Syllabus: Founding of the American Republic
Syllabus, History 301; Founding of the American Republic, 1753-1806
Spring Semester, 2016; T/Th 9:30-10:45
Location: Lane 331
Assignments posted at: www.bradbirzer.com
Professor: Brad Birzer: brad.birzer@hillsdale.edu
Delp 403
Scope of the Course
This course is a part of the U.S. surveys for upper-level students. We’ll go straight through the chronology of the time, from the French and Indian War (the North American theater of the Great War for Empire) to the Lewis and Clark Expedition. That is, we’ll move from ca. 1753 to ca. 1806. Along the way, we’ll look at the Founding Fathers (and Mothers) of the period, especially exploring their own understandings of the world, intellectually, culturally, and religiously. Please note, this course will focus mostly on the ideas that animated the founding. It will not give much time to the nuts and bolts of names and dates. For an essential outline of such things, I’ve assigned Gordon Wood’s small but good overview, The American Revolution: A History. Since it is a course about ideas, I will have you read mostly primary sources (listed below and all available online, generally from the Online Library of Liberty).
In many ways, the founding era is a time period without equal in all of modern history, as a dedicated group of citizens attempted to create and sustain the first republic on any large scale since the collapse of the Roman republic with the assassination of Senator Marcus T. Cicero (43B.C.). They did so with an astounding amount of bravado and audacity, though certainly not without error and, at times, gut-wrenching compromise.
Readings
The founding generation—one of the single most literate generations in the history of the world—wrote much and, usually, for public consumption. Indeed, they considered the writing out, the debating of, and the transmission of ideas, a crucial component of their own cherished republicanism and Protestantism. Thus, I assign primarily primary documents in this class. Thanks to the beauty and decentralization of the web, every source you’ll read is available online. Please see semester dates (below) for actual assignments. Unless otherwise stated, all readings are available at http://oll.libertyfund.org/. N.B.: the readings may or may not correspond perfectly to the lectures of the week. That is, you might very well be reading the Constitution, even though I’ve only reached 1779 in course lectures.
Grades
- Essay/Paper, 20%
- Quizzes and In-class Assignments, 20%
- Midterm Examination, 30%
- Final Examination, 30%
Essay/Paper. Over the semester, I would like you to digest the primary readings as much as possible. Your quizzes as well as your examinations will challenge your knowledge and understanding of them. For your major paper, therefore, you should choose at least three of the primary readings assigned. With these primary documents, find a coherent theme. The theme is of your choosing. It could and can be anything from the rhetorical strategy employed to, for example, the ideas of Natural Law or Natural Rights. In 9-10 pages (12-point font, one-inch margins, double spaced), explore the chosen theme. You should not have to do research beyond the chosen documents, but you should give considerable time to the essence of your thesis. Play with it, explore it, and let it linger for a while, intellectually.
I encourage you to study in groups throughout the semester. I tend to talk quickly and cover a lot of material in a semester, and I firmly believe that you should use any ethical means possible to learn a subject. Feel free to trade notes, idea, etc. with one another. Obviously, during each examination, you’ll be tested individually. But, leading up to each exam, feel free to work with as many other students as you’d like.
Course schedule
- January 20-22
Readings: Cato Letters, Letters 84, 94, 106, 114-115
Readings: Adams, Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law
- January 25-29
Readings: Mercy Otis Warren, History of the Rise, vol. 1, chapters 1-4
- February 1-5
Readings: Stephen Hopkins, The Rights of the Colonies Examined, 1764
Readings: Richard Bland, An Inquiry into the Rights of the British Colonies, 1766
- February 8-12
Readings: Demophilus: The Genuine Principles of Ancient Saxon Constitution; and Addison
Readings: Cato: A Tragedy.
- February 15-19
Readings: J. Adams, Instructions of the Town of Braintree to their Representative, 1765
- February 22-26
Readings: Letters from a Pennsylvania Farmer, 1-3, 12
PWeekend Meetings: Saturday, February 27
- February 29-March 4
Readings: Continental Congress, Appeal to the Inhabitants of Quebec, 1774
Readings: Samuel West, On the Right to Rebel
- March 7-11
Readings: CX Letters (handout; emailed to you)
Readings: Declaration of Independence
Readings: Novanglus, Letters 1-4
Midterm: Thursday, March 10
- March 14-18
Readings: Hamilton, Continentalist Letters 1-3
Readings: Washington, Speech to the Officers of the Army, March 15, 1783
Spring Break, March 19-28
- March 29-March 1
Readings: Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Readings: Federalist Papers 1, 10, 37-39, 45-51
- April 4-8
Readings: Anti-Federalist Papers, Brutus (handout; emailed to you)
Readings: Anti-Federalist Papers, Old Whig (handout; emailed to you)
Readings: U.S. Constitution
- April 11-15
Readings: Bill of Rights
- April 18-22
Readings: Washington, First Inaugural Address
Readings: Washington, Farewell Address
- April 25-29
Readings: Thomas Jefferson, Inaugural Address
Papers due (my office): Friday, April 29, 5pm.
- May 2-3
Lewis and Clark Toasts (handout; emailed to you)
Steve Masty, RIP
Steve Masty (1954-2015). Photo by Lisa Schiffren.
Christian humanist stalwart and gifted wit, Steve Masty (1954-2015), passed away from this world yesterday in London. He died peacefully after a long and brutal battle with cancer.
A priest administered Last Rites immediately prior to Steve’s death.
Many of you may remember Steve as The Imaginative Conservative‘s “Man in Kabul” and “Man in Kathmandu.” He was one of the best writers and thinkers I have ever encountered. Never did I read anything of his without being moved by immense, gut-ripping laughter as well being moved intellectually and spiritually.
He was, not surprisingly, a Hillsdale College graduate and an utter character.
I never actually had the privilege of meeting him in person, but we corresponded frequently. I cherish the letters I received from Steve. He never failed to encourage me in every thing I wrote concerning Russell Kirk. We had deep conversations regarding Christian humanism, Catholicism, Kirk, Tolkien, imagination, and every thing else that really matters in this world. He invited me to visit him in at his club in London, but I was unable to accept due to family obligations.
He lived in London half of the year and the other half either in Afghanistan or Nepal. His parents and brother live in Florida.
There’s a lot about Steve I would guess we’ll never know. During the Reagan years, Steve was embedded with the anti-Soviet Afghan resistance. No, I’m not joking. As one of Steve’s Hillsdale professors has remarked, he might have single-handedly have brought down the Soviet Union. An exaggeration, of course, but a brilliant one.
Whatever he was, he was very much his own man.
It seems appropriate that he passed away on the day after Christmas Day, on the Feast of St. Stephen. I write this not merely because they shared the same name, but because, as far as I know, Steve gave every ounce of his ability to promoting western civilization and Christendom. Devout in his faith, he disarmed all opponents with unequalled humor.
His passing reminds me yet again just how tenuous the things of this world are. Steve lived his life fighting for the things of eternity. I am certain he is now enjoying his heavenly reward.
Dawson on Various Totalitarianisms, 1941
In 1941, Dawson appraised the various fundamentalisms and totalitarianisms–from fascist to Puritan–of his day.
Theodor Haecker, “The Unity of History,” 1946
Theodor Haecker
One of the greatest opponents of German National Socialism, Theodor Haecker. He died tragically in the bombing of Munich in the spring of 1945. This article, published posthumously, offers a brilliant insight into the mind of this forgotten figure.
Commonweal on Babbitt and More, 1929
A specifically Catholic examination of the New Humanism of Irving Babbitt and Paul Elmer More, 1929. Enjoy.
Christopher Dawson on the Future of Catholicism, 1942
Fascinating look at the future of Catholicism as seen during World War II.
Frank Sheed Interviews Christopher Dawson, 1958
Two of the most important men of the twentieth-century Catholic literary revival: Frank Sheed and Christopher Dawson.
Dawson, “Ploughing a Lone Furrow,” 1960
A really nice autobiographical piece Dawson wrote. An examination of his life as a non-academic scholar.
World Student Interviews Christopher Dawson, 1959
From a periodical I’d never heard of before my academic work on Christopher Dawson. Good interview, however.
Christopher Dawson, TRADITION AND INHERITANCE
One of Dawson’s little known and little-remembered pieces and one of his best. TRADITION AND INHERITANCE was an attempt to write an autobiography from the standpoint of family rather than individual. A beautiful idea, but it proved too cumbersome for Dawson to finish. Still, what’s here is nothing short of brilliant.
Stormfields 