Synopses & Reviews
Thomas Jefferson published one book,
Notes on the State of Virginia, and ever since, it has been the touchstone for understanding Jefferson's ideas about republican government, the environment, education, race and slavery, and Native-white relations. This edition is the first to present these issues as fundamentally inseparable matters. A collection of lively documents accompanies the core text of the
Notes, and charts the evolution of the book in the revolutionary crucible and during the heady early days of the new nation. An introduction by David Waldstreicher places the work in the contexts of the Revolution and the social and cultural history of Jefferson's Virginia, with particular attention to developing ideas about race and nature. A chronology of the life and career of Thomas Jefferson and selected bibliography also add to the pedagogical benefits of this volume.
Review
“This is a Bedford book that is long overdue, and David Waldstreicher is a superb choice as editor. This new edition of Notes on the State of Virginia is informed by the more recent scholarship on Jefferson, which the editor knows cold, and it will attract a substantial audience among college teachers, yours truly included.” —Joseph J. Ellis, Mount Holyoke College
“This is an excellent piece of work. Specialists as well as students will learn from the Introduction, and though the Notes are available in many editions, they have never been so attractively and accessibly presented. Also, the very fine selection of additional documents will certainly enhance the reader's appreciation of the Notes.” —Peter S. Onuf, University of Virginia
About the Author
David Waldstreicher is Associate Professor at the University of Notre Dame.
Table of Contents
Part One Introduction: Nature, Race, and Revolution in Jeffersons America Thomas Jeffersons Virginia * Virginias Jefferson * Virginias Revolution Law and War * Notes on the State of Virginia and the State of America Nature * Native Genius * Captive Nations * From Weather to Race * The Strange History of a Book *
Part II Documents * Thomas Jefferson, Resolutions of the Freeholders of Albemarle County, July 26, 1774 * Lord Dunmore, Proclamation of Freedom to Slaves and Servants, November, 1775 * The Declaration of Independence: Thomas Jeffersons Draft with Congresss Changes, July 4, 1776 * Francois Marbois, Queries Concerning Virginia, November, 1780 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Jean Baptiste DuCoigne, Kaskaskia Chief, June, 1781 * Thomas Jefferson, An Anonymous Letter for European Newspapers, November, 1784 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Marquis de Chastellux, June 7, 1785 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Richard Price, August 7, 1785 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Marquis de Chastellux, September 2, 1785 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Archibald Stuart, January 25, 1786 * Thomas Jefferson, Notes on the State of Virginia, 1787 London Edition * Benjamin Banneker, Letter to Thomas Jefferson, August 19, 1791 * Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Benjamin Banneker, August 30, 1791