone wishing to broaden their understanding of the moral and ideological issues dividing our nation in the era of Thomas Jefferson and his party.
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Overview
Convinced that the Federalists have not had a fair shake from Jefferson-worshipping historians, Linda K. Kerber sets out to refurbish their image by examining their rhetoric and ideology. Concentrating on the those Federalists who published orations, essays, and satirical literature, she examines their attitudes toward the arts, science, education, law, and the contemporary American social order.
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"Convinced that the Federalists have not had a fair shake from Jefferson-worshipping historians, Linda K. Kerber has set out to refurbish their image by examining their rhetoric and ideology. Concentrating on the 'articulate Federalists' (mostly New Englanders) who published orations, essays, and satirical literature, she examines their attitudes toward the arts, science, education, law, and the contemporary American social order. . . . Her analysis will remain an indispensable introduction to Federalist thought."—Journal of American History
"Kerber argues that the distinction between Federalists and Jeffersonians was as much cultural as political. . . . The well-documented study is based on a wide reading of contemporary pamphlets, newspapers, and correspondence."—American Historical Review
"Students of the early American period, especially those with an interdisciplinary perspective, will be interested in Kerber's revision of the Federalists' image and encouraged by the volume and quality of the original material investigated."—American Political Science Review
"The Federalist thinking that Kerber explores helps to give greater depth to the more familiar history of Federalist politics, and, beyond that, she brings more of the country to life."—Journal of American Studies
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