Live at the NCC: The Founders and the Greeks and Romans

We the People

National Constitution Center

News, News Commentary, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 31 December 2020

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A panel of experts dives into what early American founding figures—including Thomas Jefferson, John and Abigail Adams, George Washington, Mercy Otis Warren, and Phyllis Wheatley—learned from the Greeks and Romans, from their early education through adulthood, and how that knowledge came to influence founding documents such as the Constitution and Declaration of Independence and the scope and shape of the American republic. They also explore the founders’ philosophical understanding of passion versus reason, the meaning of “happiness,” and how ancient philosophy continued to influence American democracy throughout turbulent times including the Civil War. Historians and authors Caroline Winterer and Carl Richard and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Thomas Ricks joined National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen. This program originally aired on our companion podcast, Live at the National Constitution Center. Check it out on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to catch up on the live constitutional conversations we hosted in 2020. Additional resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library Questions or comments? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi We the People Friends, this episode, a wonderful conversation about how the ancient Greeks and Romans influenced the American founders originally ran on live at the National Constitution Center.
0:12.0	That's our Companion Podcast, which features the audio feeds
0:15.2	from all of our great National Constitution Center panels.
0:19.4	So please check out live at the National Constitution Center on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
0:26.0	You can check out the videos of these panels at constitution center.org, and we'll be back with a new episode of We the People in the New Year.
0:34.0	Have a wonderful holiday, happy New Year, and on to the show.
0:38.0	Welcome to Live at the National Constitution Center.
0:44.0	I'm Jackie McDermott, the show's producer.
0:46.7	Philosophers like Homer, Aristotle, and Cicero greatly influence the American founders
0:51.3	and some of their most crucial decisions at the birth of our country and beyond.
0:55.0	Last week, NCC President Jeffrey Rosen was joined by a panel of experts to discuss the influence of the ancient Greeks and Romans on early America.
1:03.0	Here's Jeff to get the conversation started.
1:06.0	Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the National Constitution Center and to today's convening of America's Town Hall.
1:13.8	I am Jeffrey Rosen, the president and CEO
1:16.1	of this wonderful institution.
1:18.2	And we're gonna begin, as always,
1:19.6	by reciting together our mission statements
1:21.8	to inspire ourselves for the learning ahead.
1:24.3	The National Constitution Center is the only institution in America chartered by Congress
1:29.2	to increase awareness and understanding of the Constitution
1:32.9	among the American people on a nonpartisan basis.
1:36.6	Friends, I have been looking forward
	...

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