Tranquility with James Madison

While at Princeton, James Madison was exposed to faculty psychology, the idea that balancing the different parts of the soul achieves harmony. Jeffrey Rosen, Professor Colleen Sheehan and filmmaker Ken Burns explore how Madison infused these lessons about faculty psychology into his political philosophy and embraced the notion that personal self-government is necessary for political self-government.

Now that you’ve learned that the pursuit of happiness means being good, not feeling good, how has that affected your daily life? Send a voice message with your thoughts on this question and we may even include excerpts in our final episode. 

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Pursuit: The Founders’ Guide To Happiness is produced by PRX Productions for the National Constitution Center. It is made possible with support from the John Templeton Foundation.

Episode 9, Tranquility with James Madison is hosted by Jeffrey Rosen, featuring Colleen Sheehan and Ken Burns with voice acting by Hrishikesh Hirway and Bill Pollock.

© 2025 National Constitution Center. All Rights Reserved.

From PRX Productions: Genevieve Sponsler, Courtney Fleurantin, David Newtown, Sandra Lopez-Monsalve, Tommy Bazarian, Pedro Rafael Rosado, and Jocelyn Gonzalez

From the National Constitution Center: Annie Stone, Griffin Richie, and Bill Pollock

"The Golden Mean: Songs for the Pursuit of Happiness" by Jeffrey Rosen. Arrangements by Greg Strohman. Featuring James Martin, Jennifer Blyth, and Greg Strohman.

© ℗ 2025 Jeffrey Rosen. All Rights Reserved.