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Madison's notes on an autobiography
Posted by David Hardy · 18 December 2006 12:59 PM
Gene Volokh discusses them at the Volokh Conspiracy.
Madison never did write his autobio, but he was collecting notes toward it. It's amazing in a way how few of the Founding Fathers ever bothered to write one, when their lives were so extraordinary. Washington and Jefferson left none, Madison left only notes. Franklin is the only one I can think of who left one.
Actually, it's not. From what I've read, "disinterestedness" was one of the leading hallmarks of America's eighteenth-century "honor" culture. What people thought of you was critical, but writing an autobiography was largely considered boorish. This is best exampled by the fact that George and Martha Washington's private correspondence was destroyed after their deaths. Airing their personal lives was not a good thing, after all the effort George had gone to in creating his public persona.
I'm not surprised that Benjamin Franklin wrote an autobiography - it was in keeping with his public persona to do so. His public persona was one of the things that several other Founders disliked about him. He wasn't "disinterested" enough in fame and celebrity.
They were a different breed back then. Thankfully.