Thomas Jefferson and the Revolution of Ideas

Addressing forty-nine Nobel laureates in 1962, President John F. Kennedy announced that it was the "most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered together at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone." But Jefferson described himself on his tombstone simply as the "Author of the Declaration of Independence and of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, and Father of the University of Virginia." R. B. Bernstein finds in this epitaph the key to Jefferson, not as a statesman, but as a man concerned with ideas above all else. Jefferson's public achievements were many: he sent Lewis and Clark to explore the West, was a congressman, diplomat, Secretary of State, and President of the United States. But his work was not all political. He founded the University of Virginia and built -- and rebuilt -- Monticello, his beloved home, filled with the fruits of his constant tinkering: revolving bookcases, a copying machine, and a clock rigged to tell the day of the week. Bernstein also examines Jefferson's luxurious (and debt-burdened) life as a Virginia gentleman and his conflicted feelings over his role as slaveholder. Exploring all sides of Jefferson -- architect, inventor, writer, musician, diplomat, propagandist, planter, and politician -- Bernstein illuminates his central place in the revolution of ideas that created the nation we know today. Book jacket.Bernstein, Richard B. is the author of 'Thomas Jefferson and the Revolution of Ideas', published 2004 under ISBN 9780195143683 and ISBN 019514368X.