Sticks and Stones · Chapter
The Classical Myth explained
This chapter examines the rise of classical architecture in America as a reflection of social and political changes, particularly the shift from a town economy to a mercantile economy and the dominance of a landholding oligarchy.
What happens
This chapter examines the rise of classical architecture in America as a reflection of social and political changes, particularly the shift from a town economy to a mercantile economy and the dominance of a landholding oligarchy. It traces the development of the grand style in Virginia and Maryland manors, the influence of Thomas Jefferson's strict classicism, and the role of the American Revolution in turning classical taste into a powerful myth. The chapter also contrasts classical architecture with vernacular traditions, discusses the limitations of the classical mode, and introduces Major L'Enfant's formal city design for Washington, D.C.
Themes in this chapter
The Classical Myth and Imperial Power
The chapter explores how classical architecture served as a stage for the heroic actions of revolutionary leaders and reinforced the myth of a classical republic.
Economic and Social Foundations of Art
Discusses how land-monopoly, slavery, and the merchant class provided the economic basis for Palladian mansions and classical architecture in America.
Craftsmanship vs. Mechanization
Contrasts the work of the carpenter-builder (craftsman) with the gentleman-architect, highlighting the shift from vernacular to classical design.
Human Scale and Organic Urban Planning
Critiques L'Enfant's formal plan for Washington as abstract and lacking control over domestic and economic functions, contrasting with organic urban development.
Characters to notice
- Fiske Kimball
Quoted on Palladio's ideas and the contradiction between modern conditions and ancient forms in town palaces.
- Thomas Jefferson
Exemplified classical culture, designed Monticello and other buildings, and gave a strict interpretation to classicism in America.
- Samuel McIntire
Provided interior settings in the fashion of Robert Adam for Salem merchants.
- Charles Bulfinch
A merchant's son who became a leading architect, designing the first monument on Bunker Hill.
- Benjamin Latrobe
Mentioned among leading architects representing the high-water mark of professional design in America.
- Major L'Enfant
Introduced formal city design in the laying out of Washington, D.C., with radiating avenues and key public building positions.
- Charles Dickens
Referenced regarding his first visit to America and the persistence of the classical myth.
- Robert Adam
His patrons' interest in classical forms is noted; his style influenced American interiors.
Key passages
“The first development of the grand style in the American renaissance was in the manors of Virginia and Maryland.”
The grand classical style first emerged in the plantation estates of Virginia and Maryland.
Highlights the regional origin of classical architecture in America.
“It was Jefferson who in America first gave a strict interpretation to classicism; for he had nothing but contempt for the free, Georgian vernacular which was making its way among those who regarded the classical past as little more than a useful embellishment.”
Jefferson was the first to enforce a rigorous classical style, rejecting the looser Georgian vernacular that treated classical elements as mere decoration.
Emphasizes Jefferson's role in defining American classicism.
“It was the Revolution itself, I believe, that turned the classical taste into a myth which had the power to move men and mold their actions.”
The American Revolution transformed classical taste into a compelling myth that influenced people's behavior and decisions.
Connects the Revolution to the mythologizing of classical architecture.
“In medieval building the town hall is a different sort of building from the cathedral: using the same elements, perhaps, it nevertheless contrives an altogether different effect. In the architecture of the early republic, on the other hand, the treasury building might be a church, and the church might be a mansion, for any external differentiation one can observe.”
Unlike medieval architecture, where buildings like town halls and cathedrals had distinct characters, early republican architecture often made treasury buildings look like churches and churches like mansions, lacking differentiation.
Critiques the uniformity and lack of functional expression in classical revival architecture.
