Washington The Indispensable Man essays

Washington The Indispensable Man essays In the book, Washington: The Indispensable Man, author James Thomas Flexner exposes the real man behind the myths that surround George Washington, the father of our country. In doing so he portrays Washington as a man with real flaws and real strengths. This paper deals with the beginning of Washington's political career and answers questions about Washington's influence in shaping a new united nation from 13 independent colonies several years after its independence from Britain and the man George Washington was a Federalist who fervently believed in a strong central government, which would hold power that would pervade the 13 colonies, which represented the Union of the late 1700s. In private writings, Washington wrote, "experience has taught us that men will not adopt and carry into execution measures the best calculated for their own good, without the intervention of a coercive power (198). Without this coercive power, Washington believed that the nation would not exist for any length of time. Prior to what became known as the Constitutional Convention, the states ignored the Continental Congress to the point that at any given meeting there were seldom enough delegates to form a quorum. It seemed that each state violated the Articles of the Confederation when it was beneficial to the state to do so. Flexner notes for instance that New York resented any authority that would weaken its own laws that milked other states (198). In addition, states succumbed to the whims of the majority, while neglecting the minorities, creating class conflict. Though this saddened Washington, he had no intention of intervening. After the Revolutionary War he had retired to Mount Vernon to experience what many claim were the best years of his life. Upon his retirement he had vowed not to return to public life. Because of this he did not plan to attend the ...