Woody Holton’s book Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution discusses the historical events and economic factors that played the central role in the development of the Constitution. Particular attention is given to the economic issues, class conflicts, the role of popular protests, and the decisions of the Founding Fathers. As I understand his position on the matter, the author argues that the Constitution was originally designed with the main purpose of not to establish civil rights, but rather to protect the financial interests of the country’s elite. Its final text and the Bill of Rights were a compromise made between the state and ordinary ‘unruly Americans’ who would not have supported the new supreme law without it recognizing their growing power and freedom.
I personally like the idea of approaching historical processes from an economic perspective. The author’s arguments are concise and clear, and he draws numerous examples and historical documents to illustrate his point of view. I loved the idea of how the chapters are named to include a quotation from a document reflecting their content. For example, the title “A Revolution Which Ought to Be Glorious” comes from the 1786 petition, which declared that state politics were stripping people of their lands and money. The quote reads, “The honest labourour who tills the ground by the sweat of his brow seems hitherto to be the only sufferors by a revolution which ought to glorious but which the underserving only reap the benefit of” 1. Throughout this chapter, the author draws arguments to discuss the economic aftermaths of the revolution and how ordinary people have become disenchanted with the post-war settlement that seemed to favor rich farmers over the common folk.
However interesting its idea seemed at first, the book was difficult for me to read. First, the language seems too complex and sometimes hard to understand. The author tends to use many specific economic terms that are unfamiliar to the general public, even in sentences where more common expressions could have been used. Second, to me, the chapters lack introductions and abstracts summarizing the author’s arguments. With so many nuances, characters, and events covered, it is sometimes hard to understand the basic point that the author intends to make. Third, I think that the book is too lengthy and repetitive. The main idea can be grasped within the first chapters, and I think that the author goes into too many details to make his point. I consider it to be the result of the one-dimensional approach to the problem, with the author elaborating on only one theory of money being the primary reason behind political decisions. The book would have worked better for me if it was a complication of different ideas around the origins of the Constitution.
Having read and analyzed the book, I liked it in terms of its approach and argumentation but had problems with its language and complexity. While balancing on the verge of being a comprehensive research and a bestseller aimed at the general audience, it lacks the structure of an academic paper and an accessible language of popular nonfiction literature. However, I think that it is an excellent resource of information about the development of the Constitution and the role of various social classes in the political events of that time.
Bibliography
Holton, Woody. Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008.
Footnotes
- Woody Holton. Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008), 131.