The Surprising Pessimism of America's Founding Fathers

The Surprising Pessimism of America's Founding Fathers

When Americans think about their country's Founding Fathers, they tend to think of them as cool and competent figures, who were supremely confident in the superiority and longevity of the republican government they had created.

But my guest says that nearly all the founders experienced great internal and external conflict in conjunction with the new government, and came to be greatly pessimistic about the future of the democratic experiment they had helped birth. His name is Dennis C. Rasmussen and he's a professor of political theory and the author of Fears of a Setting Sun: The Disillusionment of America's Founders. Today on the show, Dennis unpacks how four of the founders — George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson — ultimately came to worry that the American republic wouldn't last past their own generation, based on concerns that ranged from the rise of partisanship to a lack of virtue amongst the American citizenry. Dennis also discusses why it was that one founder, James Madison, remained optimistic about the future of the country. We end our conversation with why the disillusionment of the founders actually carries a message of hope for us.

Get the show notes at aom.is/settingsun.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episoder(1158)

Live Life in Crescendo

Live Life in Crescendo

You’ve heard of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. But did you know that its author, Stephen Covey, was in his late fifties when it came out? After it became a monumental bestseller, Covey conti...

14 Nov 202254min

The 5 Priorities of Short-Term Survival

The 5 Priorities of Short-Term Survival

While we all wonder how we would fare if we had to survive for months in the wild like Brian does in the book Hatchet, the reality is that most survival situations only last a day or two. You get lost...

9 Nov 202242min

Overdoing Democracy

Overdoing Democracy

When Kate was growing up, her grandfather often told her that when he was serving on a Navy ship during WWII, there were two things he and his fellow sailors never talked about: religion and politics....

7 Nov 202254min

Bo Jackson, The Last Folk Hero

Bo Jackson, The Last Folk Hero

In the 80s and 90s, few sports stars loomed as large as Bo Jackson. A Kansas City Royal and an Oakland Raider, he was the rare athlete to play two professional sports. His strength and power seemed su...

2 Nov 202250min

Magic, Archetypes, and the Mysteries of the Unconscious

Magic, Archetypes, and the Mysteries of the Unconscious

There are two parts of the mind: the conscious and the unconscious. While the former dominates your attention, the latter actually occupies far more of the brain, influencing your mood, generating ins...

31 Okt 202250min

Life Lessons From The Twilight Zone

Life Lessons From The Twilight Zone

The Twilight Zone is arguably one of the best and most influential shows in television history. The reason it endures, and is still being watched and talked about more than sixty years after its debut...

26 Okt 202255min

7 Ways to Achieve Tranquility by Tuesday

7 Ways to Achieve Tranquility by Tuesday

A lot of people feel dissatisfied about how they spend their time. They often feel busy, but that busyness doesn’t add up to anything — not to fun, not to fulfillment, not to memories.My guest, Laura ...

24 Okt 202236min

A Guide to Getting Off the Grid

A Guide to Getting Off the Grid

Note: For fall break, the McKays are attempting their first familial backpacking trip. Kate and I have been before, but we've never brought the kids, so this will be fun. While we're out of touch, ple...

19 Okt 202254min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
mikkels-paskenotter
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
foreldreradet
treningspodden
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
jakt-og-fiskepodden
rss-bisarr-historie
hverdagspsyken
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
sinnsyn
level-up-med-anniken-binz
gravid-uke-for-uke
rss-kull
rss-kunsten-a-leve
fryktlos
takk-og-lov-med-anine-kierulf
hagespiren-podcast
rss-bak-luftfarten