American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson

Rating:
Summary: Must Read for TJ and US Revolution History Fans
Review: Joseph Ellis projects an interesting analysis of the illusive Thomas Jefferson in "American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson." Brilliant but contradictory, most historians glorified the author of the Declaration of Independence for nearly 200 years. Recently, with the emergence of John Adams as an equally accepted visionary Founder, the strange and conflicting sides of Jefferson have been given equal attention to those that reflect the genius from Monticello, Virginia.

More than any other American historical figure, Jefferson was incredibly aware of his future role in history, and thereby his legacy. Much of the documented historical record, both that written by him and that written to him, reflect the facts that he chose what future generations would see. Ellis breaks down five periods of Jefferson's life: (1) the period around the writing of the Declaration, (2) the years in Paris as American envoy, (3) the years in semi-seclusion during the second Washington administration, (4) his first Presidential term, (5) and his years in retirement the decade prior to his death. The main premises of Ellis' work are that Jefferson was elusive in description, contradictory in philosophy, and often devious in action.

After reading Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis (see my review dated 7/23/01) I had enormous expectations for his previously penned biography of Thomas Jefferson. It is a good scholarly account, but falls short of the enormously readable "Founding Brothers" work that won the Pulitzer Prize. Ellis teases you by revealing the many two-faced aspects of Jefferson's character, but shies away from drawing the conclusions that Jefferson's personality was bizarre. The third President was generally a person who could make himself believe anything he wanted, that his position and beliefs were always righteous, as long as it helped him get or preserve what he wanted.

Ellis does reveal the many aspects that prove Jefferson such a contradiction. Those include his inability to speak in public compared to the tremendous talent as a writer and analyst. The fact that he betrayed one of his most loyal and devoted friends for decades (John Adams), to secure the goals of the Virginians in the roots of the Founding, also speak loudly to his complex nature. What most people do not realize was that though he was extremely reticent that our country not become encumbered to a national financial consolidation, he was among the most atrocious of debtors and virtually ruined his family through decades of irresponsible personal spending. Finally, everyone now knows his amazingly illogical position regarding slavery, and the facts proven by modern DNA mapping techniques that demonstrate that he fathered children by his slave Sally Hemings.

I rate this book most accurately at 4.00 out of 5.00 stars. It is a must read for devotees of the Revolutionary period, and for those interested in Jefferson or John Adams. Ellis could have rated higher by really getting in depth in the many complex facets of Jefferson's personality, ability the author demonstrates better in other works. The book is worth reading and valuable for reference work.

Rating:
Summary: Shoddy character assassination
Review: Prof. Ellis, who was finally caught last year in his long time lie of having served in Vietnam, presents as an indisputable fait accompli Jefferson's alleged fathering of a child with Sally Hemings. In fact, all that was revealed by the DNA evidence was that Hemings's youngest son, Eston, was likely fathered by one of the more than two dozen Jefferson males in the area at the time. Most likely is Jefferson's much younger brother Randolph, rather than Jefferson who was in his mid-60s when Eston was born. Recently a distinguished panel of over a dozen Jeffersonian scholars provided a detailed analysis on this issue and their conclusions ranged from strong skepticism to the belief that the charges were almost certainly false. Nevertheless, Ellis continues to propagate his jealous libel. His extreme personal bias taints this book and makes a reader wonder what other facts he has misreprensented.

Rating:
Summary: Sphinx?
Review: Five star effort by Ellis for what he did. If you want the Sphinx-like enigma of Jefferson to continue, however, don't read the little known book by a little known author who has found the lost piece in the Jefferson picture puzzle that completes the picture, banishes the enigima, and finally brings Jefferson into clear focus for all observers. If you want to halt the Jefferson feeding frenzy (and perhaps you don't, for it has become rather like a sport)-- if you want to finally see and understand Thomas Jefferson clearly -- I suggest you read (and don't be fooled by the title) "West Point" by Norman Thomas Remick. I was shocked! This unknown author has found the "lost chord". I hate to say it guys, but the feeding frenzy is over! All your books on the "mysterious" Thomas Jefferson are obsolete. Throw them on the trash heep!

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Summary: What would Jefferson think?
Review: In light of the recent terrorist attacks, it is fascinating, if not entirely useful, to imagine what Thos. Jefferson might consider to be an appropriate response to such unmitigated evil. I read Ellis' AMERICAN SPHINX over the summer and found it to be more engrossing that I had imagined. I suppose I had never known how radical many of his ideas were, from the absolute freedom of the individual, to his utter hatred of monarchist governments, and his great opposition to tyranny in all of its forms.

It's for this latter notion that I support recent efforts in the US to combat terrorism and to name names of the perpetrators. For I have not heard it referred to in the New York Times or CNN as such but 'tyranny,' as Jefferson used the word, is really what these attacks seek to achieve. It would do well to remember his famous quote in these times, as the months pass and the nation heals, that the struggle against tyranny, and not just the individual's right to liberty, was one of Jefferson's great gifts to mankind.

Ellis, to his credit, gives us a life lived well, if not without its disappointments, and a man whose ideas resonate across the centuries. Hopefully it is a book that will remind Americans and all freedom loving peoples, of how important his contribution was (and is) to republican government, individual freedom, and liberty from tyranny.

Rating:
Summary: Well written in an extraordinary format
Review: I must preface this review by stating that I do not question the author's scholastic veracity despite questions as to his personal truthfulness. Therefore, I unequivocably consider this to be a first rate study of Jefferson. The style is interesting in that very little is written about his early years. Instead, Ellis writes about select periods of Jefferson's life. For example, he writes of Jefferson's first term as President but not of his second term. In the same vein, he writes about the last ten years of Jefferson's life but not about the first few years of his retirement to Monticello. Believe it or not, there are no gaps in this book. This format really works well (of course there are some references to the gap periods but no extended coverage).

Jefferson comes across as an enigmatic individual. He was not as outgoing as John Adams was. Adams wore his emotions on his sleeve. Adams (in the vernacular) would "tell it like it is," whereas Jefferson was more reserved. Quite frankly, Jefferson was sometimes duplicitous in not saying what he believed to all parties, but only to selected audiences. Jefferson was more of the populist yet he lived as an aristocrat. During the Continental Congress, he arrived in a luxurious carriage with several slaves dressed opulantly. He was always spending more money than he had. There were other interesting contrasts in Jefferson's life. He believed that society should be primarily agricultural but, when financial necessity dictated, he set up a nail factory at Monticello, replete with a hot foundry.

The biggest contrast was his opposition to slavery at the same time he owned a couple of hundred of them. Indeed, in his will, he did not free most of the slaves. Rather he kept them in servitude to be retained, or sold, by his estate (of course his estate was nearly bankrupt with slaves being one of its few assets). He made almost no effort, in his personal life, to live up to his ideals in this most important of issues.

When Ellis originally wrote this book, he was doubtful of the Sally Hemmings rumors. Based on the DNA results, Ellis is now convinced that Jefferson sired children by his slave, Sally Hemmings. I note that another reviewer questions Ellis' conclusions and believes that the DNA evidence could just as easily point to Jefferson's brother. I do not have the scientific background to fully understand DNA test results but, suffice it to say that the author was open minded enough to change his conclusion when confronted with evidence.

The are many shelves of biographies of Thomas Jefferson and, I consider this to be an excellent addition to the scholarship regarding this enigmatic founding father.

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Summary: So how accurate is he about Jefferson?
Review: There is some legitimacy for questioning Joseph Ellis' scholarship of Jefferson independently of his personal veracity. Does his analysis itself hold up to scrutiny?

In at least one significant sense, no, it doesn't. The genetic connection between Jefferson and Sally Hemings of which Ellis is assured is anything but, which Professor Ellis surely knows himself since one of his co-authors on the inflammatory 1998 report "Jefferson Fathered Slave's Last Child" was the author of the DNA study itself, and who publicly stated as much himself.

Eugene Foster told the journal Nature that his study found only that Thomas Jefferson *could* have been the father of Eston Hemings, not that he was. He pointed out that in fact the type of testing done was incapable of proving such a thing. All the DNA analysis revealed was that *some* Jefferson male very likely fathered a child by Sally Hemings. Since DNA comparisons were made with regard to Jefferson's uncle, not Jefferson himself, over two dozen Jefferson males living at the time were possible candidates, several of whom were present at Monticello during the time Hemings conceived her last son.

Contemporary evidence points strongly to Randolph Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's brother, who had such a close acquaintance with the slave community at Monticello that they referred to him as "Uncle Randolph." Some of the same evidence can be seen to point to Thomas Jefferson as the father, but such an interpretation requires one to believe that the forty-four-year-old U.S. ambassador to France chose to have an affair with the teenaged slave half-sister of his wife who by more than one account was incapable of taking care of herself, much less the ambassador's daughters to whom she was charged. You be the judge.

So what does this say about Joseph Ellis' scholarship? Clearly for him to declare as he has that "Now we know," concerning the truth of the Jefferson/Hemings relationship, is irresponsible and injudicious at best, since such an assertion is factually incorrect. When combined with his own personal prevarications and embellishments, such a willingness to bend facts to support a purely subjective opinion makes trusting his judgement in accurately reporting and adjudging history and historical figures much more difficult. I, for one, am now deeply skeptical of his work, and believe others should be, too. That he writes well isn't in question. That he's right, is.

Rating:
Summary: I really feel like I know who this man is now
Review: The research seemed to be excellent from anything I could tell. The analysis of Jefferson's personality and research into his writings as well as writings about him by contemporaries, creates an engaging portrait of the man that helps one understand him alongside his politics.

Ellis makes it clear why every group claims him as their own.

The best part about this book to me was really having the feeling that I could see this person clearly with all his ambiguities, good sides, and less good sides, without the icon glow, yet with respect.

A terrific job by Professor Ellis.

Rating:
Summary: An Exelent Portrait of Jeferson's Character
Review: As an introduction to Thomas Jeferson I can hardly think of a better and more grounded way to portray Jefferson. This book really shows everyone what Jeferson's convictions where and how he thought. The main downfall of this book is pricisely it's best quality. Throughout the book Elias spends pages redescribing Jeferson's binary way of thinking and how he was able to hold several concepts in his mind without them conveluting each other. This coupled with the book's moderate leingh (about 370 pages) gives the reader the impression that the great actions of Jeferson where not portrayed in enough detail. Such important features such as the passing of the Alien and Sedition acts are not quite adiquatly explained and Jeferson's second term as president only gets a passing reference.

Another poor part of the book is it's extremely high prose level. Personally I found approximately one word every page that I did not understand significantly to understand a passage. While it did not really take away from the literary experience for me it could get infuriating especially for people for which english is a second language or lack proficiency in numerous outdated expressions used in the innumerable quotations from Jefferson.

For me, however, the book's problems where overlapsed by the intriguing and well expressed ideas about Jefferson's character.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book.
Review: Ellis' books offer invaluable insight into the past of this great nation. So few authors have mastered the ability to entertain while informing. Yet given the opportunity, some of you would erase Ellis' entire body of work.

Why is this? It's because you've decided you don't like him personally. You've likely made this decision based on sensationalized media reports calling his character into question. You're probably not employing a very sophisticated, independent or analytical thought process if you've jumped on this bandwagon. This is the Jerry Springer age.

Okay, so Ellis embellished his military record. But he WAS in the military during Viet Nam, and DID teach at West Point. It's not as though he dodged the draft, hung out in Canada then came back telling war stories.

Those who are filled with fiery criticism, answer this: Who amongst you hasn't done something worse than embellishing your past? You all have. Should you be crucified, too?

Ellis' books have withstood intense scholarly review and hold up with total integrity. Ellis won the Pulitzer because he's a great historian and writer. Buy his books because you want to read the best.

Rating:
Summary: "Internal agility to generate multiple versions of truth"
Review: Like most readers of books I also read newspapers and am stunned by the recent revelations by THE BOSTON GLOBE about Joseph Ellis's fabricated Vietnam service record. What could be more damaging for a historian than to be shown up as someone who disrespects truth?; that's what Mr Ellis has done with his false lifestory. I thoroughly enjoyed and learned a lot from FOUNDING FATHERS, but all of this has, for me, refreshed a perception of Jefferson that I came away with from AMERICAN SPHINX; and made me re-read sections until I found what I was looking for - irony abounds.

AMERICAN SPHINX is more a detailed character sketch of Jefferson the man, than it is a detailed account of the history of his life as president. Mr Ellis therefore shines a new light on some of the contradictory aspects of Jefferson's character. How could a man who spoke and wrote so eloquently about freedom, keep slaves?; How to reconcile his advocacy of government austerity with his personal extravagance?. Mr Ellis says that Jefferson was "always a controversial figure who combined great depth with great shallowness, massive learning with extraordinary naivete, piercing insight into others with daunting powers of self-deception." Mr Ellis is an excellent writer and this book is full of such penetrating insights. Another is that Jefferson edited some of his earlier correspondences in order "to convince posterity that his affection for France had not blinded him to the possibility of unparalled violence." There were other examples of less than perfect behavior; all of which Mr Ellis says can be explained by looking at it as "the deep deviousness only possible in a dedicated idealist."

Then I found the quotation from the book I was looking for. This deviousness of the idealist came from Jefferson's practice as a young man of making "interior worlds of great imaginative appeal that inevitably collided with the more mundane realities". It provided Jefferson, Mr Ellis says, with "the internal ability to generate multiple versions of the truth". Who else?, I wonder. Didn't Mr Ellis, in writing these words, not pause and reflect on his own situation?

AMERICAN SPHINX is a balanced account of the character of Jefferson. It is well researched and well written, it's just that I doubt anyone reading it now, can't help but think more about Joseph Ellis and his character, rather than Thomas Jefferson.