Meacham places the American Revolution within the larger context of the English Civil War of the 17 th century. His seeking of power was purposeful, and it is this purpose that forms the second thread of the book. More so than a philosopher or a revolutionary, Jefferson was fundamentally a politician, one whose primary interest was in the acquisition and exercise of power. Rather, it was his ability to use power to effect his will on the political and social stages in which he operated, and in so doing implement the political and social system he deemed most compatible with, and most empowering of, human nature. The defining characteristic of Jefferson’s personality, according to Meacham, was not his philosophical discipline, his love of science, or even his commitment to individual liberty and republicanism.

He was animated by and committed to certain ideological principles, ones which he outlined in the Declaration of Independence and in his other writings, but his overriding aim was to bring life to these primary principles by all the means at his disposal, even at the cost of sacrificing some secondary causes. Meacham’s primary thesis is that the real Jefferson, unlike the portrait painted by his contemporary adversaries, was no naïve theorist. The first, obvious from the book’s title, is Jefferson’s relationship with and use of power. Several interlocking threads run through the book, each weaving a picture of a distinct aspect of Jefferson’s personality. Yet what emerges by the end of the book is a rather complete picture of the Master of Monticello, one that, on the whole, is flattering but not without qualification.

Meacham’s book is a voluminous one, and at times the details do feel a bit strained. Having just finished Benjamin Franklin’s excellent autobiography, I thought it was time to read up on his successor. His supposed synthesis of the intellectual and the political appeals to me, yet until recently I had not read a single biography of him. Of all the founding fathers, I have always been most drawn to Thomas Jefferson.

Thomas jefferson meacham