Part 1

It is rare these days to have successful Hollywood productions that are six hours long. American attention spans are simply not equipped to weather such torture. I was therefore surprised at the success of the movie John Adams. To my relief I later learnt that the six hours were divided into one-hour episodes and shown on HBO before they were sold on CD. It was well worth it. The movie provides wonderful insights into the foundations of the US polity and democratic institutions while telling a personal story. I will not say much about the movie so as not to ruin the experience for those who may choose to watch it.

One of the profound revelations in the movie is how particular to a culture and history the formation of a new state can be. Despite the revolutionary leaders’ identity as aristocratic Englishmen, the system that they founded had very little in common with the governing system in London. But it did closely resemble the aspirational hopes of Britons like John Locke. Puritan discipline combined with economic transformation and cheap firearms allowed revolutionaries to refuse subordination to a foreign power and helped assert democracy. Well sort of.