EBOOK
About
A biography of the famous eighteenth-century Quaker whose abolitionist fervor and spiritual practice made him a model for generations of Americans
John Woolman (1720—72) was perhaps the most significant American of his age, though he was not a famous politician, general, or man of letters, and never held public office. A humble Quaker tailor in New Jersey, he became a prophetic voice for the entire Anglo-American world when he denounced the evils of slavery in Quaker meetings, then in essays and his Journal, first published in 1774. In this illuminating new biography, Thomas P. Slaughter goes behind those famous texts to locate the sources of Woolman's political and spiritual power.
Slaughter's penetrating work shows how this plainspoken mystic transformed himself into a prophetic, unforgettable figure. Devoting himself to extremes of self-purification-dressing only in white, refusing to ride horses or in horse-drawn carriages-Woolman might briefly puzzle people; but his preaching against slavery, rum, tea, silver, forced labor, war taxes, and rampant consumerism was infused with a benign confidence that ordinary people could achieve spiritual perfection, and this goodness gave his message persuasive power and enduring influence. Placing Woolman in the full context of his times, Slaughter paints the portrait of a hero-and not just for the Quakers, social reformers, labor organizers, socialists, and peace advocates who have long admired him. He was an extraordinary original, an American for the ages.
John Woolman (1720—72) was perhaps the most significant American of his age, though he was not a famous politician, general, or man of letters, and never held public office. A humble Quaker tailor in New Jersey, he became a prophetic voice for the entire Anglo-American world when he denounced the evils of slavery in Quaker meetings, then in essays and his Journal, first published in 1774. In this illuminating new biography, Thomas P. Slaughter goes behind those famous texts to locate the sources of Woolman's political and spiritual power.
Slaughter's penetrating work shows how this plainspoken mystic transformed himself into a prophetic, unforgettable figure. Devoting himself to extremes of self-purification-dressing only in white, refusing to ride horses or in horse-drawn carriages-Woolman might briefly puzzle people; but his preaching against slavery, rum, tea, silver, forced labor, war taxes, and rampant consumerism was infused with a benign confidence that ordinary people could achieve spiritual perfection, and this goodness gave his message persuasive power and enduring influence. Placing Woolman in the full context of his times, Slaughter paints the portrait of a hero-and not just for the Quakers, social reformers, labor organizers, socialists, and peace advocates who have long admired him. He was an extraordinary original, an American for the ages.
Related Subjects
Reviews
"Brilliantly written and researched . . . An extraordinary biography."
Douglas Brinkley, Austin American-Statesman, Best Books of 2008
"Thoughtful and reflective . . . Thomas P. Slaughter treats Woolman's dreams, his life, and his death with subtlety and great sympathy . . . He also, intriguingly, allows us to see Woolman as others did not wish to see him . . . As Slaughter carefully and rigorously shows, from one perspective Woolman's life (both conscious and unconscious) was the story of an increasingly critical consciousness of the world . . . Slaughter suggests that 'it is the extremes, not the complexities, that provide the man's measure.' I may not agree. But that he has written a work both historical and ethical that can make that question a point of debate is quite the accomplishment."
Michael Meranze, William and Mary Quarterly
"We can benefit from a really good secondary source such as Thomas P. Slaughter's The Beautiful Soul of John Woolman, Apostle of Abolition. Slaughter's project is all about context and analysis . . . In the end, we do not explain Woolman. He explains us."
John Benson, Quaker Life