Summary Of A Magnificent Catastrophe, By Edward Larson

The experiment was underway. Moreover, it was happening in real time. No global or cultural events could be halted to create the ideal outcome, and no precedent could prepare the United States for what would come to be. In the election of 1800, America definitively learned what it meant to live under the Constitution. Furthermore, they learned how the culture of America would be intertwined with international matters, and how the United States government would establish their own culture. It is in these times that the divisions of belief, later to be called “parties,” formed, the art of campaigning was established, the raw emotions of politics unraveled, and the role of the United States relative to other nations came to be. In Edward Larson’s A Magnificent Catastrophe, this reshaping of the United States resulting from the Election of 1800 is analyzed. To begin, one must first note the culture and context of America during this time period. One of the very first things Larson addresses about the United States is its prior experience with presidency. Approaching the Election of 1800, Americans had only experienced two presidents. More importantly, their nation’s …show more content…
Considering the fundamental differences between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson dating back to the Declaration of Independence, the two running against one another would prove to be an interesting battle. While Adams reported having a “general distrust of common people” (19) Jefferson believed in “individual liberty and equality of opportunity” (20). These two beliefs became the groundwork for how each candidate would present their ideal form of governmental functioning. Likewise, it is through this election that groups of people began to separate, agreeing or disagreeing with politicians and how the government should play a role in a