Listening to...

...American Ideals: Founding a "Republic of Virtue" by Professor Daniel N. Robinson.

Dr. Robinson's enthusiasm for the Revolutionary era, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution shines through his lectures. His deep respect for the Founders is apparent, yet he never sounds mawkish.

The lectures begin by tracing the colonists' history as loyal Englishmen through their break with England and include the intellectual underpinnings of the Declaration of Independence. From there Professor Robinson discusses the Articles of Confederation and the drafting and ratifying of the Constitution. He ends his lecture series with a comparison of Thomas Paine and Edmund Burke.

When I researched Dr. Robinson a bit further to purchase history books by him, I learned that he, in fact, had earned his Ph.D. in neuropsychology. I've found some of the best historians are not those who earned their degrees in history but who approach history from another viewpoint altogether and simply love a certain topic. (Rodney Stark, for example)

Check your local library to see if it carries this course. Many libraries do stock the Teaching Company courses, and if not, they might order it for you if you request it. I've found that lectures can help fill those otherwise monotonous moments behind the wheel, walking the dog, or doing mindless housework.