Jefferson and the Iconography of Romanticism: Folk, Land, Culture and the Romantic Nation (Romanticism in Perspective : Texts, Cultures, Histories) - Hardcover

Examines Jefferson's role in establishing an iconography for the newly emergent country, and his invention of an idealized image of an ordinary American people, focusing on the national iconography of Jefferson's villa at Monticello. Contextualizes the villa in relation to his earlier explorations of American identity, examines the attempt to establish at Monticello fixed signs of the myth of the Fourth of July, and shows how Monticello became a site of contention in the definition of what it is to be American. Includes b&w photos and illustrations of interiors and exteriors of historical sites. The author is a professor of English at the University of Wales-Cardiff. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)