Origins and Ideologies of the American Revolution

By: Peter C. Mancall, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Peter C. Mancall

Length: 24 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

The years between 1760 and 1800 rocked the Western world. These were the years when colonists on the eastern fringes of a continent converted the ideals of Enlightenment thought first into action, then into an actual form of government.

Now you can learn why this happened and how the colonists did it - in a series of 48 insightful lectures from an award-winning teacher and author.

Professor Mancall brings to life not only the famous but also the little-remembered colonists who were caught up in the debates over rights and power, liberties and empire. It is a story of immense importance and rich discoveries. And because he presents original source materials, including examples of how events were reported and interpreted, you'll more readily grasp the evolution of ideas, the competing pressures, and the misunderstandings - not only in the time leading up to the Revolution, and during the years it was being fought, but afterwards, as well.

That's when the victorious colonists came to learn that in achieving freedom from Great Britain, they had simply traded one set of problems for another. They still had to cope with the extraordinarily difficult task of crafting a workable government - one that could support their ideals of how citizens and government should relate to each other - and achieving respect and success among other nations.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2006 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2006 The Great Courses

Learned much I didn't know.

This course focuses on thoughts and motivations of the people involved in the revolution. Fairly balanced, with no woke crap or Trump crap.

Excellent use of primary sources

Brings the revolution to life using the words of American colonists on both sides of the conflict.

Great listen

Great to listen to. Love the Era. Unbiased and was very educational. Will listen to again

Fills a lot of gaps

Any additional comments?

This was a very worthy addition to the Great Courses, soberly teasing apart a complicated, multi-sided tangle of action, reaction, understanding, and misunderstandings. Its attention to the oft-neglected period between Pilgrims and Stamp Acts was especially welcome.

Mancall does an excellent job, too, of capturing how even individuals--such as Franklin, Adams, and Hutchison--could be divided in their own minds at a time when the right was not so clear and battle lines had yet to harden, as well as the familiar interpersonal debates. A testimony to the thoughtfulness exhibited on many sides of the issue of revolution.

Absolutely superb

For all of the American history courses I’ve taken, this one has been the most illuminating. So much of the early revolutionary era is closed over in American schools, and it’s this series of lectures that provides crucial detail to understanding our founding.

Lest we forget where we come from

Well presented. A good reminder that it was not all a noble undertaking and there were a great many financial interests that lead to the revolution.

Performance

The whole series was excellent. My only complaint is the amount of ‘uh’s and stumbling by the lecturer. You could ignore that in a live lecture but on tape it is annoying and could have been edited out.

Educational and Enjoyable

Insightful resource into the minds of the people who brought forth the American Revolution. The lectures cover before the Revolutionary War, through the war, and postwar. The lectures end with a nice recap and some conclusions as to the ideologies that became the American Revolution and eventually a new country. I would recommend to anyone curious to what people were thinking about and why their ideas gave rise to an American Revolution. Very good listen.

Distracting Presentation

The “professor” is unable to present a coherent sentence without saying “ah” or “um” every other word. Very difficult to listen without being distracted. Thank goodness I am not in his class.

Missing the implications of religious faith

I give this audio book (lecture series) only 4 stars because the material seems to intentionally skirt the implications and impact of spiritual faith, religiously based morality and ethics, and personal devotion to God. Mr. Mancall presents an incredible and extensive integration of many social and political facets in his narrative. I am thoroughly impressed and appreciative for how he assembled his information and organized its order and level of detail. I have gained much in listening through his rich material. However, he tends to scoff at the legitimacy and merit of statements of faith and choices made based on religious convictions as having bearing on his topic, the origins and ideologies of the American revolution. That has been rather disappointing. Notwithstanding, this lecture series is a great reminder of what brought about a great conundrum, a rebellion and revolution by many people aspiring to a society that celebrates liberty and divinely grounded virtue in constructive and enjoyable life and governance.