Complete Works--Adams
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Reading and Writing Workshop
The Mind of a Founder: Reading and Writing with John Adams
Focus: Founding principles, republicanism, virtue, law, diplomacy, and political philosophy
Audience: High school or college-level students
Length: 6 sessions
Materials: Public domain texts by John Adams with full URLs provided
Session 1: Republicanism and the Nature of Government
Reading: Excerpts from A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America (1787)
Full Text: https://archive.org/details/defenceofconstit01adam/page/n7/mode/2up
Focus Topics:
Analyze Adams’ belief that a republic requires institutional checks on power. Do his concerns about tyranny resonate in contemporary American politics?
Session 2: Revolutionary Thought and the Rule of Law
Reading: “Novanglus, No. 1” (6 February 1775), one of the Novanglus Essays
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-02-02-0051
Focus Topics:
Summarize and evaluate Adams’ legal argument against Parliament’s authority over the colonies. How does this compare to other revolutionary writings?
Session 3: Morality, Religion, and the Foundations of Liberty
Reading: Letter from John Adams to Zabdiel Adams (21 June 1776)
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-04-02-0074
Focus Topics:
Adams suggests that liberty cannot exist without virtue. Do you agree? Write a short essay connecting this idea to modern society.
Session 4: Diplomacy and International Relations
Reading: Diary and Autobiography of John Adams, Volume 3 (Peace Negotiations section, 1782–83)
Full Text: https://archive.org/details/diaryautobiograp03adamrich/page/n7/mode/2up
Focus Topics:
Use Adams’ diplomatic experience as a case study to explore how a republic should engage with foreign powers. Write a policy memo from his perspective.
Session 5: The Presidency and Political Division
Reading: Inaugural Address of John Adams (4 March 1797)
Full Text: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/adams.asp
Focus Topics:
Compare Adams’ presidential vision with a modern inaugural address. What values have endured? What challenges remain similar?
Session 6: Reflections on Revolution and Legacy
Reading: Letter from John Adams to Thomas Jefferson (15 July 1813)
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-5840
Focus Topics:
Write a letter to a future generation reflecting on the strengths and flaws of democracy, drawing inspiration from the Adams–Jefferson correspondence.
Focus: Founding principles, republicanism, virtue, law, diplomacy, and political philosophy
Audience: High school or college-level students
Length: 6 sessions
Materials: Public domain texts by John Adams with full URLs provided
Session 1: Republicanism and the Nature of Government
Reading: Excerpts from A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America (1787)
Full Text: https://archive.org/details/defenceofconstit01adam/page/n7/mode/2up
Focus Topics:
- Mixed government
- Checks and balances
- Republican virtue
Analyze Adams’ belief that a republic requires institutional checks on power. Do his concerns about tyranny resonate in contemporary American politics?
Session 2: Revolutionary Thought and the Rule of Law
Reading: “Novanglus, No. 1” (6 February 1775), one of the Novanglus Essays
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-02-02-0051
Focus Topics:
- Legal justification for colonial resistance
- British constitutional theory
- Early revolutionary rhetoric
Summarize and evaluate Adams’ legal argument against Parliament’s authority over the colonies. How does this compare to other revolutionary writings?
Session 3: Morality, Religion, and the Foundations of Liberty
Reading: Letter from John Adams to Zabdiel Adams (21 June 1776)
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-04-02-0074
Focus Topics:
- Public virtue
- The role of religion in civic life
- Moral foundations of republican government
Adams suggests that liberty cannot exist without virtue. Do you agree? Write a short essay connecting this idea to modern society.
Session 4: Diplomacy and International Relations
Reading: Diary and Autobiography of John Adams, Volume 3 (Peace Negotiations section, 1782–83)
Full Text: https://archive.org/details/diaryautobiograp03adamrich/page/n7/mode/2up
Focus Topics:
- American diplomacy during the Revolutionary War
- Peace with Britain
- Realism and principle in international relations
Use Adams’ diplomatic experience as a case study to explore how a republic should engage with foreign powers. Write a policy memo from his perspective.
Session 5: The Presidency and Political Division
Reading: Inaugural Address of John Adams (4 March 1797)
Full Text: https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/adams.asp
Focus Topics:
- Executive leadership in a republic
- National unity and factionalism
- Presidential values
Compare Adams’ presidential vision with a modern inaugural address. What values have endured? What challenges remain similar?
Session 6: Reflections on Revolution and Legacy
Reading: Letter from John Adams to Thomas Jefferson (15 July 1813)
Full Text: https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/99-02-02-5840
Focus Topics:
- Revolutionary memory
- The founding generation in old age
- Friendship and ideological difference
Write a letter to a future generation reflecting on the strengths and flaws of democracy, drawing inspiration from the Adams–Jefferson correspondence.