M.E. Bradford’s A Better Guide Than Reason: Studies in the American Revolution offers a profound rediscovery of the American founding, challenging conventional narratives and restoring the essence of the nation’s original identity. This book serves as a vital resource for understanding the true spirit and meaning behind the American Revolution.
A Better Guide Than Reason: Studies in the American Revolution by M.E. Bradford (241 pages, Sherwood Sugden & Co., 1979)
The recent bicentennial celebration, while grand in scale, lacked the conviction and meaning that should have accompanied such a significant milestone. It highlighted a growing alienation of the American people from their historical roots, a disconnect that threatens the very fabric of national identity. Jeffrey Hart, in his introduction to A Better Guide Than Reason, rightly asserts the importance of these essays, for they provide the means to reclaim our founding principles.
Bradford masterfully unveils the original identity of the American people at the inception of the Republic, cutting through layers of partisan obfuscation. He illuminates the process by which disparate English inhabitants of North America coalesced into a republican realm, providing a vivid and detailed account of their beliefs, motivations, and intentions as reflected in their seminal documents.
Bradford’s unique background, as both a Professor of English and American Studies at the University of Dallas and a Southern Agrarian, uniquely positions him to undertake this task. He recognizes that politics, history, and literature are intrinsically intertwined, each informing the others in a seamless moral and aesthetic study aimed at cultivating virtuous citizens. This holistic approach allows him to restore the original fabric of American identity.
As a scholar of literature, particularly the politically charged English literature preceding the American Revolution, Bradford brings a keen understanding of the nuances and connotations embedded in the language of the founding documents. Simultaneously, his Southern heritage grants him an innate appreciation for the practical realities of the American communities that shaped these documents. Bradford emphasizes that Southern ideals and traditions are deeply interwoven with the essence of American identity.
Recovering the True American Revolution
Bradford’s essays are structured around a three-fold exploration. The first aims to recover the authentic American Revolution as understood by its participants. Rooted in the English tradition, this Revolution was “Old Whig” or “Country Whig” in nature. It looked to the past for guidance, seeking to preserve established values and customs. The Revolution was a response to British government innovations, rather than a radical attempt to reconstruct society based on utopian ideals. While the conservative nature of the American Revolution is acknowledged by many, Bradford’s work uniquely elucidates the reasons and mechanisms behind this conservatism.
His essays focus on often-overlooked Founding Fathers such as Patrick Henry of Virginia, John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, and William Henry Drayton of South Carolina. Bradford argues their neglect is deliberate, as their true understanding would challenge many biased interpretations of the Revolution’s meaning. He recovers their contributions and reveals their profound representativeness of the era.
The Roman Republic as a Model
Further illuminating the Revolution’s essence, Bradford highlights the forefathers’ deep connection to the history of the Roman Republic. They modeled their own republic after Rome, envisioning a citizenry bound by shared customs, access to common law, and a profound sense of patriotism. This was not a republic of indiscriminate rights and privileges, but one defined by shared heritage and civic duty.
The Derailment of the Old Whig Tradition
The second group of essays explores the deviation from the Old Whig tradition in the 19th century. Bradford pinpoints Abraham Lincoln’s political thought as the catalyst, arguing that Lincoln’s selective interpretation of the Declaration of Independence, with its emphasis on equality, injected a messianic style and disintegrative ferment into American politics, a phenomenon that continues to plague the nation. Ironically, this legacy continues to hinder many self-proclaimed conservatives.
Bradford provides context for Lincoln’s deviation through an homage to Russell Kirk and a comparison of Benjamin Franklin’s autobiography with Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia. The American tradition, he argues, was bipolar, with the Old Whiggery of the South and Middle States counterbalanced by the Puritan inheritance of New England, which fostered a proclivity for destructive rebellion rather than the restorative ethos of the original War of Independence.
Jefferson vs. Franklin: Divergent Cosmopolitans
Bradford masterfully distinguishes between Jefferson and Franklin, often grouped together as liberals and cosmopolitans. He reveals their profound differences, arguing that Jefferson, despite his personal beliefs, was primarily a Virginian, guided by Virginia law and custom. In contrast, Franklin embodies the modern American – a rootless solipsist, a self-made man navigating a world devoid of stable identity.
The Populist Tradition and the American Revolution
Bradford’s third point connects his understanding of the American Revolution to the populist tradition. He identifies with those Americans who feel government as an external force manipulating cherished values, from Bacon’s Rebellion to the anti-busing campaigns. He defends the antiquity and legitimacy of this perspective, arguing that it remains a latent force in the American political landscape.
Restoring the American Revolution
Bradford’s work stands apart from conventional American scholarship, which often favors narrow analysis and detached neutrality. His scholarship embodies a breadth of learning in history, literature, and political thought, expressed with an eloquence born from a deep love for a living community of people.
The best revolutions are restorative, aimed at removing harmful excesses and allowing the underlying foundations to thrive. In this spirit, A Better Guide Than Reason has the power to revolutionize its readers, reviving the Southern political tradition and offering a worthy successor to its prominent spokesmen. It reminds us that understanding our past is crucial to navigating our present and building a better future.
