Thomas Jefferson and American Nationhood

A good opening sentence can set the tone for a book and establish its promise. Brian Steele opens Thomas Jefferson and American Nationhood with: “Jefferson's most enduring love affair was with America” (p. 1). With this sentence Steele breathes fresh air into the study of Thomas Jefferson. As others speculate about his physical love affairs, Steele examines Jefferson's lasting commitment to the nation. The book does not exactly match the promise of its opening sentence, but it does signal that the focus of Jefferson studies is turning from his private life back toward his public life, toward the ideological concepts he worked so hard to establish. Thomas Jefferson and American Nationhood began as Steele's doctoral dissertation, and it still reads like a dissertation. With its latinate diction, overlong quotations, and footnotes that fill one-third of every page, Steele creates several barriers that inhibit readers from appreciating his ideas. Lacking a narrative framework, the book is symptomatic of much history writing today: it leaves the story out of history. Chapter 1 provides a good example. Analyzing Jefferson's 1774 pamphlet A Summary View of the Rights of British America, Steele ignores the story of its publication, which involves several dramatic elements. (1) Tension: Having written the work as a legislative resolution, Jefferson comes down with dysentery on the way to Williamsburg. (2) Irony: Returning home to Monticello, Jefferson sends his slave Jupiter to carry his message of rights to Williamsburg. (3) Excitement: A reading of Jefferson's manuscript at Peyton Randolph's home prompts an enthusiastic reception. (4) Character: Prominent Virginia patriots, including George Washington, create a fund to publish Jefferson's manuscript. I am not saying Steele should have written a biography instead of an analysis. I am saying that he should have used biography to frame his analysis. As the chapter stands, readers must have a relatively full knowledge of Jefferson's life to follow Steele's argument

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