Toward a Republican Synthesis: The Emergence of an Understanding of Republicanism in American Historiography

Abstract

T HE effect upon American intellectual history of the symbolic statement, Locke et praeterea nihil, has been both profound and unfortunate.' That popular forxhula has helped to obscure an undedstanding of early Americaiohbi'u'ht' by obstructing a full appreciation of the vital shaping role of republicanism. Only within the last decade have historians clearly 'discern-ed_ the unique anq ddynimic qualities of republicanism in the period 1760 to I789. Their efforts represent the culmination of a long, slow process, and implications arising from this work have yet to be extended to other periods of American history. It sl'*uld prove fruitful, then, to trace this evolution of ideas in order to verceive those important strands of thought that can be drawn together Ato a tentative synthesis. Hopefully, this republican synthesis will shed new light upon early American history and provide insights for future research. A brief explication of the ideas of George M. Dutcher reveals the older view of republicaiilsim-lni'America.2 Dutcher, in an essay published