American Virtues: Thomas Jefferson on the Character of a Free People (Modern War Studies)

American Virtues: Thomas Jefferson on the Character of a Free People (Modern War Studies) by Yarbrough, Jean M.. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780700609062.

Eschewing the liberal versus classical republican debate, Yarbrough (government and legal studies, Bowdoin College) examines the moral aspects of the Founders, as expressed in the political philosophy of Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson wrote extensively on what virtues among its citizens would allow the new country of America to succeed. Acknowledging the limits to his philosophy, such as his resistance to the rights of women or his dislike of banks, the author begins by examining the Declaration of Independence, and finds that its basic principles, with those later expressed by Jefferson, may lead to an understanding of American virtues. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.