Considered the first significant teacher of rhetoric in America, John Witherspoon also introduced Scottish moral philosophy to this country and as president of Princeton reformed the curriculum to give emphasis to both studies. He was an active pamphleteer on religious and political issues and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Editor Thomas P. Miller argues that Witherspoon’s career exemplifies the Ciceronian ideal, and the eight selections Miller presents from the 1802 American edition of the Works corroborate that claim. This new paperback edition includes a new preface by the editor of the volume that surveys the scholarship published on Witherspoon over the last twentyfive years and discusses how Miller’s own perspective on Witherspoon has changed during that time.
