Creating an Informed Citizenry: Knowledge and Democracy in the Early American Republic - Paperback

$63.00

Creating an Informed Citizenry: Knowledge and Democracy in the Early American Republic - Paperback

Name: Creating an Informed Citizenry: Knowledge and Democracy in the Early American Republic - Paperback
Brand: BooksCloud
SKU: 9780813954165
Price: 63.00 USD
Availability: InStock

by George D. III Oberle

$63.00

Book Overview

Examining the early debates in the United States over how best to educate the constituents of the new nation

When the founding fathers of the United States inaugurated a system of government that was unprecedented in the modern world, they knew that a functioning democracy required an educated electorate capable of making rational decisions. But who would validate the information that influenced citizens' opinions? By spotlighting various institutions of learning, George Oberle provides a comprehensive look at how knowledge was created, circulated, and consumed in the early American republic.

Many of the founders, including George Washington, initially favored the creation of a centralized national university to educate Americans from all backgrounds. Over the first half of the nineteenth century, however, politicians moved away from any notion of publicly educated laypeople generating useful knowledge. The federal government ultimately founded the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, to be run by experts only. Oberle's insightful analysis of the competing ideas over the nature of education offers food for thought as we continue to grapple with a rapidly evolving media landscape amid contested meanings of knowledge, expertise, and the obligations of citizenship.

ISBN	9780813954165
Author	George D. III Oberle
Publisher	University of Virginia Press
Genre	History and Education
Format	Paperback
Published	December 2025
Language	ENG- English
Pages	252
Weight	1.0 lb
Target Audience	Adults
Print Size	Standard Print

1% fer Each of the Seven Seas

Every purchase sends 7% of our profits to The Ocean Cleanup. No fine print, no opt-in — just how we sail.

Whoever Ye Be, Welcome Aboard

Queer lit, music, art, philosophy, fiction — stories for every kind of soul. Come as ye are, matey.

More by George D. III Oberle