Now, I am certainly
not a scholar of American history. But I think it's interesting and maybe even important to go back through the foundational works that provided the philosophical basis for "America" as a nation. And the west, more generally. Our laws, our constitution, and our economy were all influenced in their development by classical works of literature. Our "founding fathers" make this very clear in their letters, referencing texts that influenced their thinking about how to build a country.
For someone who wants to explore those subjects using the source material, here are some of my recommendations, with brief explanations as to why the text matters. Feel free to add your own, too.
Now, as a practical matter, while it's more interesting to read the originals, that does take a lot of time, and reading a shorter summary of a text can still be helpful, and at least give you an overview of the issues presented.
So, I'd recommend:
1.)
The United States Constitution, adopted in 1787, along with the
Declaration of Independence from 1776. Theoretically, everything our government does has to have a lawful basis somewhere in the Constitution. It's surprising how many people have never read the thing, even though it is relatively short. It's also helpful to read the
Articles of Confederation from 1781, and compare those to the Constitution, to understand how the Constitution evolved in those early days. The very brief
Mayflower Compact of 1620 hints at elements of both documents.
Of course, constitutional law is a thorny subject. One of the best overviews of modern conlaw and its development is Professor Erwin Chemerinsky's
Constitutional Law: Principles And Policies. This book is a rather hulking 1,300 pages, but it is exhaustive in scope, and has become the unquestioned classic conlaw guidebook for law students (and even professors).
2.) The
Magna Carta, a brief but critical English charter from 1215 that formed part of the basis of the US Constitution. It is available
online here
3.) The brief French
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen from 1789, a year into the French Revolution. Influenced by both the US Constitution and earlier French writings that influenced the US Constitution (a bit contorted, but history is like that), this document has enduring importance in western history.
4.) John Locke's
Two Treatises of Government (1689) along with his
Letter Concerning Toleration. Political philosophers toss around the word "Lockean" to describe all sorts of notions of natural rights or social contracts. But if you want to know what Locke actually said about those subjects, these are the texts. Thomas Jefferson referenced them frequently in his letters. "Letter Concerning Toleration" deals with the relationship between religion(s) and the state, while the Two Treatises describe Locke's rejection of absolute monarchy, and his theory of rights arising from "nature," rather than descending from kings - along with a defense of property rights.
5.)
The Federalist Papers, a series of 85 short essays published in 1787 and 1788, and written by three men - Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. These were persuasive pieces meant to garner support for the ratification of the US Constitution, and they systematically go through and defend the underpinnings of that document - the three branches of government, the presidency, federalism, preventing "factionalism," and so on.
The Federalist Papers were actually written to counter the arguments of the "Anti-Federalists," who also produced quite a few writings. The definitive collection of anti-federalist thought is
The Complete Anti-Federalist, compiled by Herbert Storing and Murray Dry.
6.) Frenchman Alexis de Tocqueville's monumental study
Democracy in America, completed in 1840. de Tocqueville's combination of political, historical, and psychological observations about the American democratic system have held up over time, and many of his ideas ("soft despotism," "tyranny of the majority," the rise of "superpowers") are still timely today, as well as major ideas in modern politics.
7.) Englishman Joseph Addison's 1712 play
Cato: A Tragedy in Five Acts. While the language is a bit stilted, and the action is a bit melodramatic, the political ideas in this play (support for Republicanism over monarchy, individual liberties, and the defense of these ideas in the face of death) made it a favorite with Revolutionary War figures like George Washington.
8.) Edmund Burke's 1790 treatise
Reflections on the Revolution in France, while considered a classic defense of "conservatism," is a very thoughtful and sometimes anguished "letter" on issues of freedom, incremental vs. revolutionary change, societal stability, the role of tradition in political affairs, and the factors behind governmental collapse. Since "Burkean" is sometimes used in opposition to "Lockean" as an adjective (fairly or not), this is an important text to understand.
9.) Three works by the English supporter of the American Revolution Thomas Paine - the short 1776 pamphlet
Common Sense, (which laid out an argument for a new American constitution), 1791's
Rights of Man, and the three-part
Age of Reason, finished in 1807. Rights of Man is actually a pro-Revolution "reply" to parts of Burke's "Reflections," while "Age of Reason" is an influential political and philosophic defense of "deism," and Paine's rejection of organized religion.
10.) Niccolò Machiavelli's notorious 1513 treatise
The Prince, as well as his much less-known
Discourses on Livy. The word "Machiavellian" comes from "The Prince," which is a survey of political power, and how to gain and maintain it. It is also a defense of "realpolitik," or political realism. "Discourses on Livy," from 1517, is actually one of the classic defenses of Republicanism (over absolutism) from the Renaissance, and greatly influenced later writers such as Rousseau.
11.) Immanuel Kant's
Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals, from 1785. One of the classic works of moral philosophy, Kant describes several of his most important ideas, such as the categorical imperative, maxims, the relationship between morality and freedom, and "duty."
12.) William Shakespeare's
Richard II, Henry IV, and
Henry V. This related triology of plays follows the lives of three successive kings in a tumultuous period of English history from the 1300's into the 1400's. However, these are also explicitly and implicitly political works, outlining the relationship between a King's personal ambitions and his public politics, the role of Machiavellianism, and the effects of "legality" and "illegality" in a monarch's regime. "Richard II" in particular was studied by later political writers.
13.) Thomas Hobbes's
Leviathan (1651). Considered a classic of political realism, Hobbes argues for strong state authority to maintain order, and prevent the "war of all against all" that prevailed in the "state of nature." Though Locke and others rejected Hobbes's deference to authority, Hobbes's description of the "social contract" between the governed and those governing was thoughtful and very influential over time.
14.) Selections from the King James Bible, which is often referenced or quoted by classical authors. Briefly, I'd recommend reading through the books from which the most famous anecdotes, stories, characters, and quotes are drawn.
Those would include: Genesis; Exodus; Deuteronomy Ch. 1-4; Judges Ch. 13-16; Ruth; 1st and 2nd Samuel along with 1st Kings (focusing on the stories of Saul, David, and Solomon); 2nd Kings Ch. 1-8; 1st Chronicles Ch. 11; Ezra Ch. 1-3; Nehemiah Ch. 1-7; Esther; Job; The Psalms; Proverbs; Ecclesiastes; Song of Solomon; Isaiah Ch. 24-34; Jeremiah Ch. 1-20; Lamentations, Ezekiel Ch. 33-48; Hosea; Joel; Obadiah; Jonah; Habakkuk; all four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John); Acts; Romans; Galatians; Ephesians; and Revelation.
15.) Thomas Jefferson's
Notes on the State of Virginia, (1781) the only book Jefferson himself had published (though his letters were published after he died). Jefferson wrote his Notes as a reply to a French diplomat curious about the nature of the Virginia colony, now part of the young American nation. While some parts are dry notes on infrastructure, Jefferson's spirited defense of democracy and republicanism makes this an important work.
16.) John Stuart Mill's
On Liberty (1859). Though published later than most other works here, it is a foundational work of political liberalism and libertarianism. Mill is very concerned with the potential of government to become tyrannical over time, and argues for individual liberty.
17.) 1762's
The Social Contract, Or Principles of Political Right by French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau draws from Locke's ideas of social contract to form his own theory of society, developing the idea of the "general will" of the populace through which political legitimacy must flow. Rousseau's ideas influenced not only the French Revolution, but also the American one, and later movements such as Gandhi's independence drive for India.
18.) Various works of
Marcus Tullius Cicero, usually known simply as "Cicero." Though Cicero's "Republic" and "On The Laws" are important dialogues which outline enduring views of natural law and politics, a lot of his best work is contained in speeches. His speeches against the mismanaging magistrate Gaius Verres in particular. My favorite collection of Cicero's work is
On Government, issued by Penguin Books, though you could also just read the table of contents from that book online and read the full text elsewhere.
19.) Aristotle's
Nicomachean Ethics and his
Politics are foundational works of classical Greek thought. Aristotle is very concerned with the origins of the state, models of governance, ethical behavior, citizenship, constitutions, virtues, and values. His writings contain critical elements of later western thought, and Thomas Aquinas called him simply "The Philosopher." His
Rhetoric is still read by politicians today seeking to learn how to argue and persuade.
20.) Plato's
The Republic is also one of the founding documents of western political thought. Many later works (including Aristotle's "Politics") were at least partially written as "replies" to Plato's theories of government, justice, the ideal state, and philosophy itself. Aside from "The Republic," politically-influential Platonic dialogues include
The Apology of Socrates, Protagoras, Crito, Gorgias, Meno, Statesman, and
Laws.
21.) The
History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides is an epic account of warring Greek city-states, and the alliances between them, as well as how those alliances develop or collapse. Though the exact historical accuracy of the work is disputed, Thucydides's accounts of political debates remain fascinating. What does a council do when a weaker state begs it for help against adversaries? References to these debates continue right up to the present day.
22.) Both the
Philppics and the
Olynthiacs of Demosthenes, along with his speech
On the Crown, had substantial impacts on later political thinkers. An Athenian statesman, Demosthenes spent much of his life opposing the rise of Phillip II of Macedon, followed by Alexander the Great, and his speeches were meant to rally other Athenians to his side. The authors of the Federalist Papers cited Demosthenes as an inspiration, as did resistance fighters in World War II.
23.) Two Greek plays in particular stand out for their later political influence - the
Oresteia of Aeschylus and Sophocles's
Antigone. The Oresteia is a cycle of three plays that metaphorically describe the evolution of a society from lawlessness to the rule of law provided by an impartial state apparatus (a judiciary system). Antigone, which more or less chronicles a dispute over a burial, develops themes of natural law vs. man-made orders, civil disobedience, and the state control of private obligations.
24.) Two subject areas from the massive
Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas directly address political questions. These are the sections titled "Law" (Prima Secundæ Partis, Questions 90 - 108) and "Justice" (Secunda Secundæ Partis, Questions 57 - 122). The Summa, compiled from 1225-1274, was the definitive statement of western Christian theology up through the Renaissance, and Aquinas's views of natural law were often referenced by political writers.
25.) Scottish economist Adam Smith's
The Wealth of Nations made a stir when it was first released in 1776. This lengthy work is a systematic explanation of the economic conditions at the time, combined with social observations, wedded to a detailed defense of economic liberalism and free market policies in the traditional sense. Books 1 and 4 are perhaps the most important, dealing with "causes" of wealth and systems of political economy, respectively.
26.) Montesquieu's
The Spirit of the Laws, from 1748, is a voluminous treatise on politics and government that directly influenced the writing of the US Constitution through such ideas as the "separation of powers" within a government. Often iconoclastic, this book was banned by the Catholic Church, and became a favorite among later 'Transcendentalists.'
27.) The collection of essays by Scottish philosopher David Hume called
Essays, Moral and Political, first published in 1748. In these relatively short pieces, Hume argues for such principles as freedom of the press, explains his view of the role of government, and writes about the ways in which civil liberties
increase the well-being of the state. His ideas influenced the wording of the Constitution, particularly the essay
Idea of a Perfect Commonwealth.
28.) George Washington's
Farewell Address from 1796 is a thoughtful and valuable reflection on the first few years of the republic, along with cautionary advice for the future.
That's where I would start, anyhow.
As I side note, I didn't just sit down and write out this entire post at once. Someone asked me a few months ago about what documents most influenced the way the United States was organized in the early years. Since then, I've been thinking about that, and adding sources as they come to mind.
That's also why these entries aren't in any sort of chronological order, though, maybe I should do that.
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