Synopses & Reviews
The Federalist Papers--85 essays published in the winter of 1787-8 in the New York press--are some of the most crucial and defining documents in American political history, laying out the principles that still guide our democracy today. The three authors--Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay--were respectively the first Secretary of the Treasury, the fourth President, and the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in American history. Each had played a crucial role in the events of the American Revolution, and their essays make a compelling case for a new and united nation, governed under a written Constitution that endures to this day.
The Federalist Papers are an indispensable guide to the intentions of the founding fathers and a canonical text in the development of western political thought. This is the first edition to explain the many classical, mythological, and historical references in the text, and to pay full attention to the erudition of the three authors, which enabled them to place the infant American republic in a long tradition of self-governing states.
About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
Review
"[The White Earth Nation provides] a compelling behind-the-scenes perspective on the creation of the White Earth constitution that will be instructive to anyone who is interested in the perplexing but always stimulating topic of indigenous self-government. Few issues are more significant to residents of the Great Plains and the American West."—Mark R. Scherer, Annals of Iowa
Synopsis
The White Earth Nation of Anishinaabeg Natives ratified in 2009 a new constitution, the first indigenous democratic constitution, on a reservation in Minnesota. Many Native constitutions were written by the federal government, and with little knowledge of the people and cultures. The White Earth Nation set out to create a constitution that reflected its own culture. The resulting document provides a clear Native perspective on sovereignty, independent governance, traditional leadership values, and the importance of individual and human rights.
This volume includes the text of the Constitution of the White Earth Nation; an introduction by David E. Wilkins, a legal and political scholar who was a special consultant to the White Earth Constitutional Convention; an essay by Gerald Vizenor, the delegate and principal writer of the Constitution of the White Earth Nation; and articles first published in Anishinaabeg Today by Jill Doerfler, who coordinated and participated in the deliberations and ratification of the Constitution. Together these essays and the text of the Constitution provide direct insight into the process of the delegate deliberations, the writing and ratification of this groundbreaking document, and the current constitutional, legal, and political debates about new constitutions.
About the Author
Gerald Vizenor is Distinguished Professor of American Studies at the University of New Mexico and professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the author and editor of more than thirty books, including the essay collection Native Liberty: Natural Reason and Cultural Survivance (Nebraska, 2009). Jill Doerfler is an assistant professor of American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. David E. Wilkins is a professor of American Indian studies at the University of Minnesota and the author of Documents of Native American Political Development: 1500s to 1933.
Table of Contents
Introduction Note on the Text
Synopsis of The Federalist Papers
Select Bibliography
A Chronology of Events 1763-1791
Map of the United States c.1789
THE FEDERALIST PAPERS
Appendix: The Constitution of the United States (1787 and 1791)
Explanatory Notes
Thematic Index