Thomas Jefferson and His Time, Volume 3

Jefferson and the Ordeal of Liberty

By: Dumas Malone

Narrated by: Anna Fields

Here's the third volume in Dumas Malone's distinguished study of Thomas Jefferson and his time. It deals with one of the most fascinating and controversial periods of Jefferson's life, including the final and most crucial phase of his tenure as secretary of state; his retirement to Monticello; his assumption of the leadership of the opposition party; and the crisis during the "half-war" with France, when political oppression was threatened and the freedom of individuals imperiled.Founding father: listen to the rest of the titles in the Thomas Jefferson and His Time series:

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 4

Volume 5

Volume 6

©1962 Dumas Malone (P)1998 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"Maintains the mature scholarship established by the earlier volumes. Academic in the best sense, it not only displays an intimate familiarity with the vast literature but contains an acute evaluation of Jefferson's ideas and ideals." (Saturday Review)

Classic work, so-so reading

The work is probably the definitive biography of Thomas Jefferson. It's hard to imagine one more complete or better executed and is a real joy to read. Some reviews on this state that Malone is "pro-Jefferson" and biased towards him. Certainly, Malone is admires Jefferson (I can't imagine spending so many years on one man and not feeling some attachment to him), but he always seems objective regarding the facts in any given controversy and doesn't spare TJ any criticism when warranted. On the other hand, TJ made many enemies over his lifetime and these made numerous claims without necessarily being based in facts. Malone examines each with care and reason. The recording is dated in the late-1990s and was originally on cassette tapes. This is known because there is an occasional slip as she announces the beginning of a new tape from time to time. There are some technical problems and I recall these being mainly in the 1st and 5th volumes. On the whole, they aren't a big deal. Her tone is a bit wry for my taste but she gets the job done (the big, big job).

Biased to the nth degree But…

This volume has been the most rara Jefferson thus far. I can’t say it’s very balanced. Malone does balance things out on only the most reprehensible moments of Jefferson’s behavior, however, he smooths out and ignores those behaviors that caused chasms, even going so far to make Jefferson out to being a victim. Make no mistake, this is a must read, just be on the look out for a heavy bias here, it’s laid thick and heavy. Al in all, you still learn a lot. I’ve enjoyed Malone’s writing style if nothing else.

Hagiography

Read Malone for what it says about historiography during his era. There is little balance and he manipulated sources to always shine the best light on TJ. As Page Smith said, for many there can be no gray when discussing the Sage of Monticello. However, real life is full of gray.

Another great volume

Not as captivating as the first volume but excellently researched and thoroughly presented. Another great work on Jefferson by Malone we should all be grateful for.

Amazing

I truly love this volume. Totally amazed at all the factual information presented. I thoroughly enjoyed it disputed its length