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Jefferson's Empire: The Language of American Nationhood the Language of
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Jefferson's Empire: The Language of American Nationhood the Language of American Nationhood Hardback - 2000

by Peter S. Onuf

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Thomas Jefferson believed that the American revolution was a transformative moment in the history of political civilization. He hoped that his own efforts as a founding statesman and theorist would help construct a progressive and enlightened order for the new American nation that would be a model and inspiration for the world. Peter S. Onuf's new book traces Jefferson's vision of the American future to its roots in his idealized notions of nationhood and empire. Onuf's unsettling recognition that Jefferson's famed egalitarianism was elaborated in an imperial context yields strikingly original interpretations of our national identity and our ideas of race, of westward expansion and the Civil War, and of American global dominance in the twentieth century.

Jefferson's vision of an American "empire for liberty" was modeled on a British prototype. But as a consensual union of self-governing republics without a metropolis, Jefferson's American empire would be free of exploitation by a corrupt imperial ruling class. It would avoid the cycle of war and destruction that had characterized the European balance of power.

The Civil War cast in high relief the tragic limitations of Jefferson's political vision. After the Union victory, as the reconstructed nation-state developed into a world power, dreams of the United States as an ever-expanding empire of peacefully coexisting states quickly faded from memory. Yet even as the antebellum federal union disintegrated, a Jeffersonian nationalism, proudly conscious of America's historic revolution against imperial domination, grew up in its place.

In Onuf's view, Jefferson's quest to define a new American identity also shaped his ambivalent conceptions of slavery and Native American rights. His revolutionary fervor led him to see Indians as "merciless savages" who ravaged the frontiers at the British king's direction, but when those frontiers were pacified, a more benevolent Jefferson encouraged these same Indians to embrace republican values. African American slaves, by contrast, constituted an unassimilable captive nation, unjustly wrenched from its African homeland. His great panacea: colonization.

Jefferson's ideas about race reveal the limitations of his conception of American nationhood. Yet, as Onuf strikingly documents, Jefferson's vision of a republican empire--a regime of peace, prosperity, and union without coercion--continues to define and expand the boundaries of American national identity.

Details

  • Title Jefferson's Empire: The Language of American Nationhood the Language of American Nationhood
  • Author Peter S. Onuf
  • Binding Hardback
  • Edition First Edition
  • Pages 250
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher University of Virginia Press, Charlottesville, VA
  • Publication date 2000
  • ISBN 9780813919300 / 0813919304
  • Weight 1.27 lbs (0.58 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.37 x 6.37 x 1.05 in (23.80 x 16.18 x 2.67 cm)
  • Category History - U.S.
  • Library of Congress subjects United States - Politics and government -, United States - Politics and government -
  • Library of Congress Catalogue Number 99039129
  • Dewey Decimal Code 973.46

About the author

Peter S. Onuf, Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation Professor of History at the University of Virginia, is the editor of Jeffersonian Legacies and, with Jan Lewis, of Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson: History, Memory, and Civic Culture.

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Jeffersons Empire The Language of American Nationhood

Jeffersons Empire The Language of American Nationhood

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Univ of Virginia Pr, 2000. hardcover. Acceptable. 6x1x9. Book shows noticeable signs of wear. Pages have significant yellowing or heavy tanning. Writing, underlining, and highlighting is present throughout, but text remains fully readable. Cover and edges may show heavy shelf wear, creasing, or small tears. Binding remains intact and fully functional. May contain previous owner’s name, stickers, or library marks. A well-used but readable copy overall.
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Univ of Virginia Press, 2000. FIRST EDITION. Hardcover. Like New/Like New. First Edition, First Printing. Not price-clipped. Published by Univ of Virginia Press, 2000. Octavo. Hardcover. Book is like new. Dust jacket is like new with very light edgewear. 100% positive feedback. 30 day money back guarantee. NEXT DAY SHIPPING! Excellent customer service. Please email with any questions. All books packed carefully and ship with free delivery confirmation/tracking. All books come with free bookmarks. Ships from Sag Harbor, New York.
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JEFFERSON'S EMPIRE: THE LANGUAGE OF AMERICAN NATIONHOOD (JEFFERSONIAN AMERICA)

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Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2000. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good plus. Pages are clean with no markings from previous owners. Binding is square and tight. Boards are overall clean but worn along edges. Text block is lightly soiled and foxed. Dust jacket has some slight edgewear, creases and rubbing at spine ends and corners. Dust jacket covers are lightly soiled, scuffed and rubbed. PICTURES PROVIDED UPON REQUEST.
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