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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law - Hardcover
Synopsis
What would America's Constitutions have looked like if each generation wrote its own?
"The earth belongs...to the living, the dead have neither powers nor rights over it." These famous words, written by Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, reflect Jefferson's lifelong belief that each generation ought to write its own Constitution. According to Jefferson each generation should take an active role in endorsing, renouncing, or changing the nation's fundamental law. Perhaps if he were alive today to witness our seething debates over the state of American politics, he would feel vindicated in this belief.
Madison's response was that a Constitution must endure over many generations to gain the credibility needed to keep a nation strong and united. History tells us that Jefferson lost that debate. But what if he had prevailed? In A Constitution for the Living, Beau Breslin reimagines American history to answer that question. By tracing the story from the 1787 Constitutional Convention up to the present, Breslin presents an engaging and insightful narrative account of historical figures and how they might have shaped their particular generation's Constitution.
Readers are invited to join the Founders in candlelit taverns where, over glasses of wine, they debated fundamental issues; to witness towering figures of American history, from Abraham Lincoln to Booker T. Washington, enact an alternate account through startling and revealing conversations; and to attend a Constitutional Convention taking place in the present day. These possibilities come to life in the book's prose, with sensitivity, verve, and compelling historical detail.
This book is, above all, a call for a more engaged American public at a time when change seems close at hand, if we dare to imagine it.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
Beau Breslin holds the Joseph C. Palamountain Jr. Chair in Government Professor at Skidmore College. He is the author of From Words to Worlds (2009) and The Communitarian Constitution (2004, 2006).
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: As New. No Jacket. Pages are clean and are not marred by notes or folds of any kind. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0804776709I2N00
Stock Image
A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: As New. No Jacket. Pages are clean and are not marred by notes or folds of any kind. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0804776709I2N00
Stock Image
A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: ThriftBooks-Atlanta, AUSTELL, GA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0804776709I3N00
Stock Image
A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0804776709I4N10
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardback. Condition: Good. What would America's Constitutions have looked like if each generation wrote its own? "The earth belongs.to the living, the dead have neither powers nor rights over it." These famous words, written by Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, reflect Jefferson's lifelong belief that each generation ought to write its own Constitution. According to Jefferson each generation should take an active role in endorsing, renouncing, or changing the nation's fundamental law. Perhaps if he were alive today to witness our seething debates over the state of American politics, he would feel vindicated in this belief. Madison's response was that a Constitution must endure over many generations to gain the credibility needed to keep a nation strong and united. History tells us that Jefferson lost that debate. But what if he had prevailed? In A Constitution for the Living, Beau Breslin reimagines American history to answer that question. By tracing the story from the 1787 Constitutional Convention up to the present, Breslin presents an engaging and insightful narrative account of historical figures and how they might have shaped their particular generation's Constitution. Readers are invited to join the Founders in candlelit taverns where, over glasses of wine, they debated fundamental issues; to witness towering figures of American history, from Abraham Lincoln to Booker T. Washington, enact an alternate account through startling and revealing conversations; and to attend a Constitutional Convention taking place in the present day. These possibilities come to life in the book's prose, with sensitivity, verve, and compelling historical detail. This book is, above all, a call for a more engaged American public at a time when change seems close at hand, if we dare to imagine it. Seller Inventory # 00078762228
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: World of Books Inc, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Seller rating 4 out of 5 stars
Hardback. Condition: Good. What would America's Constitutions have looked like if each generation wrote its own? "The earth belongs.to the living, the dead have neither powers nor rights over it." These famous words, written by Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, reflect Jefferson's lifelong belief that each generation ought to write its own Constitution. According to Jefferson each generation should take an active role in endorsing, renouncing, or changing the nation's fundamental law. Perhaps if he were alive today to witness our seething debates over the state of American politics, he would feel vindicated in this belief. Madison's response was that a Constitution must endure over many generations to gain the credibility needed to keep a nation strong and united. History tells us that Jefferson lost that debate. But what if he had prevailed? In A Constitution for the Living, Beau Breslin reimagines American history to answer that question. By tracing the story from the 1787 Constitutional Convention up to the present, Breslin presents an engaging and insightful narrative account of historical figures and how they might have shaped their particular generation's Constitution. Readers are invited to join the Founders in candlelit taverns where, over glasses of wine, they debated fundamental issues; to witness towering figures of American history, from Abraham Lincoln to Booker T. Washington, enact an alternate account through startling and revealing conversations; and to attend a Constitutional Convention taking place in the present day. These possibilities come to life in the book's prose, with sensitivity, verve, and compelling historical detail. This book is, above all, a call for a more engaged American public at a time when change seems close at hand, if we dare to imagine it. Seller Inventory # CIN0804776709G
Stock Image
A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, PA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
hardcover. Condition: Very Good. HARDCOVER Very Good - Crisp, clean, unread book with some shelfwear/edgewear, may have a remainder mark - NICE Standard-sized. Seller Inventory # M0804776709Z2
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, PA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
hardcover. Condition: Good. HARDCOVER Good - Bumped and creased book with tears to the extremities, but not affecting the text block, may have remainder mark or previous owner's name - GOOD Standard-sized. Seller Inventory # M0804776709Z3
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press (edition 1), 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
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Seller: BooksRun, Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. 1. It's a well-cared-for item that has seen limited use. The item may show minor signs of wear. All the text is legible, with all pages included. It may have slight markings and/or highlighting. Seller Inventory # 0804776709-8-1
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A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation's Fundamental Law
Published by
Stanford University Press, 2021
ISBN 10: 0804776709
ISBN 13: 9780804776707
Used
Hardcover
Seller: Goodwill Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Condition: good. Seller Inventory # 4CJH0200BWV7