Oh Ned, You KNOW Samuel Eliot Morison was a professor
of history at Harvard for most of the twentieth century!

David Kiracofe

Quoting Ned Heite <[log in to unmask]>:

> At 2:04 PM -0500 4/12/01, Paul Finkelman wrote:
> >
> >In fact, Jefferson's status or that of any
> >other president may be harmed or enhanced by what we
find out about
> >them.    Their
> >private lives may not affect how we view their
public acts or even
> >their famous
> >words; but surely what we know about Jefferson as
slaveowner does
> >affect our views
> >of him as person and even as a president.
>
> snips happen
>
> >
> >Serious historians, on the other hand, are not in
the business of
> >defending the
> >honor or reputation of the Founders; we are in the
business of
> understanding
> >people, their lives and the world they lived.
>
> I have problems reconciling these two statements from
Professor
> Finkelman. Jefferson as slaveowner was merely a
member of his class.
> To appreciate his works, of course, we must
understand that they are
> from the pen of a slaveowner.  But he was a lot of
other things, too.
> He was a serious student of the Bible. He was a
scientist. He was an
> amateur architect. He was a farmer. He was an
industrialist. He was a
> politician.
>
> To identify "slaveowner" as a dominant characteristic
of Jefferson's
> persona is to seriously distort the man as a whole,
in the context of
> the milieu where he lived. So do we interpret the
advocate of
> religious freedom as a slaveowner, or as a friend of
Baptists?  Do we
> interpret the architect of Monticello as a
slaveowner, or as a
> student of classical architecture?  While you can't
isolate any
> aspect of this incredibly complex person, all the
aspects must be
> present in any interpretation.
>
> While I happen to be a professional historian, I have
misgivings
> about some of the basic tenets of the profession.
Professional
> historians supposedly keep a certain detachment, but
the best
> historical writing is anything but detached. Read any
of the great
> historical writers: Samuel Eliot Morisn, Winston
Churchill, or Ivor
> Noel Hume.  I could name many more, but the curious
fact is that none
> of the best historical writers are professors of
history.  There is a
> possibility that detachment is a disability when we
want to interpret
> people's lives and works.  Is it really possible for
one human being
> to write about another without developing some kind
of personal
> attachment?
> --
> Ned Heite  ([log in to unmask])
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