The Scholar’s Thomas Jefferson

In spite of Thomas Jefferson’s myriad beneficial accomplishments in so many disciplines, he is best known for his political feats—both his successes (the Declaration of Independence, Louisiana Purchase, and numerous bills drafted) and his failures (such as his spell as wartime governor of Virginia and the embargo during his second term as President). Consequently, though all collections of Jefferson’s thousands of writings offer a sampling of the diversity of his interests, all compilations focus on Jefferson the politician, and that is regrettable for scholars with an interest in the breadth and depth of the amazing mind of Thomas Jefferson.

This book serves to remedy that shortcoming. It is a unique collection of Jefferson’s writings, tailored to scholars who wish to have access to all aspects of his far-reaching mind. There are sections on politics and political theory, morality and religion, thoughts on theory and praxis of education, and miscellanea, which is a sort of grab-bag for relevant topics that do not neatly fit into the first three parts.