Paul Reveres Ride, by David Hackett Fischer - Book Report/Review Example

The book Paul Revere’s Ride, by David Hackett Fischer, is about the role that Revere played in the time before the American Revolution in Boston. Revere is perhaps best known for his midnight ride, where he warned the Americans that the British were closing in on them, but this book explores so much more of his contributions. It also explores what was happening socially during this time and how that led to many of the events that occurred surrounding Revere to be distorted. This book is an excellent source of American history because it goes beyond the myths that are present, in an attempt to show the truth behind this era. Paul Revere was a Boston craftsman who was also heavily involved with the colonial resistance in 1775. He was also an efficient horseback rider, which is one of the reasons why he was chosen for this ride. While popular legend states that Revere rode around the countryside at random, alerting people of the British’s advancements, this is not true. Fischer is able to let the reader know that Revere had purpose with every place he stopped. Since he knew the majority of the militia leaders in the area, he rode to their residences and warned them, giving them enough time to alert the members of the militias. This occurred in the middle of the night, allowing for these militias to be ready for the British by the morning and allowing for them to stop the British before they reached their destination of Concord. This version of the story is much different from the popular belief that Revere was simply an honest, hardworking man who went out of his way to help his newly forming country. The popular myth is also that Revere did this all on his own. Fischer, however, gets to the truth of the matter by showing that Revere was already heavily involved in this cause and that he was chosen for this role in the story, as it began when “the people of New England vowed never again to be taken by surprise. In Boston, Paul Revere went instantly to work on that particular problem. His chosen instrument was a favorite device in Boston: the voluntary association,” (Fischer 52) which shows Revere‘s early involvement in this situation. While Fischer does state that Revere was an intelligent and heroic man, the truth of the story makes him seem somewhat less heroic than folklore. There were many other people involved in this story and Fischer is sure to mention the role that each of them played. The American militias were, in fact, already prepared for the British attack and Revere simply informed them of where to mobilize to. Also, there is a great deal of social context to these events and social reasons as to why Revere was turned into a hero. The forefathers of the United States decided that they needed an ordinary man to become a hero because they believed that this would inspire other Americans to take up arms against the British. Revere became this man over time and, therefore, his social contribution is more important than his actual midnight ride. Another myth that is dispelled by Fischer is the idea that there was only one rider. Many riders were sent all over the countryside and a series of signals were also set up in order to let the riders know when to begin their travels. By showing that this was a highly thought out plan, Fischer Is able to portray the American militia as being more than a loose association of spread out villagers, but rather as an organization that was prepared for the British’s advancements. The Americans had a plan that was well thought out and Revere was simply a small piece in this plan. The purpose of this book is to tell the true history of the events surrounding the beginning of the American Revolution. Fischer does not wish to end the legend of Paul Revere, but also believes that the public deserves to know the truth. In actuality, the true story could actually paint Revere as even more of a patriot, as he took the time to become heavily involved in the cause and even helped organize the various riders and signals. Fischer is able to effectively depict these events by, first of all, utilizing biographical information on each of the main participants. He also uses historical documents, which show Revere’s involvement in pre-Revolutionary America’s social and political scene, which prove that Revere was not just an ordinary working man. The recollections of people who were actually involved in the events are also used, which give Fischer’s version of the story a great deal of credibility. Another manner in which Fischer is effective is with his unbiased attitude. Many American history books paint a negative picture of the British and of their leaders. This book, however, shows British General Gage in a sympathetic manner, which is difficult to do given the circumstances of the story. In doing so, Fischer is also able to recall some of the events from the British perspective, giving the reader more than just the American goals, but also the objectives of the British. Fischer depicts the British militia as being well trained and highly sophisticated. He also shows that their communication process was too secretive and complicated for fighting such a primitive foes. While other American history books portray British leaders as being inadequate, this book is more sympathetic, showing that the British were simply confused because of the Americans’ outdated tactics, as “Imperial leaders were laboring to remove the physical means of resistance,” (Fischer 49) which would not work in this situation. This also adds to the legitimacy of this account, as it will not be written off as American propaganda. Perhaps the most important aspect that Fischer explores in this book is the social context of these events. The time before the American Revolution was a very volatile era in the history of the United States. The country was somewhat divided between British loyalists and American patriots who wished to secede from Britain. Revere is depicted as a man who was involved in this cause from day one, which is how he ended up on this ride from the beginning. The social landscape was also such that heroes were needed in American society. The leaders of this movement, knowing that people would rally behind someone with heroic attributes, chose Revere to be one of these heroes. The poem “Paul Revere’s Ride” was also created in order to feed this myth because it was believed to be good for the American morale. Paul Revere is an important part of American folklore because of what he represents. With that being said, his role in these events surrounding the beginning of the American Revolution are both less and more than many have been led to believe. While Revere was not the only messenger involved in alerting the American militia and had other signal him before he left on his run, he was also more heavily involved in American politics and the social movement than many are aware of. Paul Revere is a key figure because he was allowed to become an American hero, which was important at this time because the newly forming country needed heroes to follow. David Hackett Fischer is able to get to the truth of the story surrounding Paul Revere and show that the man was more important to American history than simply through his midnight run, as he was an important figure in both folklore and the political movement that the country was going though. Works Cited Fischer, David Hackett. Paul Reveres Ride. New York: Oxford University Press. 1994. Read More