Book contents
- Foundations of American Political Thought
- Foundations of American Political Thought
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Republicanism
- 3 Liberalism
- 4 The Puritans
- 5 Independence
- 6 The Positive Founding (I)
- 7 The Positive Founding (II)
- 8 The Whole and the Parties
- 9 People That Were Left Behind
- 10 The United States “Is”
- Index
- References
9 - People That Were Left Behind
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 July 2021
- Foundations of American Political Thought
- Foundations of American Political Thought
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Republicanism
- 3 Liberalism
- 4 The Puritans
- 5 Independence
- 6 The Positive Founding (I)
- 7 The Positive Founding (II)
- 8 The Whole and the Parties
- 9 People That Were Left Behind
- 10 The United States “Is”
- Index
- References
Summary
Chapter 9 gives attention to some of the voices and groups that were often excluded during the founding period. From the destitute dreams of a complete make-over of property laws, to individuals mistrusting all governments, to Native Americans, to women, and—last but not least—African Americans; what was their place and role in the body politic? The chapter includes selections from Thomas Skidmore’s The Rights of Men; from the American Transcendentalists; from speeches by Native Americans, including Tecumseh and Pushmataha; and from the early nineteenth-century women’s rights movement as represented by Abigail Adams, Mary Wollstonecraft, who as widely read among American women, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. The arguments of these authors reveal inherent tensions between the liberal and the republican view of society, i.e., between the idea of fundamental equality of all individuals, regardless of their race, gender, or beliefs, and the classical republican recognition of diversity among members of society. The chapter thus raises questions about the relative merit of abstract and descriptive representation.
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- Information
- Foundations of American Political ThoughtReadings and Commentary, pp. 317 - 358Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021