Personal life of Thomas Jefferson

Personal life of Thomas Jefferson

Name

Institution Affiliation

I think what Gordon – reed means by “the power to define” can be fully understood if we consider the context in which the events took place. Love was something that was still difficult to master during the time and that fact poses a significant obstacle in trying to understand the nature of the relationship. Talk of an affair involving a slave and her master was therefore an increasingly difficult concept to grasp given the ethical and political consequences. Slaveholders from the south often hinted at their love for their black nannies and the purported bonds they had with their slaves. They talked of love and the possibility of sexual relations between different races which was unspeakable at the time and is still a sensitive topic today. Slave owners and white men had extreme power over black women during this era. By choosing to return to America with Jefferson, Hemings had placed herself precariously under his power, meaning that Jefferson had the right to sell her at any time together with her children. Thus, Jefferson having the power to define.

Both Isaac and Gordon Reed want to find the repressed and denied stories that were written out of official history because they hold the supposition that even if the details of those particular happenings in history are unspeakable, shameful and extremely embarrassing or damaging to the image of significant political figures, they will always be a part of history and deserve to be recorded. The stories about Jefferson are hidden or denied because of his political legacy (Holowchak, 2013). In order to elicit favor from the public, he had to outwardly portray behavior that was more acceptable and in line with society’s expectation of a leader. For this reason, embarrassing details about his personal life were omitted from official records. I think the reason these stories are being written and discussed now is to enable the public have a look at the other side of Jefferson. With the significant political footprints that he left in American history, Thomas Jefferson was always viewed as a visionary who went above and beyond for his country. The stories from his personal life let us understand that just like any other human, he had challenges and weaknesses and had to make hard decisions (Gordon-Reed, 2009). I think it is important that we are aware of such stories because they offer an opportunity to learn from history. Through the life of Thomas Jefferson, we can get a better understanding of slavery and how far we have come in relation to policies on race and gender equality.

Gordon reed assumes that the main reason sally came back to Monticello with Jefferson was because she also loved him. Sally must have known the stereotypes and the living conditions she would have to endure if she chose to go back to Monticello with Jefferson and she still made the decision. Jefferson’s reasons for wanting to come back with Hemings I believe are the same. He loved her and wanted to start a family with her. I believe the fact that their affair was a taboo during the time contributed significantly to the way Jefferson treated the situation. He must have avoided recording anything about her because he thought it wouldn’t augur well with his political career or he was protecting her.

Based on her decision to come back to Monticello, it can be argued that she valued family above all else and wanted to have one with the person she loved. I think the most important things that Hemings had most wanted were to be loved and to watch her children grow.

References

Gordon-Reed, A. (2009). The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family. WW Norton & Company.

Gordon-Reed, A., & Jefferson, T. (2017). Sally Hemings, Thomas Jefferson and the ways we talk about our past.

Holowchak, M. (2013). Framing a legend: Exposing the distorted history of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Prometheus Books.