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A Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution

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Like so many elements of history, there is rampant ignorance or misunderstanding among the American public regarding the origins of our Constitution. Sadly, a significant majority surely have no concept whatsoever of the failed initial attempt at a United States government. More significantly, among the historically literate outside academic circles, there has been a common misperception of our Framers as a set of omniscient statesmen who shared a clear view of the ideal government and crafted a structure that remains unchanged in its essentials to this day. The purpose of Berkin's book is, through a focus on the papers of constitutional convention delegates, to provide insight into the reality behind these myths.

Her theses can be summarized primarily as follows: 1) the process by which the constitution was written was one involving sharply differing views, particularly as to the sharing of power between the individual states and the national government, substantial uncertainty and pessimism regarding the document's capacity to forestall tyranny and a great deal of compromise from strongly held principles, and 2) the character of the current US federal government would astonish the Framers in certain areas, most notably in the greatly expanded powers of the presidency.

Berkin makes a compelling case for both theses through her narrative discussion of the drivers behind the scheduling of the convention, the twisting progress of debate during the sixteen weeks in session, the fierce fight for ratification by the states and the inauguration of Washington as our first president. The major strength of the work is the illumination of the key roles played by delegates such as Gouverneur Morris, James Madison, James Wilson and Roger Sherman. Interesting anecdotes abound, such as the amorous successes of the one-legged Morris ("He scandalized the convention's proper New Englanders by his open philandering, although he won the admiration of the more worldly New Yorkers and South Carolinians, who marveled at the success in the boudoir of this fleshy middle-aged man hobbled by a wooden leg."), the alcohol-induced tirades of Luther Martin ("The nationalists were fortunate that Luther Martin did not do battle with them in a sober state") and the surprising nervousness of Washington during his inaugural address ("His hands trembling and his voice unsteady, ..." ).

The book is not without its weaknesses. On the quibbling end of the scale, the editing in several places leaves something to be desired. There are several instances of repetitive diction in juxtaposed sentences and the biographical snapshot of Charles Pinckney contains an obvious editing error. A more important shortfall is found in the overall style of the writing. While Berkin writes with admirable clarity and economy, her utilitarian approach lacks the literary style and flair for communicating the drama of great events found in the work of popular historians such as David McCullough and Barbara Tuchman. In those rare cases where she ventures into more dramatic narrative, her effort comes off as somewhat contrived and incongruous with the rest of the work.

Regarding the content of the book, its chief shortfall is the puzzling treatment of the role of Washington in the debates and, more importantly, in the ratification battles. Berkin makes it very clear that Washington privately was keenly supportive of the nationalists' agenda during the debates and of the resulting constitution that was submitted to the states for ratification. She also notes his unparalleled prestige in the fledgling country and the tremendous potential for influence that this implied. Despite this combination, Washington apparently played little or no role in the contentious debates. When, apparently for the first time during the entire sixteen weeks, he finally rises to express an opinion regarding a relatively minor change on the convention's final day, Berkin rather blandly explains that "up until this moment, he had felt his position in the president's (of the convention) chair required his silence." It seems difficult to believe, notwithstanding his procedural scruples, that he did not exert some degree of influence on key issues of disagreement, even if he chose the channel of private conversation and lobbying over public speech. The unexplored issue screams for further attention during the tenuous ratification process. Berkin states that "the usually stoic Washington made no effort to disguise his hopes for ratification. `I never saw him so keen for anything in my Life,' a Virginian told Thomas Jefferson." Yet there is no discussion of his active involvement in the ratification fight. Not even the crucial and hard fought battle in his home state of Virginia, an essential member for a viable United States, appears to have moved him to action. She strongly implies that Washington had the power to ensure approval yet does not explain his apparent unwillingness to do so. This seems an important omission.

Notwithstanding these faults, this is an enjoyable and educational read. It is certain to excite the reader's interest in exploring the lives of some of the more colorful delegates and, at a time when the United States is engaged in a very challenging effort to build a representative constitutional government in Iraq, it provides a reminder of the painful, challenging and contentious birthing process of our own polity.

In light of current events that occurred after the turn of the century, the presidential election of 2000 and the US Pentagon and World Trade Center disaster, Carol Berkin laments on those events as well as her life as a historian, and responds by reflecting on the historical past with her book, A BRILLIANT SOLUTION: INVENTING THE AMERICAN CONSTITUTION. She revisits the US Constitution with the present in mind, but reflects on the past with a critical eye. For example, Berkin asks one of the most frequently asked questions to arise in recent times, what would the Founding Fathers do?

Berkin succinctly provides answers with her examination of the Founding Fathers and state delegates who helped comprise and create of one of the most significant documents in American history. The book is not meant to be a comprehensive examination, but a concise narrative that describes the inception of the Constitution, which began with the Articles of Confederation, and includes a vicissitude of discussion, which reveals the impassioned activity and skepticism that occurred in the writing of the document that even the Founders did not think would succeed. With her dramatic discussion surrounding the events of the writing of the Constitution, Berkin contains a character sketch of the key framers that intimately describes their intellect as well as their quirks and eccentricities. From personal squabbles to triumphant cooperation, it is amazing that everyone came out of the experience alive.

The biographical sketches after her discussion spotlights each delegate and their unique personal qualities. Most of the delegates attained their education through prominent universities at home and abroad, and came from distinguishable families. But for those who did not, they came from modest upbringings and backgrounds, which ran the gamut of artisans, agrarians, and merchants. Upon reading through each synopsis, several of the names rear close to home in terms of Virginia history, from the famous George Washington to the eminent George Wythe; as a teacher at the College of William and Mary, Wythe "trained Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Marshall in the law" (248).

A BRILLIANT SOLUTION reads like an essay with its compact and reader friendly format. For the casual history reader, the book is a welcome introduction to the US Constitution and those who helped construct the foundations of American society, which included the rights for individuals as interpreted through governmental laws. Overall, this book stresses the importance of understanding the present through a historical perspective.

If you are looking for a short, understandable compendium of how the US Constitution evolved, then this is the book for you. Carol Berkin has done a very good job of putting these critical deliberations, the pros and the cons, forward in layman's terms. Better yet, the prose is clear, crisp and incisive. This is a succinct volume in which every word counts, so you will probably want to read it through more than once.

The story of our Constitution is really quite amazing. None of those who helped write it, who agreed with it or fought against its adoption, ever thought they were forging a document that could possibly be so enduring. Many of the central issues the original framers debated, argued and fought over, such as states rights vs. a national, central government, remain critical issues today. More importantly, these issues are debated just as intensely today as when the original framework was set up.

You will enjoy this well written work. Ms. Berkin communicates well with her readers, does not appear to have an interpretative agenda and does quite a good job at enabling the reader to become more conversant regarding the central document upon which our republican form of government is founded. Most of all she will leave you with an enthusiasm to learn more.

Civics class ranked among the most horrendous when I was a student, compared to art studio, gym or field biology. The Federalist Papers seemed like the most stultifying tome one could ever be force-fed. So why would anybody inflict a book on the Constitution upon themselves for fun?
The answer is, because it is the stuff of drama, crucial drama at that. It was not clear that the US would exist after breaking away from Britain, and certainly its lack of a constitution made its prospects seem even more unlikely. Additionally, the original colonies shared few ideals once they had vanquished their common foe. Berkin pulls together these complex forces, shows how they collided, and how a few prescient leaders were able to unite the disparate strands such that we have were able to stand up as a nation. Not a bad achievement in a mere 200-readable page book!

This is a great book. For some unexplained reason I was not expecting it to be, but am so glad that I picked it up. This year I have done little besides read a brain-splitting amount of history pertaining to our Founding, from classic biographies of the major players to the Federalist Papers. One thing I could not seem to find, however, was an accurate & enlightening, but at the same time entertaining telling of what went on behind those locked doors and closed shades in Philadelphia so long ago. THis book delivered!

Truly fascinating is the fact that so few American readers realize that if you want drama & intrigue with your education, study the Founders, particularly the story of the creation of the Constitution. Berkin captures this masterfully--so masterfully that most of the time I truly felt as if I was in the room, seated next to Jemmy Madison as he observed history unfolding before his eyes. It is an unusually gratifying feeling when history & storytelling coalesce (as readers of McCullough, Ellis, & Ferling understand). It was my constant reaction to this book.

Let me not leave the impression that this book was light fluff. It is not. It is one of the most educational 200 page books I've read. This is a serious look at what a somewhat motley group of brilliant, passionate, opinionated Americans learned as they forced themselves to hammer out the greatest government in history, while the crisis of a quickly dissolving Confederation was pounding on the doors of Independence Hall.

I would like to have the book footnoted, because I know it was heavily & accurately researched. But I don't think that was Berkin's intention for this book, and she has a very full note on her sources in the back for those who want to dig deeper. Read this book.

Normally, most books about the founding of our great nation are tedious to read. Carol Berkin lays out the facts about the constitutional covention and how the many players acted out the great task at hand. If you want an easy read about the writing of the constitution that will make you appreciate the difficulty of bringing 13 little nations into one world power this book is the place to start. Great biographies of the founders and copies of the articles of confederation and the constitution are included in the book.

This book gives an amazingly detailed account of the positions, discussions
and decisions which went into the creation of the Constitution which has proven
to be the best basic governmental structure in history.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of this document.

A Brilliant Solution is one of the best easy-read books I have read about the writing of our Constitution. The book was recommended to me by someone from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation which is not only a living history museum but is also heavily invested in historical education. This book is easy to understand, not too lengthy and yet it clearly defines what that convention was all about.

The introduction points out that even before the Convention got underway, "betting men were divided over the ability of representatives from the thirteen states to agree on anything at all. George Washington was one of the doubting Thomases." And isn't that true today? There was alot of truth to that statement, for our framers who were still recovering from war and trying to bring a Union together through the weakness of the Articles of Confederation, also knew that if our government was given too much power, we'd end up right back where we came from - under the rule of tyranny.

Berkin illustrates in this book not only the difficulty and necessity for compromise, but also the human side of the delegates as they struggled to establish this "more perfect union." I think it is important for our young readers especially, to understand the difficulties they faced, but also to understand that their ability to eventually come together was more about love of freedom and principles than it was for political or personal gain.

When Benjamin Franklin left Independence Hall that day after the Constitution was signed, a lady came up to him and said, "What kind of government have you given us?" His reply: "A Republic if you can keep it." We Americans can learn a lesson from that. A healthy discussion at shcool should be "Why did Franklin say that that and what did he mean? Just what is a republic and how DO we keep it?" Too many of our young people don't even know what our framers gave us and if they don't know, how can they possibly keep it? They can't. I would highly recommend putting this book in every school for required reading.

Berkin took on a monumental project, and tackled it with an unbeatable enthusiasm and commitment to historical fact. Her interpretation of the papers documenting the origins of the US constitution is an amazingly-written narrative, historically accurate, and offers new insight into human behavior and motives. Once I started reading I could not put it down, and rank it as being equal to Catherine Drinker Bowen's, "Miracle At Philadelphia," which is usually regarded as the "gold standard" for histories of our constitution.

This book was written by a professor in my college (CUNY Baruch). It's a great look at how the founders put together our constitution and the lessons can be applied to politics today. For instance, remember when people were outraged that the healthcare debates were being held behind closed doors? The founders had to close their doors or they couldn't get anything real done, as they could not risking angering their voting constituents.