Following Thomas Jefferson from the drafting of the Declaration of
Independence to his retirement in Monticello, Joseph J. Ellis unravels
the contradictions of the Jeffersonian character. He gives us the
slaveholding libertarian who was capable of decrying mescegenation while
maintaing an intimate relationship with his slave, Sally Hemmings; the
enemy of government power who exercisdd it audaciously as president; the
visionarty who remained curiously blind to the inconsistencies in his
nature. American Sphinx is a marvel of scholarship, a delight to read,
and an essential gloss on the Jeffersonian legacy.