New Books Network — Andrew Burstein: "Being Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History"

Date: January 21, 2026
Host: Mark Clovis
Guest: Andrew Burstein
Publisher: Bloomsbury (2026)

Episode Theme & Overview

This episode explores Andrew Burstein’s latest work, Being Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History, delving into the personal, psychological, and cultural dimensions of Jefferson beyond marble monuments and textbooks. Instead of merely recounting political milestones, Burstein examines how Jefferson consciously shaped his image in public and private writings, managed ambitions, dealt with personal relationships (including with the enslaved people he owned), and sought to secure his legacy for posterity. The conversation unpacks Jefferson’s inner world, his performative self-awareness, and the emotional, linguistic, and social structures that defined his life and historical memory.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Burstein’s Scholarly Background & Approach

• Burstein’s Background — Initially focused on Chinese language and culture, Burstein came to Jefferson via a fascination with how language codes identity and emotion (01:27).
• Jefferson’s Distinctiveness — Unlike his contemporaries, Jefferson’s enduring influence is tied to the lyricism and psychological depth in his writings, making him not just a writer of importance but a founding figure who, Burstein argues, “still speaks to us today” (03:10).

Jefferson as a Consciously Crafted Persona

• Writing as Self-Presentation — Jefferson was highly attuned to shaping and maintaining his image through written correspondence, not just for political gain but to create bonds and manipulate perceptions among different audiences (06:34).
  • Quote: “He had this unique ability to understand who his audience was… he very consciously, you mentioned this, self-consciously constructed that man of the people identity.” (06:34, Burstein)
• Organized Yet Sensitive — Jefferson's intensely organized life—from meticulous weather records to personal expenditures—played into his sensitive correspondence and persona as a “natural” man of the people (06:34).

Emotional and Medicalized Language

• Deep Emotional Range in Writing — Burstein highlights Jefferson’s use of empathy, lyricism, and medical metaphors to convey feeling and self-image.
  • Example: To a female correspondent after the loss of his wife:
    • “What more sublime delight than to mingle tears with one whom the hand of heaven hath smitten.” (09:00, paraphrased)
  • On leaving politics:
    • “The motion of my blood no longer keeps time with the tumult of the world.” (10:35, paraphrased)
• Medicalized Metaphor — Jefferson leaned on contemporary medical discourse to pathologize political enemies (e.g., calling Federalists suffererers "of gloomy hypochondriacal minds" and "inhabitants of diseased bodies") and rationalize social hierarchies (15:00).

The Central Question: “What Was It Like to BE Thomas Jefferson?”

• Project’s Central Question — Burstein’s work is driven by the desire to move past static depictions and understand “what was it like to be Thomas Jefferson,” revealing the interplay between persona, private anxiety, public ambition, and shifting self-understanding (17:21).
  • Quote: “We know him as the face on Mount Rushmore...and yet ...the language and what he writes can sometimes obscure that thought of what was he like as a person? Was there more to it than that?” (17:55, Clovis)
• Personal Ambition & Self-Justification — Jefferson sought to disguise ambition, yet also yearned for celebrity. Burstein sees this as crucial to understanding Jefferson’s complex “messenger of the people” posture (19:03–22:50).

Jefferson’s Personal & Sexual Life

• Awkward Youth & Sexual Discovery — Early chapters delve into Jefferson’s formative experiences, including sexual encounters with both older/married women and, most likely, enslaved women—a reality common among his class and era (26:53–27:47).
  • Secrecy in Records: Burstein uncovers evidence from Jefferson’s memorandum books written in a secret code, revealing names of women—likely indicating both consensual and non-consensual sexual relationships (28:15).
• Sally Hemings & Slavery Dynamics — The book dissects Jefferson’s long, coercive sexual relationship with Sally Hemings, his late wife’s half-sister and an enslaved woman, highlighting how patriarchal norms allowed Jefferson to rationalize such conduct (30:00–34:00).
  • Quote: “Her role was not in any way that of a lover, an equal, a partner. Any effort to romanticize that relationship, I think, is flawed...” (32:44, Burstein)

Jefferson the Planter, Gentleman, and Politician

• Identity as Planter — Jefferson’s “gentleman planter” identity shaped his politics, relationships, and self-worth. Land ownership and agricultural stewardship represented status and morality ([37:06], [39:10]).
• Relations with Washington & Hamilton — The show discusses Jefferson’s efforts to curry favor with George Washington and outmaneuver Alexander Hamilton, using coded references to crops and nature in letters as attempts to maintain or repair political relationships (40:31–43:30).

Securing His Own Legacy

• Obsessed with Posterity — Jefferson spent his retirement cultivating his afterlife through curated documents, seeking a sympathetic biographer, and urging allies to counteract John Marshall’s more Federalist biography of Washington (44:17–45:38).
  • Quote: “He has to make sure the Federalist vision is crushed utterly… I had not really read until this point just how much attention he gave that, how much devotion he gave that in his retirement.” (44:17, Clovis)
• Marginalia & Family Secrecy: After Jefferson’s death, his family sought to retrieve marginalia he had written criticizing Marshall’s Washington biography, underscoring his (and their) deep concern for how future generations would perceive him (45:38–47:00).
• Strategic Myth-making — Jefferson used surrogates (younger, Southern allies) to shape narratives, undermine opponents, and rewrite his legacy.

Modern Re-assessment

• Jefferson and Race — Burstein notes that Jefferson would likely have edited his writings to appear more progressive on slavery had he known their future impact on his reputation (49:42).
• Quote: “He would have found a way to anticipate future generations and done all he could to seduce them into seeing him as a thoughtful, caring, something other than racist man.” (50:25, Burstein)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• On Jefferson’s Seductive Language:
  “He had this unique ability to understand who his audience was… he very consciously… constructed that man of the people identity.” (06:34, Burstein)

• On Scientific Racism and Presentism:
  “Had Jefferson known that his reputation today would be low because of his scientific racism, his belief that white is superior over black. If he knew that, he would have very carefully rewritten his determinative texts…” (50:10, Burstein)

• On Sexual Conduct and Patriarchy:
  “Her role was not in any way that of a lover, an equal, a partner. Any effort to romanticize that relationship, I think is flawed…” (32:44, Burstein)

• On Emotional Intimacy:
  “What more sublime delight than to mingle tears with one whom the hand of heaven hath smitten.” (09:00, paraphrased from Jefferson’s correspondence)

• On Political Exhaustion:
  “The motion of my blood no longer keeps time with the tumult of the world.” (10:35, Jefferson to Madison, paraphrased by Burstein)

Key Segments with Timestamps

• [01:27] Burstein’s intellectual background and entry into Jefferson studies
• [06:34] Jefferson’s conscious self-crafting via writing
• [15:00] Jefferson’s use of medical and psychological metaphors
• [17:21] Central theme: What was it like to be Thomas Jefferson?
• [19:03] Hidden ambition, personal anxieties, the “private” Jefferson
• [28:15] Jefferson’s sexual secrets and the evidence in memorandum books
• [32:44] Jefferson and Sally Hemings—dynamics and implications
• [39:10] Planter identity and relationship with Washington
• [44:17] Jefferson’s efforts to secure his posthumous image and push back against John Marshall
• [50:10] Modern reassessments: Race, reputation, and legacy

Closing Notes

Burstein’s Perspective:
Burstein frames Jefferson not as a static figure but as a living, contradictory, sometimes calculating, yet always fascinating mind who leveraged language to manage his ambitions, relationships, and political objectives. Through a focus on Jefferson’s inner life, emotional world, and performative self-presentation, Being Thomas Jefferson offers readers a multidimensional and sometimes unsettling view—one that makes Jefferson more vividly human, yet still raises challenging questions about race, power, and memory in American history.

Final Thoughts:
The episode closes with Burstein stating he is enjoying retirement but would consider another collaboration with his wife, Nancy Isenberg, on a future project, highlighting his continued passion for exploring the “life of the mind in early America” (51:14).

For listeners seeking a nuanced and intimate portrait of Jefferson that goes beyond the familiar iconography, this conversation and Burstein’s book are essential, challenging, and illuminating.