To Begin the World Over Again

Matthew Lockwood tries his best to reel back Americans from the thought they have an exceptional country, one founded by way of a good revolutionary war. While I disagree with his downplaying of the positive value of our founding times, I do think his book is well worth reading. Much information is provided to explain the world of the late 1700s and the many unexpected ramifications of the victory of the American colonies over Great Britain. Professor Lockwood ties many negatives in other then-existing societies to the aftermath of our revolutionary war. Here the world is surveyed from Russia, France, India, Australia, China, and points in-between. The focus is on stories of individuals who serve to illustrate great social and political change: to slavery, prisons, indigenous peoples, commercial trade flows, and empires. And especially to the British Empire. I learned a good deal from this book. For example, more about the Hessians who fought for the British; what happened to the freed slaves that fled from the new United States to Canada; the founding of Australia as a penal colony, and, how China reacted to Western trade initiatives. While I don\’t buy all the author\’s supposed direct ties to the American Revolution, I, again, found this book readable and worthwhile.

This book is based on extensive research work, covering a wide range of subjects and time periods. It delves deep and presents compelling histories, explaining in detail the various narratives it presents. If this book had sought to be an anthology of histories, a \”collected works of…\”, it would have been a worthwhile addition to any library. Sadly, the author did not stop there. His attempt, to convince the reader that the American Revolution was the singular, or at least the most influential, cause of many wrongs and tragedies falls short. This is because of his choice, to blame the birth of the United States, is a political statement, not a historical one. For these purposes, many other events could have been selected, just as arbitrarily. If anything, Yale\’s decision to publish this book attests to the influence, which politics have on humanities today.

I would not normally have bought this book but it was given me for Christmas. I found \”To begin the world over again\” annoying and unsatisfying. US history and the challenge of government are deeply interesting subjects. Just read the Federalist Papers. How did Islam penetrate India so profoundly? How was England able with very few public servants to control that continent? Is the story of the East Indian Company worth examining more closely? Why did the Spanish empire fail and more particularly why is S America in such a mess today? Does Darwin have something to say about this? Lockwood\’s attempt to trace all these events back to the US revolution is unconvincing. Certain phrases like \”the renowned Benjamin Franklin\” did not help. I did not think Lockwood displayed any sense of nuance or real scholarship for that matter.

The historian in Alabama wishes to complicate our views of the American Revolution. According to him, the lessons the Brits learned by losing to the colonists helped them become more viscous imperialists. He sees the outcome of the Revolution as helping set the stage for the rise of not only America, but Britain and Russia as well. A first rate re-envisioning of history, regardless of its merits.

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