ARISTOCRACY AND THE FOUNDERS
MONDAY, December 7, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
Free. Reservations required. Please call 215.409.6700 or order online.
Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach
F.M. Kirby Auditorium
National Constitution Center
Independence Mall
525 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA
Gordon S. Wood, Brown University Professor of History and Chair of the National Constitution Center’s Distinguished Scholars Advisory Panel, discusses the Founders’ attitudes and beliefs about aristocracy in America, where “titles of nobility” are prohibited by the Constitution, but where aristocratic elements of privilege and power nevertheless have survived. The men who espoused the radical idea that all are created equal shared the tradition of British aristocracy, and Wood will examine how their beliefs differed from or mirrored those held in England, which beliefs have lingered, and what their effects have been.
Gordon S. Wood, the Alva O. Way University Professor and professor of history at Brown University, is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Radicalism of the American Revolution and the just-released Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, 1789-1815. A regular contributor to The New Republic and The New York Review of Books, he is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society.
Carol Berkin moderates. Berkin, professor of American history at Baruch College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, is the author of A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution, First Generations, and Jonathan Sewall.
From October 2 through December 31, 2009, Diana: A Celebration will come to Philadelphia, showcasing the life and work of the Princess of Wales. The 10,000 square foot exhibition explores Diana's childhood, her engagement to HRH Prince Charles, their royal wedding, their children, and Diana's life and works as a global humanitarian.
A book sale and signing will follow the program, courtesy of Joseph Fox Bookshop. Parking for this event is available for $7.00 at the National Constitution Center garage located at the rear of the building on Race Street between 5th and 6th Streets. Parking availability is subject to change, so please call the Constitution Center on the day of the program or check our web site for more information. Please also see our directions by public transportation.
For reservations please call 215.409.6700 or order online. Programs at the National Constitution Center begin promptly and latecomers may not be admitted to the program. Please note that this program is subject to change.
Related Links:
Diana: A Celebration
Gordon S. Wood