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Hamilton: Hero?
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Hamilton: Hero?
Hamilton: Hero?
So... I've been listening to the Alexander Hamilton album and I did some research, now finding myself at a loss. Who on earth was in the right? Alexander Hamilton or Aaron Burr? I believe Burr did not mean to kill Hamilton, for political duels in that time period were not meant to be lethal, but to hold a place of honor.
Both Hamilton and Burr did amazing things in life, and personally, I feel Burr was a better "person" for who he was. Regardless, who was a real hero? Alexander Hamilton or Aaron Burr? I'd like to see your opinions here, for numerous articles are for Burr, while others are for Hamilton.
Thanks for sharing!
submitted by Ashlee G., age 15, The Future
(January 5, 2017 - 10:17 pm)
(January 5, 2017 - 10:17 pm)
I don't think either of them were really heroes.
Aaron Burr wasn't really a hero because he was too tentative, too unwilling to commit, too lukewarm. I don't really think he fits reallly well in the "hero" category but if I had to choose, he would probably more of the hero. His reason for shooting wasn't only that he was tired of Alex always being better than him... he says he doesn't want this man to make an orphan of his daughter. It's like he thinks he's ridding the world of something dangerous that could be a threat. (Even though Hamilton has like six little children and Burr has one daughter who was really old when he said that????)
Hamilton, on the other hand.. yikes. He's definitely not a hero. He's really smart and charming, but I mean, he cheats on his wife and then publicy admits it in order to clear his name of spending money that wasn't his. I mean, come on, Alex. Although he's not without compassion (Dear Theodosia), he's definitely a very mixed person.
(January 6, 2017 - 11:34 am)
Yes, I came to that conclusion as well. And by typical "hero definitions" neither were heroes. But in general, who was better I have to agree. Burr, while he had his faults, and possibly doing the right thing for the wrong reasons... I feel he was more of a "hero".
And Hamilton, yeah, he has some problems. I liked him better as a kid/teen, hardworking and motivated after his father left and mother died. He had potential, just used it in the wrong ways. Although yes, he did have some compassion. But Burr was more of a family man, his family was his life, more than anything else. Burr also defended the rights of women and saw them equal to men, and saw all classes equal. He worked for equality, which I strongly agree with.
Overall, neither are heroes, as you stated. But I have to agree, Burr was the better of the two.
(January 6, 2017 - 8:36 pm)
Alright, this is an important issue. The Hamilton fandom is OBSESSED with hero-izing Hamilton, but historically, he was not as cool as a person.
I think he was a jerk, a womanizer, and he was horrible to most people. He was rude and inconsiderate, though a political genius.
Burr on the other hand, was a very tentative person. He did not have many opinions on things, and he became very eccentric and ended up going to jail for treason after trying to start his own counrty.
But he was also a great feminist of his time.
It's complicated, but I'd say they were both jerks and neither of them hold a good role model positions.
(January 6, 2017 - 9:22 pm)
Agreed, that's why I have such a hard time distinguishing the truth to the extended truth presented in Hamilton. Not bashing it or anything, I LOVE the musical.
The one thing that I have in favor of Burr is his being a feminist. But his trying to start his own country? I mean, I almost laughed at that when doing research. It's possible, but so far fetched...
Overall, as you stated, neither were great role models. It's a shame, because they had spectacular minds and potential.
(January 8, 2017 - 9:26 pm)
Although I love both Hamilton and Burr in the musical, and though they did both do some heroic things throughout the course of their lives, they were both not actually such great people in real life.
I read Ron Chernow's biography of Alexander Hamilton, so I've got a little background on Burr as well that I would like to add on to what you've said. It wasn't only Hamilton who had an affair. In fact, Burr had far more than he did. His last wife divorced him because he was unfaithful, and there was a part during the book where he was describing one of the women he was seeing (to his daughter!) where I almost screamed as the book, "What!?! You're such a creep!"
So Burr did that kind of stuff too.
Also, he kind of cheated Manhatten. Because the water there was so terrible due to all the saltwater ports, he proposed the Manhatten Company to provide the city with clean water. Burr enlisted all sorts of people, including Hamilton, to help pass his act, but what they didn't know was that at the last second Burr slipped in an extra piece that allowed him to make a bank so that he could break up the Federalist monopoly of banks. He didn't actually do much to help the water system.
He kept slaves too.
That is not to say that Hamilton was an amazing person though. His thing with Maria Reynolds was terrible and unforgivable. He also, disappointingly, supported the Alien and Sedition Acts, which were set in place so that the country could deport foreigners and make it harder for immigrants to vote. I mean, really, his whole thing is that he was a poor immigrant who "wrote his way out" and rose to power in America! He was also kind of a jerk sometimes.
Both men walked into the duel knowing exactly what their intentions are. Every step Burr took was blocked by Hamilton, until he flew into a sort of murderous rage. He fully intended to shoot Hamilton on July 11. Hamilton spent his last few days in happiness. He had come to peace with what he was going to do - to throw away his shot - although he did not plan on getting shot and dying. He even made business appointments for the very same day, a few hours after the duel was to happen. Those obviously didn't happen.
So, while neither man was exactly a hero, they both did do heroic stuff in their lives (like Burr breaking up a duel between some people and Hamilton establishing the entire U.S government), but I'm tired of writing so y'all can just google them because I don't feel like doing any more. Thank you!
Wow. I just completely lost my train of thought.
(January 6, 2017 - 11:42 pm)
Oh wow, that's insane! I've been doing some research myself, so I learned quite a bit about Hamilton and a little bit about Burr. Also, after each song of Hamilton (I'm listening in order) I stop and do an analysis and a quick google search on that song's topic. Quite interesting, really.
And I'll finish adding more, but I have to go. Thanks, Riddler!
(January 7, 2017 - 2:38 am)
Okay, so adding onto what I stated earlier, you also have to take into consideration - as wrong as it sounds - that quite a few people owned slaves, about 3/4 to be exact, and so it was fairly acceptable. The same goes for the "affairs", that was somewhat accepted and practiced in that time period. That doesn't make it right, though.
As for how you described the duel, I suppose that could be true. Then again, I look at that time period. Political duels were not intended to kill, which is why, as you said, Hamilton even had meetings planned afterward. It was also Hamilton who choose the pistols, not Burr. The pistols he picked were very inaccurate, which was both good and bad. You were less likely to hit your target, but it could also miss and hit somewhere lethal.
This is why I believe for the duel, neither had any intentions to kill. Yes, Hamilton wrote his will before attending, but that was customary for duelers. And I am assuming Burr did the same. But when Burr's fire hit near Hamilton's spine, I feel that was unintended. Possibly I was wrong, I mean Hamilton didn't even want to attend the duel, so maybe he knew Burr was wanting blood.
So I see what you said extremely possible, and I like your different view. I suppose this topic is something I'll have to read more into. Thanks for the opinions!
(January 7, 2017 - 11:45 am)
THOMAS JEFFERSON WAS THE HERO!
Just kidding, but in all seriousness, Jefferson had the best political beliefs. I think Hamilton was much too arrogant and sure of himself, and also created Wall Street (or some version of it) which in my opinion is not a good thing to do.
Aaron Burr squirmed away from telling anyone his true opinion because he wanted to remain likeable. He had no beliefs, and he wouldn't fight for the ones he did have.
Thomas Jefferson might have been mean and rude to Hamilton, and he did have an affair with one of his slaves, so I'm not saying he was great or even good. I just feel like Hamilton makes him out to be a lazy person who only cared about himself and the South. In reality, though, he tried to be the people's champion. Correct me if I'm wrong (I might be), but I'm pretty sure Hamilton didn't even trust the normal people to vote. Jefferson, on the other hand, tried to let the people have a place in the government. Hamilton represented the elite, and Jefferson was the opposite. I think you could even call him a populist.
Now, I know my argument isn't very good. I know that Hamilton started out poor, and Jefferson was always rich, so what I'm saying is quite contradictory. With these historic figures, it's hard to be sure.
I also know that I don't know very much about this topic. However, someone had to argue for Jefferson, and if it had to be me... okay.
So, I conclude that Hamilton and Jefferson were both great and also very flawed, and that although Burr shared none of his opinions, he was an intelligent man.
(January 7, 2017 - 7:57 am)
Ah, I never thought about it that way, AJ! I have to agree that Jefferson was quite stunning in his political work (although Washington and Lincoln were my favorite). And you have to think, as sick as it sounds, the whole "affair" deal was very popular and common in that time period. Many men did that, the reason being their culture conditioned them to think in such a way. So I try not judging based off of that, but it's hard.
And you're right, Burr was too fearful of his reputation to give any true opinions. The biggest reason being, in my opinion, is that he wanted to protect his family. If his political job failed, his wife and son could be in danger money-wise. I'm not 100%, but that could explain a bit.
Great ideas, though!
(January 7, 2017 - 11:35 am)
Hamilton is the real hero.
(January 7, 2017 - 1:33 pm)
I've had a few articles state that, it's all a matter of opinion! Thanks for your input on the idea :D
(January 7, 2017 - 4:42 pm)
When it all comes down to it, at least Hamilton didn't own slaves like Burr and Jefferson. It doesn't matter how many people did it back then - it is wrong and completely unforgivable. Even George Washington had them, which is too bad 'cause he's awesome in the musical. The real heroes of the show are Laurens, Angelica, Lafayette, and Eliza.
(January 8, 2017 - 5:59 pm)
Indeed, I have to agree. Owning slaves was an unforgivable crime, I'm just saying the people then were conditioned to think it was okay... It was terrible, though. And I have to agree, those who you stated were the real heroes. I mean, everything positive was stated about Lafayette, not to mention the others.
(January 8, 2017 - 9:24 pm)
OK so according to the album i think Burr was just really angry and scared, (i.e. "this man will not make an orphan of my daughter) and he totally did NOT mean to kill Hamilton. I mean, they were friends. Sure they hit some speed bumps but...
Burr did not have any right to kill Alexander.
But dueling was OK back then.
in other words, Hamilton was a hero
(January 8, 2017 - 10:36 pm)
Hmm... Interesting point there, Silver. One thing I would like to point out is dueling was actually illegal, but still very common (and fairly accepted). At least on my perspective of the situation, Burr's killing of Hamilton was not at all intentional. Most likely - and of course, I can be wrong - the pistol misfired. After all, Hamilton chose very unpredictable pistols for the duel, so something was bound to go wrong. Again, I could be wrong, that's just an idea. Thanks for the input, though!
(January 9, 2017 - 12:45 am)