American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson
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| American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson | |
| Author | Joseph Ellis |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Non-Fiction |
| Publisher | Vintage Books |
| Publication date | 1996 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, is a 1996 book written by Joseph Ellis, a professor of History at Mount Holyoke College. It won the 1997 National Book Award for Nonfiction.
Contents |
[edit] Reviews
Brent Staples of the New York Times Book Review commented that, "Joseph J. Ellis's American Sphinx is a brief and elegant return to Monticello. Mr. Ellis...is a remarkably clear writer, mercifully free of both the groveling and the spirit of attack that have dominated the subject in the past....American Sphinx is fresh and uncluttered but rich in historical context." [1]
[edit] Controversy
American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, became the subject of controversy in 1996. In this text, Ellis suggests that evidence for an affair between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings is "inconclusive".[2] Specifically, Ellis states in the appendix to American Sphinx,
- Unless the trustees of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation decide to exhume the remains and do DNA testing on Jefferson as well as some of his alleged progeny, it leaves the matter a mystery about which advocates on either side can freely speculate...This means that for those who demand an answer the only recourse is plausible conjecture, prefaced as it must be with profuse statements about the flimsy and wholly circumstantial character of the evidence. In that spirit, which we might call the spirit of responsible speculation, after five years mulling over the huge cache of evidence that does exist on the thought and character of the historical Jefferson, I have concluded that the likelihood of a liaison with Sally Hemings is remote.[3]
Dr. Eugene Foster published an article in the November 5, 1998 issue of the weekly journal, Nature, called "Jefferson Fathered Slave's Last Child." In the article, Foster states that DNA testing proved that Thomas Jefferson was the father of Sally's son, Eston.[4]
On November 2, 1998, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer ran a feature on this topic, stating that, "according to an article in an upcoming issue of the journal Nature, DNA analysis shows that Jefferson almost certainly fathered at least one of Sally Hemings' children, her last son, Eston."[5] Ellis, who was interviewed during this broadcast, stated that he had revised his opinion due to this new evidence:
- It's not so much a change of heart, but this is really new evidence. And it - prior to this evidence, I think it was a very difficult case to know and circumstantial on both sides, and, in part, because I got it wrong, I think I want to step forward and say this new evidence constitutes, well, evidence beyond any reasonable doubt that Jefferson had a longstanding sexual relationship with Sally Hemings. Even though the match is only with one of the Hemings' descendants, Eston Hemings, it's inconceivable that Jefferson, who was 65 when Eston was born, would have made a one-night stand here. I think this is a longstanding relationship. When it began and what the character of the relationship is we probably can't know easily or at all. But it was, without question, an enduring one.[6]
He also noted in an interview with Frontline, that "In the wake of the DNA revelations, an already-clear pattern of denial in Jefferson's life is deepened and darkened."[7]
As a consequence of the DNA testing, Ellis, published essays in Nature, where he coauthored an article with geneticist Eric S. Lander, breaking the news of the scientific findings, and in U.S. News & World Report.[8] Ellis states:
- As one who had suggested that we could not know the truth, I felt a special obligation to take the lead when the DNA evidence finally made the truth available.[9]
Ellis next took students on a field trip to Monticello to survey the response to the results of the DNA tests. They found that "eighty percent of those polled were unmoved by findings they'd assumed all along were fact . . . scholars not the public, it turned out, were the ones taken by surprise."[10]
Ellis' revised position did concur, however, with that of the late UCLA professor of History Fawn Brodie, who speculated on this relationship twenty years prior in her 1974 text, Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History.[11]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Staples, Brent. "American Sphinx (New York Times book review)", powells.com. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Joseph Ellis: Putting History in Perspective", mountholyoke.edu, 2000. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ Ellis, Joseph. ""Appendix:Note on the Sally Hemings Scandal" From "American Sphinx", pp.303-307", pbs.org, 1996. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Frontline: Jefferson's Blood: The History of a Story". Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Online Newshour: Thomas Jefferson", pbs.org, 1998-11-02. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Online Newshour: Thomas Jefferson", pbs.org, 1998-11-02. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Frontline:Jefferson's Blood: Interviews: Joseph Ellis", pbs.org. Retrieved on 2006-08-05.
- ^ "Joseph Ellis: Putting History in Perspective", mountholyoke.edu, 2000. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Joseph Ellis: Putting History in Perspective", mountholyoke.edu, 2000. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ "Joseph Ellis: Putting History in Perspective", mountholyoke.edu, 2001-08-17. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
- ^ Brodie, Fawn. "Frontline: Jefferson's Blood: Chronology: Thomas Jefferson-an intimate history", pbs.org. Retrieved on 2006-08-04.
