{"id":440,"date":"2019-07-17T18:18:20","date_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wcsu.wpengine.com\/news-archives\/gutzman-publishes-new-book\/"},"modified":"2019-07-17T18:18:20","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:20","slug":"gutzman-publishes-new-book","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/gutzman-publishes-new-book\/","title":{"rendered":"WCSU 2017 – Book examines Jefferson legacy"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DANBURY, CONN. <\/strong>\u2014 Thomas Jefferson has long influenced Dr. Kevin Gutzman<\/a>, a professor of History & Non-Western Cultures at Western Connecticut State University<\/a>. In fact, Gutzman argues, Jefferson influences every American every day. <\/p>\n

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But Gutzman has spent more time thinking about Jefferson\u2019s mark on society than the rest of us. That is why he has written \u201cThomas Jefferson \u2014 Revolutionary: A Radical\u2019s Struggle to Remake America<\/a>,\u201d about the man who drafted the Declaration of Independence, served as president and founded the University of Virginia.<\/p>\n

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Historians have probably written more about Jefferson than any other president besides Lincoln and Washington. Gutzman said there is room for another book because so many of Jefferson\u2019s ideas were incorporated into the creation of the United States, and continue to affect our lives. <\/p>\n

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In many cases, said Gutzman, who is a constitutional scholar, biographer of James Madison and author of several other books, we now think of Jefferson\u2019s revolutionary ideas as commonplace.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPeople don\u2019t realize he was such a radical,\u201d Gutzman said. \u201cPeople think freedom of religion is normal. We shouldn\u2019t think that way. It sets us apart from the rest of the world and people outside the U.S. see us as a beacon.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Gutzman argues that freedom of religion was Jefferson\u2019s \u201cmost significant long-term cause.\u201d <\/p>\n

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\u201cBecause of Jefferson, government doesn\u2019t tell us what our religion would be. In fact, it doesn\u2019t care. Jefferson called it freedom of conscience.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The book also covers Jefferson\u2019s positions favoring assimilation of Indians and education of blacks and young women, all groups usually not allowed access to the classroom or other rights. <\/p>\n

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Federalism \u2014 the allocation of powers between the state and federal levels \u2014 also consumed much of Jefferson\u2019s thought and political activity.<\/p>\n

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Jefferson believed the nation would be healthier if more government decisions were made in state capitols, rather than in Washington, D.C. He wanted power dispersed within states as well.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIf everything is decided in Washington, the average person can\u2019t participate,\u201d Gutzman explained. \u201cJefferson wanted people to have more input in lower-case \u2018d\u2019 democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Many of Jefferson\u2019s concepts and motivations came together in his work on public education.<\/p>\n

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Gutzman said Jefferson attended the College of William and Mary as a young man and \u201che was underwhelmed.\u201d When in later years his proposals to bring change to his alma mater were defeated, Jefferson founded the University of Virginia.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was completely radical, totally unlike any other institution,\u201d Gutzman said. \u201cHe stopped the parroting of Greek and Latin, although he loved those languages. Jefferson instituted essay exams and allowed students to take courses they wanted to take. He offered the hard sciences, and the governance of the university was different, with no proctor and faculty members electing the president. The whole thing was totally unknown. Today, nearly every university in the U.S. is like the University of Virginia.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Jefferson, of course, designed the campus and buildings for the university as well. He chose the books for the library with James Madison, lobbied Virginia legislators to ensure it was chartered and wrote course curricula.<\/p>\n

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And although Jefferson\u2019s lifelong slaveholding and belief in the inferiority of blacks is well-known, Gutzman said Jefferson was the first president to hire a black man, a land surveyor, to work for the federal government, and he proposed taxes in Virginia to pay for the schooling of every girl and boy, including free blacks. His arguments eventually included schooling for slave children as well.<\/p>\n

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The University of Virginia, where Gutzman did some of his own graduate work, was the culmination of Jefferson\u2019s efforts to democratize America, where everyone \u2014 not only land-owning white men \u2014 could be heard and make a difference.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s a view that, despite occasional political rifts across the nation, generally pervades modern U.S. society.<\/p>\n

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But even though Jefferson\u2019s ideas may have become mainstream, Gutzman said, the third president \u2014 one of America\u2019s greatest revolutionaries and statesmen \u2014 would urge today\u2019s citizens to remain jealous of our freedoms.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe fact that we live with the legacy of Jefferson\u2019s successes doesn\u2019t mean they are self-sustaining or that they will endure\u201d Gutzman said. \u201cWe have to insist on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Gutzman will give a public lecture on \u201cThomas Jefferson \u2014 Revolutionary\u201d and sign copies of the book at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28,2017, <\/strong> in Warner Hall on WestConn\u2019s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury.<\/p>\n

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For more information, call the Office of University Relations at (203) 837-8486.<\/p>\n

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Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England\u2019s best small private universities. <\/em><\/p>\n

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