The Wit & Wisdom of the Founding Fathers: Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson [VINTAGE 1996] [FIRST EDTITION, FIRST PRINTING]

Zall, Paul M. (selector and editor); Blount, Jr., Roy (introduction)

Edité par The Ecco Press, Hopewell, New Jersey, 1996

A propos de cet article

As new condition white boards, red cloth spine, and blue spine lettering contained in an as new condition non price-clipped color illustrated dust jacket. Includes List of Other Books by Paul M. Zall; Introduction by Roy Blount, Jr., Preface by Paul M. Zall; Appendix: Sources and Resources; and About the Editor. "George Washington laughing? That the venerable Father of Our Country, the austere and unfailingly honest leader of historical record and legend, had a penchant for tall tales and crafty quips seems unthinkable to most Americans, even today. In The Wit & Wisdom of the Founding Fathers, historian and scholar Paul Zall shatters the sober image of American icons George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin to reveal - and celebrate - their natural bent for incisive, spirited humor. With ample quotes from personal correspondence and private mnemoirs, Zall peers behind the staid and serious facade of our first three presidents and demonstrates how each strove to suppress his sense of mirth to maintain a dignified public reputation. By lifting the curtain on our Founding Fathers as they engage in practical jokes and regale friends with humorous stories, Zall opens a window on their personalities otherwise obscured by our preconceptions of them as larger-than-life historical figures. While Franklin's humor and wisdom is legendary thanks to his authorship of Poor Richard's Almanac, readers will be surprised to learn that Washington had a penchant for biting sarcasm; that Adams engaged in direct, colloquial, even vulgar, humor; and that Jefferson, our most cerebral president, enjoyed laughing at the absurdity of his own situation as leader of the nation. With an introduction by noted humorist Roy Blount Jr., The Wit & Wisdom of the Founding Fathers is bound to raise some eyebrows around the Supreme Court when it comes to arguments about the Original Intent of our forebears, while offering all of us a welcome break from the divisive inanity of today's political squabbling." - from the inner front and rear jacket flaps. "The Founding Fathers on Politics: On Campaigning: *** Half the truth is often a great lie. *** The first mistake in public business, is the going into it. On Congress: *** A bill can be easily corrected by making every word a 'said' or 'aforesaid,' and saying everything over two or three times, so that nobody but we of the craft can untwist the diction, and find out what it means. ***That one hundred and fifty lawyers should do business together ought not to be expected. On the Electorate: ***He is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong. ***Many complain of their memory, few of their judgment. *** No more good must be attempted than the nation can bear - excerpt from the rear outer dust jacket.

N° de réf. du vendeur 009271

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: The Wit & Wisdom of the Founding Fathers: Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson [VINTAGE 1996] [FIRST EDTITION, FIRST PRINTING]
• Éditeur: The Ecco Press, Hopewell, New Jersey
• Date de parution: 1996
• Langue: anglais
• Reliure: Hardcover
• Illustrateur: Louie, Lorraine (jacket design); Metzger, Michael (cover art)
• Édition: 1st Edition
• Impression: 1st Printing
• État de l'article: As New