I still feel like even in his day, George Washington was shrouded in the fog of the founding of the country.
He was a person that didn't have the lofty ideals Jefferson had and he didn't have the mind of Adams, but he knew how to get the job done and do his part for his country.
Without the generalship of Washington, it's hard to believe that the American revolution could have been won. The most impressive thing to me is that Washington turned down the crown and sceptre and title of King and gave up power after only 8 years. He was truly a Sulla for his times.
I'm fascinated with how men like Washington felt after the revolution. In the 10 or so years leading up to the actual fighting (what Adams called the real revolution), men like Washington must surely have thought of themselves as Englishmen who were being treated like second class citizens.
After they actually broke away and formed their own country, how did they identify themselves? Imagine if you lived in St. Louis or something and then someday it became part of Canada... Would you really feel Canadian?
To me, George Washington is the Romulus for the American conscience and even though he was a living, breathing man, at least part of him is a folk hero for the ages.
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Can you imagine a president saying "no thanks" to another term nowadays? Ha!
ReplyDeleteWashington really is a folk hero more than a living, breathing historical figure to most people (including me), I think. The way he's portrayed in school textbooks, you'd think he was one step away from Paul Bunyon.
No - I can't imagine a President in this day and age passing up the opportunity for lifetime "service." They would then promptly have their staff suggest that all federal building erect statues in their likeness.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Washington was and is a man among boys.