The author of bestselling biographies, such as of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther, Eric Metaxas wrote a book in 2016 based on a famous comment by one of the country’s founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin.
With an introductory look back at an important moment in the country’s early history, Mr. Metaxas’s “If You Can Keep It: The Forgotten Promise of America’s Liberty” recounts a story about a woman who approached Franklin in 1787 when he emerged from Independence Hall in Philadelphia after discussions regarding the Constitution.
According to a witness who documented the exchange, the woman asked, “What have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” Franklin answered, “A republic, madam—if you can keep it.”
Thus, Mr. Metaxas takes readers back in time to explore America’s uniqueness and some reasons that the U.S. Constitution, which Franklin helped to establish, endures when other countries have difficulty adhering to one.
Mr. Metaxas reminds readers in the introduction: “The burden of ‘keeping it,’ as Franklin said, is excruciatingly important.” And he explains his intention in writing the conversational-style, nonfiction, history-focused book: “that we keep that charge, that republic, that glorious promise.”
In an age when many school-age children and even young adults are unfamiliar with the inner workings and language of the Constitution, Mr. Metaxas’s “If You Can Keep It” provides insight in an approachable manner. For example, he writes: “The founders came to the idea of checks and balances mainly through the writings of John Locke … and to the idea of democracy through the Greeks and Romans. ... The founders would take the best of these ideas and improve upon them in some revolutionary ways to create the freest country that had ever existed.”
For individuals unfamiliar with lesser-known figures such as Nathan Hale, Mr. Metaxas provides an overview on why Hale is considered “the very first American hero.” Hale lost his life when he volunteered to go behind British enemy lines for George Washington’s army. Mr. Metaxas recaps the circumstances that led to Hale’s patriotic expression before he was hanged: “My only regret is that I have but one life to give for my country.”
Mr. Metaxas touches on self-governance, pointing out the “tremendous burden” that comes with the concept. He notes the importance of virtue as the Constitution’s guardrails. He often quotes Alexis de Tocqueville, author of “Democracy in America,” offering such famous statements as “The position of the Americans is therefore quite exceptional, and it may be believed that no democratic people will ever be placed in a similar one.”
While much has happened in America since Mr. Metaxas’s book was published, it still serves as an extended essay on the reasons we should always focus on “loving America,” which happens to be the title of chapter seven, the book’s last chapter.
‘If You Can Keep It: The Forgotten Promise of American Liberty’
By Eric Metaxas
Penguin Books, June 6, 2017
Paperback: 272 pages
Would you like to see other kinds of arts and culture articles? Please email us your story ideas or feedback at [email protected]
