Synopses & Reviews
Nobody has quite done what Dr. Dietze has attempted and has achieved... For there is no book quite like the admirable, closely argued, and learned one that he has just produced.--Economist
A comprehensive and scholarly treatment of the political ideas of The Federalist--their lineaments, their historical and theoretical roots, and their significance--which demonstrates that Dietze has mastered not only The Federalist but the American political idiom as well.--Review of Politics
Easily among the most perceptive and scholarly treatments of the... essays.--Law Library Journal
Dietze not only analyzes The Federalist but also synthesizes most Federalist research, reflecting a profound understanding of political thought as well as knowledge of world scholarship on federalism and constitutionalism... Few flaws mar the book's symmetry, precision, and profundity... No political theorist or student of democracy can afford to miss it.--Journal of Politics
It is fantastic to note that Gottfried Dietze's The Federalist is the first book ever written on the subject in this country.--Harper's
A much-needed analysis... For those who wish to know what at least three of the Founding Fathers really thought, this is a must.--Washington Post
First published in 1960 and reissued through seven successful printings, this widely acclaimed classic of American political studies now returns to print in a new paperback edition.
Synopsis
Originally published in 1960. The Federalist--a treatise on free government in peace and security--is one of the most important contributions to the literature on constitutional democracy and federalism in the United States. Scholars, lawyers, judges, and statesmen in the United States and abroad have lauded the impact of The Federalist. John Quincy Adams referred to the papers as a classical work in the English language, and a commentary on the Constitution of the United States, of scarcely less authority than the Constitution itself. Since the publication of the papers, historians have analyzed the collected work from a variety of approaches, but at the time that Gottfried Dietze wrote in 1960, scholars mainly concentrated on specific components of The Federalist. Dietze intervened in this scholarship by offering a comprehensive study of the work, which promoted federalism as both a means for establishing free government and securing peace within a federal state and for maintaining security under the threat of foreign powers. In addition to a theoretical examination of the text, Dietze brings in a historical component by fleshing out how its authors were shaped by the political atmosphere in which they lived and how their writings transformed political literature for generations to come
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 355-358) and index.