The book “Founding Brothers” is written by Joseph J. Ellis. The book speaks about the impact of the American founding fathers that determined the political course of early America. The Founding brothers consisted of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Aaron Burr and Abigail Adams, who was known as the sister of the group. The book narrates the portrait of each of these individuals by looking at six episodes that interrelate with the story of their lives.
The author’s point of writing the book is to expose the reader to historical events that would eventually lead up to the formation of the United States government’s present and future generations. He achieves this point by exploring and speaking on the challenges that the founding brothers faced when they formed the new government at the end of the Revolutionary War (Ellis, p13). He talks about the relationships and conflicts that surrounded the founding brothers, as well as the personalities of these individuals, which helped influence or were influenced by the unstable period of their existence. Ellis added significant important aspects to the book, making it more valuable to learn about the history of the United States. It is written with flair and radiant, calm intelligence and exceptional aspects of the past.
The book leads the audience to believe that the end of the Revolutionary War led to great conflict regarding the need for the central government to unite 13 states. This led to constitutional conventions that met in Philadelphia in 1787, where the constitution was formed. The treaty’s participants were the founding brothers. The founding brothers’ arguments led to the formation of the first government that governed all 13 states. The writer argues that the founding brothers played a significant role in ensuring that the voices of the Americans were heard and their needs met. H claims that during this period, the institutional checks and balances were out of reach.
Hence, the only way that a united America could survive was through the ability of the founding brothers to settle issues in the debate. More so, subsequent collusion and unity between the founding brothers influenced American politics positively and from different perspectives. For example, Part Two talks about a dinner held in 1790 between Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and James Madison (Ellis, p29). The diner talks about secret conversations and negotiations that would lead up to the discussion regarding the payment of the national debt and the construction of a new national capital site in the south. The collaboration of the founding brothers shaped the way forward for America. Additionally, Part Three talks about how the African slavery issue was incepted. The author Ellis claims that in 1790, Benjamin Franklin and a delegation of Quakers encouraged the House of Representatives to urgently debate the issues of the elimination of the African slave trade. The founding brothers would once again influence the manner in which the political framework imposed policies and regulations. The author’s argument on the extent of influence that the founding brothers have inflicted is by far evidently portrayed throughout the book.
The book is informative and comprehensively speaks on the factual events of American political aspects immediately after the Revolutionary War. This book is a vital historical connection to the generations that existed after this period since it informed them about how the United States governance was incepted and who was involved in the initiative (Ellis, p16). The book helps to convince the reader by giving details on every event that took place during those different periods. It also helps to clarify the author’s argument about George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Aaron. Abigail Adams, among others, significantly impacted the formation of the new United States government and helped to shape the present American politics. It’s a great piece of American history, and it is recommended if someone wants to enhance his/her knowledge about the history of America after the American Revolution.
Work Cited
Ellis, Joseph. Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. 2003. Print.
