bunker hill by nathaniel philbrick sparknotes

Why Washington’s ability to control his emotions and impulses made him a genius politician.How Washington was able to go against his natural aggressive instinct and his pride in order to switch to a more defensive strategy.Washington’s short-sighted and risky approach to battle at the beginning of the Revolutionary War.Why Philbrick’s mother was a huge fan of Benedict Arnold.Along the way, Nathaniel and I talk about the life lessons we can take from these two eminent revolutionaries. That’s what my guest today explores in his book Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold, and the Fate of the American Revolution. His name is Nathaniel Philbrick and today on the show we discuss the evolution of Washington as a general and a statesman, Benedict Arnold’s amazing, but often forgotten battlefield exploits for the American cause, and how Arnold’s valiant ambition turned into a vain and treacherous appetite that led to his downfall. How is it that Washington transformed himself into one of America’s greatest leaders while Arnold ended up betraying his countrymen? In the American imagination, Washington is elevated as an example of sterling character, while Arnold is ostracized to the seventh layer of Dante’s hell.īut what few Americans know is at the start of the War of Independence, Washington was a blundering general, while Arnold was one of the colonies’ very best.

In the history of the American Revolution, two figures stand in stark contrast to each other: George Washington and Benedict Arnold.

Bunker hill by nathaniel philbrick sparknotes