The Debate on the Constitution : Federalist and Antifederalist Speeches, Articles, and Letters During the Struggle over Ratification : Part One, September 1787-February 1788 (Library of America)

Those who think that mud-slinging, negative campaigning, and assaults on the integrity of the opponent are modern day creations may be surprised to see that those in the 18th century could be just as nitpicky, petty, and ascerbic as their present day decendants -- and yet still remain surprisingly gentlemanly about the whole thing. Some letter writers absolutely seethe with irritation at their opposition, and by presenting his debaters in roughly chronological order, Bailyn ensures that for every "Oh yeah?" uttered by a Federalist, there will soon be a responsive "Yeah!" from the anti-Federalist side. It all makes for lively and informative reading, and one wonders if such a critical debate could be carried out with such manners in today's media.

It should come as no surprise that most of the Hamilton-Madison-Jay Federalist Papers are in here, as are the level-headed, persuasive anti-Federalist arguments of James Wilson and George Mason. But the real jewels in these volumes lie in the thoughtful and frank correspondence that passed back and forth between not only the Major Players, but also between some of the lesser-known writers, who make their cases for or against the Constitution with genuine passion and conviction.

Bailyn wisely leaves the spin to the writers themselves, but when he does step in, Bailyn is a most helpful editor, and the final 240 pages contain short biographies of every writer (or letter recipient) in the book, an informative chronology of events (and Bailyn makes sure readers have a perspective for the debates in this book by starting the chronology in 1774, some 13 years before the first words in this book were spoken), and competent notes on the text to help readers unfamiliar with some of the players or events keep everything sorted out.

Even though we all have the luxury of knowing that Everything Came Out All Right In The End -- the Constitution was ratified -- there is still quite a bit of drama here, particularly in the debates in the State Ratifying Conventions, which are carried out with suitable handwringing and bluster on both sides. Appropriately, then, the final piece in here is the dramatic speech the previously skeptical John Hancock delivered in the Massachusetts convention, informing his colleagues he would, indeed, vote for ratification. Hancock's words are as stirring now as they were then -- but I'll let you read them for yourself.

If you have the opportunity, purchase both Volume I and Volume II together. Not only will you get the complete debates (Volume I ends in February 1788; volume II is needed to make it to August), but you'll also get one of the Library of America's typically attractive slip-cases. It's a little more expensive, but worth it.


One of my most treasured possessions.   January 27, 1997
56 out of 62 found this review helpful

Part one opens with Benjamin Franklin's speech at the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention, September 17,1787. Two pages long, this speech and all the others that follow, are short, easy to read and in tolerably modern english. Both sides of the argument are presented, not just the federalist opinion but also the anti-federalist. Many concerns the anti-federalist writers had have proven true. We have created an aristocracy. We do have trouble with our standing peace time army being used to oppress the citizenry. Thank God they had the forsight to require the inclusion of a written bill of rights. These books are required reading for every educated citizen. Quit reading my review and place these books in your shopping basket right now


Provides a complete environment for the Federalist Papers   March 27, 2001
Kevin Brogan (Micco, Fl.)
33 out of 39 found this review helpful

Study of the Federalist Papers, of course included in this two volume series, is a conduit for understanding the American ethic. When the Federalist Papers are viewed as included in this chronological deliberation between the Federalists and Antifederalists, they become even more profound than the enormous depth they can achieve when read alone. The concerns of Brutus and Agrippa are answered, the repititive call for a 'Bill of Rights' revealed. Madison wrote to Jefferson in 1825 defining the Federalist Papers as 'may fairly enough be regarded as the most authentic exposition of the text of the federal constituion, as understood by the Body which prepared & the authority which accepted it.' The enormous insight gained from tracking the arguments and concerns of the proposed Constituion , and the responses of the Federalist cannot be easily estimated, yet the result is a much more informed conscience of the American experience. Madison in the same letter mentioned above stated that Federalist Essays did not foresee all the misconstructions which to that date had occured, nor prevent some it did foresee. For the concerned and deliberate citizen of today many of these issues remain, issues such as Federalism are current topics and all too often the opinions of the few become the conscience of the many, examining these volume will do much to alleviate this vexing condition. More alarming is the realization that many of the fears of the Antifederalists have become a reality in todays polity. An excellent and comprehensive collection thank you Bernard Bailyn.


Constitutional Debates   December 31, 2007
J. Lindner (Gem Lake, MN United States)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful

I've gathered other collections (i.e., The Federalist Paper, Constitutional Debates) over the years, but this collection (along with Volume 2) is by far the most comprehensive yet affordable collection to date. Given the fact Bernard Bailyn compiled the contents and wrote the background material, the reader can rest assured that a distinguished historian is behind these endeavors. Bailyn's commitment to detail and analysis of primary sources has always been one of his hallmarks. He continues that commitment in these two volumes.

There is more material here than the average person probably ever knew existed regarding the constitutional debates. Letters, newspaper articles, formal treatises, and speeches all provide the documentation. Bailyn wants to show the depth and richness of the discussion, which varies from those who feared loss of personal liberty to those ready to embrace the document. Anyone who picks up these volumes will come away with an idea of how complex the constitution really is - that it will never be all things to all people, but it does ground our national identity. It becomes the task of each succeeding generation to uphold the tradition yet strive to assure the Constitution carries out its intended purpose. Obviously this is no small feat to be taken lightly.

The books are arranged chronologically, more or less, divided into subsections. The reader will get the broad spectrum of constitutional debates (the Federalist Papers are included, the "antifederalist papers" are included) as are the fears, assurances, and the entire range of human emotion regarding the Constitution are all there for the reader to peruse.

The only spoiler I offer is the peculiar selection of a Benjamin Franklin letter as the very first entry of the set. Franklin fears the Constitution yet is willing to embrace it just the same. In a way, this might be the quintessential document of the entire collection as all Americans have reason to heed Franklin's concerns.


More than 2,000 pages of letters, speeches, pamphlets, news articles, and journals debating ratifying Constitution   July 19, 2010
Craig Matteson (Ann Arbor, MI)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Of all the wonderful volumes the Library of America has provided to us, I value the volumes on our founding, our founders and their writings, and the documents from the period to help us understand our history with a richer context. These two volumes provide more than 2,000 pages of letters, newspaper articles, pamphlets, and journals from dozens of writers who made important comments, pro and con, for the ratification of our Constitution. You can get volume 2 here: The Debate on the Constitution : Federalist and Antifederalist Speeches, Articles and Letters During the Struggle over Ratification, Part Two: January to August 1788 (Library of America)

The Constitutional Convention was originally assigned to correct a few problems with the Articles of Confederation (which are included along with the Declaration of Independence, the Letter from the Constitutional Convention to the President of Congress, Resolutions of the Convention Concerning the Ratification and Implementation of the Constitution, and The Constitution itself), but the Convention set about creating a new and stronger General Government. What the nature of this should be was debated. According to Madison, some wanted to abolish the states altogether while others wanted a severely constrained General Government. Some wanted the states to have a Constitution check on the actions of the Federal Government.

I was not aware how profoundly much of the population hated the idea of a central government and their reasoning for what might come of it. You know, given where we are today, we can see that their fears were well founded. This debate, for and against the Constitution, provides us with a great deal of context for what our founders meant by our Constitution. Much of the telling of the founding in our public schools, classes, on television, and used as justification by our politicians has almost no basis in fact. They just ignore the realities of what was said, written, and promised to do whatever it is they want to do.

These volumes also provide snapshot biographies of each of the writers whose works are cited in this volume, an article examining the state Constitutions at the time our Constitution was written, and a chronology from the beginning of our Revolutionary War through 1803. We are also given notes on the texts and a most helpful index.

I urge you to get both volumes and study them a bit each day. While it will take you a long time to get through this large volume of material, you will probably, like me, be surprised by what was said, written, and promised. You will have a much bigger foundation you can use to rest your ideas of what our government was supposed to be about and why we need to make big changes in what we have today.

Don't fall for the smear of the Founders that they were old White Men in wigs and knickers who owned slaves. These were all remarkable men, and some were clearly men of genius. And most were surprisingly young at the time of the Revolution and the Constitutional Convention. Some owned slaves and the rest did not. Not all those who owned slaves were for the institution and not all who did not own slaves were against it. Reality tends to be complicated.

Dig in! Learn! Enjoy!

You might also like LOA's collection of contemporary writings on "The American Revolution": The American Revolution: Writings from the War of Independence (Library of America)

Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Saline, MI