Oct 31 2008
Founding Fathers and Current Criticism
Today my goat and I finished watching the John Adams miniseries that aired on HBO last year (hooray for Netflix). For those of you who haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it. And since it’s a fairly accurate account of historical events, I’m not going to worry about spoiling the end for anybody.
It’s important to think about this film not only in terms of the history it portrays, but also in terms of the events current to its production and release. For those of you unfamiliar with US history, I’ll give you a little brush-up:
John Adams was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America. The movie begins with the Boston Massacre; he defends the British officers involved in court. The movie portrayed him as fair and pragmatic - though strict with his children - throughout his lifetime. When you watch it, you’ll see him wrestle with the idea of revolution, and only when the situation reaches a boiling point does he really push to separate from Britain. Adams debates with his pal Thomas Jefferson about how much power the national government should have over the individual states. John and his wife Abigail (one of my heroes) discuss the position of women and people of color in the new nation.
The movie continues through his presidency, during which he tried to maintain neutrality when Britain and France went to war. We watch as he signs the Alien and Sedition Acts (hmm… is anyone else thinking about Homeland Security and the Patriot Act?).
The final hour and a half of the show chronicles his life post-presidency, past the death of Abigail and two of their children. John Adams was too stubborn to die; he was almost 91 when he passed away, which is a pretty good run in those days. The movie ends when Adams and Jefferson pass away on the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
The miniseries was filmed and released right before an election year, right in the midst of several current debates of legality and state lines. We watch the Founding Fathers struggle with the notion of going to war while their nation enters yet another year in combat in the Middle East. We watch the Adams women come to terms with the state of women’s health (most explicitly with Nabby’s battle with cancer) and challenge the terms of women’s subjugation.
The goat and I, again, recommend that you peruse this film should you get the chance, and if you’ve already seen it, we’d love some feedback about what it means to you in today’s political climate.
