Notes on the State of Virginia
by Thomas Jefferson 
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This American classic is the only full-length book written and published by Thomas Jefferson during his lifetime. Written in 1781, Notes on the State of Virginia was begun by Jefferson as a commentary on the resources and institutions of his home state, but the work's lasting value lies in its delineation of Jefferson's major philosophical, political, scientific, and ethical beliefs. Along with his accounts of such factual matters as North American flora and fauna, Jefferson expounds his show more views on slavery, education, religious freedom, representative government, and the separation of church and state. The book is the best single statement of Jefferson's principles and the best reflection of his wide-ranging tastes and talents. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Pretty dull reading. Uneven pace. He vacillates between dry scientific writing and argumentative polemic. Jefferson lovers will find plenty to love. Jefferson haters will find plenty to hate.
What really struck me was Jefferson rampant racism. Admirers point to Jefferson's desire to end slavery, but it was from less than humanitarian and egalitarian motives. He simply believed that blacks, whites and Indians could not and should not live together. Absent that alternative, slavery was the only way to control blacks. Jefferson was nothing but a pig-headed racist.
On top that he was a hypocrite.
What really struck me was Jefferson rampant racism. Admirers point to Jefferson's desire to end slavery, but it was from less than humanitarian and egalitarian motives. He simply believed that blacks, whites and Indians could not and should not live together. Absent that alternative, slavery was the only way to control blacks. Jefferson was nothing but a pig-headed racist.
On top that he was a hypocrite.
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Author Information
420+ Works 12,768 Members
Politician, philosopher, farmer, architect, and author, Jefferson was born to Peter and Jane Randolph Jefferson on April 13, 1743, in Tuckahoe, Virginia. As Jefferson observed in his autobiography, his parents could "trace their pedigree far back in England and Scotland." At the age of 16, Thomas Jefferson entered William and Mary College; at age show more 24, Jefferson was admitted to the bar; at 25, he was elected to the Virginia Assembly. Renowned for his political contributions to the American colonies, and later, to the embryonic Republic, Jefferson published in 1774 A Summary View of the Rights of British America, celebrating the inalienable natural rights claimed by the colonialists. In 1775 Jefferson was elected to the Continental Congress; in 1776 he joined the five-person committee responsible for drafting the Declaration of Independence---a document that is widely regarded as being largely Jefferson's own work. In 1779 Jefferson was elected governor of the state of Virginia, and in subsequent years he distinguished himself both as a cosmopolitan international politician and as a man committed to the future of Virginia. In 1789 he was appointed U.S. secretary of state, in 1797 he served as vice president under President John Adams, and in 1801 he was elected third president of the United States. Jefferson's literary career was no less stellar than his political accomplishments. He authored tracts and books on such diverse subjects as gardening, the life of Jesus, the history of Virginia, and the practices of farming. The precise descriptions of nature that inform his Notes on the State of Virginia (1787) are frequently credited with foreshadowing the Hudson River school of aesthetics. Thomas Jefferson died on the fourth of July. His grave marker, engraved with words of his own choosing, states, "Here lies Thomas Jefferson, Author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom and Father of the University of Virginia." (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Thomas Jefferson has a Legacy Library. Legacy libraries are the personal libraries of famous readers, entered by LibraryThing members from the Legacy Libraries group.
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Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1784
- Important places
- Virginia, USA
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, History, General Nonfiction, Philosophy, Science & Nature, Politics and Government
- DDC/MDS
- 975.5 — History & geography History of North America Southeastern United States (South Atlantic states) Virginia
- LCC
- F230 .J5102 — Local History of the United States, Canada and Latin America United States local history Virginia
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 673
- Popularity
- 42,779
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.69)
- Languages
- English, French, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 39
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 12
