Scandal at Bizarre
Rumor and Reputation in Jefferson's America
Format:Paperback
Publisher:University of Virginia Press
Published:20th Sep '06
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In the early 1790s, Richard Randolph was accused of fathering a child by his sister-in-law, Nancy, and murdering the baby shortly after its birth. Rumors about the incident, which occurred during a visit to the plantation of close family friends, spread like wildfire. Randolph found himself on trial for the crime largely because of the public outrage fueled by these rumors. The rest of the household suffered too, and only Nancy, who later married the esteemed New York statesman Gouverneur Morris, would find any degree of happiness. A tale of family passion, betrayal, and deception, ""Scandal at Bizarre"" is a fascinating historical portrait of the social and political realities of a world long vanished.
Here's a scholarly book that artfully relates a riveting tale with lasting historical repercussions and significance. Readers will be drawn by the story of a strong woman who may have been wronged; the great Randolph family of Virginia torn asunder; the implication of members of Thomas Jefferson's circle; slaves' whispers fanning the flames of scandal; and eventual reconciliation of sorts.... [Kierner] reports with a colorist's deft touch and a fiction writer's delight while remaining faithful to scholarly conventions and trends.... This account analyzes part of the reality of Jefferson's Virginia in the nation's early years. Kierner makes us look at the world of the founders in all its messy complexity and humanity. oPublishers Weekly
ISBN: 9780813926162
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 440g
256 pages