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America's Founder, in Myth and Memory
Harper
February 2011
On Sale: January 18, 2011
272 pages
ISBN: 0061662585
EAN: 9780061662584
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction History
An entertaining and erudite history that offers a fresh
look at America's first founding father, the creation of his
legend, and what it means for our nation and ourselves George Washington's death on December 14, 1799, dealt a
dreadful blow to public morale. For three decades, Americans
had depended on his leadership to guide them through every
trial. At the cusp of a new century, the fledgling nation,
caught in another war (this time with its former ally
France), desperately needed to believe that Washington
was—and would continue to be—there for them. Thus began the extraordinary immortalization of this
towering historical figure. In Inventing George Washington,
historian Edward G. Lengel shows how the late president and
war hero continued to serve his nation on two distinct
levels. The public Washington evolved into an eternal symbol
as Father of His Country, while the private man remained at
the periphery of the national vision—always just out of
reach—for successive generations yearning to know him as
never before. Both images, public and private, were vital to perceptions
Americans had of their nation and themselves. Yet over time,
as Lengel shows, the contrasting and simultaneous urges to
deify Washington and to understand him as a man have
produced tensions that have played out in every generation.
As some exalted him, others sought to bring him down to
earth, creating a series of competing mythologies that
depicted Washington as every sort of human being imaginable.
Inventing George Washington explores these representations,
shedding new light on this national emblem, our nation
itself, and who we are.
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