The release of the musical Hamilton at
the beginning of this month has given some of us at least some respite
from the “unprecedented circumstances” we find ourselves in (words I will be
happy to see the backend of when this is over); I had heard of the musical before,
but never really showed an interest in American history before (sorry). The conflict
between Burr and Hamilton interested me though, and I decided to take a look at
the history of both men, as well as their duel, the ending of the musical.
Researching both
men brought up interesting results (and I would definitely recommend doing so),
but it is hard to categorise either of them as ‘good’, and although Burr did
kill Hamilton, I find it difficult myself to label him a villain. It is easy to
see how the tension culminated eventually, resulting in the death of Hamilton,
leaving many questions that probably cannot be answered.
In the musical,
Burr shoots first as Hamilton throws away his shot. Hamilton makes a
point to give the duel from Burr’s perspective, highlighting that Hamilton wore
his glasses at the duel, as well as fiddling with the trigger. In my search for
more information on it, I really only came back with more questions: nobody can
be sure who shot first, whether Burr accidentally shot Hamilton, or whether
Hamilton did in fact throw away his shot. Of course, the witnesses testified
that they did not see, having looked away before a shot was made, making it
even more difficult to confirm what exactly transpired.
I began to
ponder over Hamilton’s beliefs, his insistence on ‘truth’, his reasons for
agreeing to the duel against Burr, and I could not help but make parallels with
the death of Socrates, a man considered to be a martyr. The song Non-Stop in Hamilton
contains the lyric “If not, then I’ll be Socrates/Throwing verbal rocks at
these mediocrities,” and I could not help but wonder how close Hamilton
modelled himself with Socrates.[1] He shared the idea of an
elected monarch system, as Socrates had, and was determined to always share his
own truth and stick by it, even if it meant that he must die.[2]
Socrates sacrificed
his life for the truth, for himself, as well as for the hope that his country
would not fall into the hands of the corrupt. Hamilton was so determined for
his country not to suffer the same fate, that he prevented Burr gaining high
positions, as well as eventually dying at the man’s hands. He wrote a statement
before he faced Burr, explaining that he intended only to face the man because
to back out would be to revoke his statements regarding Burr and his
suitability for high positions in politics, but he fully intended to throw away
his shot.[3] The statement is somewhat reminiscent
of the Apology of Socrates, explaining his own reasons for facing
execution.
Considering the
timing of the duel, it must be noted that Hamilton’s political life was well
and truly in decline, and issues in his personal life led to a significant
level of damage to his reputation. Not only this, but he also lost his eldest
son, Philip, in a duel, a devastating event that left a noticeable impact on the
man, who died close to the spot his own son had. It is a wonder, then, if
Hamilton was really worried he might not return from the duel. He still had a
family to consider, of course, but it was clearly an ambition of his to stand
up for his truth more than anything. Did Hamilton care that he might not
return?
His actions
before and after the duel are revealing, giving the suggestion of a man who at
least taunted Burr, if not death; he had chances to avoid the duel altogether,
but antagonised Burr into action, only offering vague responses to Burr’s
accusations against him and pushing the other man into a corner where the only
option to restore his honour was to challenge Hamilton. Then, as the musical
shows, Hamilton’s actions during the duel were suspect: he continued to fiddle
with the trigger, wearing glasses to inspect it properly, and he did not throw
away his shot in the typical manner, but actually shot a tree branch above Burr’s
head. While Hamilton had clearly gone to great pains to stress he had no intention
of shooting at Burr, the other man would have had no idea this was his plan.
Hamilton’s actions before any shot was made would have struck some fear in his
opponent, taunting him, making Burr believe that he was going to strike.
When Burr shot
Hamilton, his political career, already on the rocks, declined dramatically. There
was no hope for Burr when Hamilton died; Hamilton, although he died, still got
the better of Burr. The narrative is of a murderer, a villain, shooting a good
man, a martyr. It brings the question, to me at least: was this part of Hamilton’s
plan?
Hamilton did
shoot, perhaps after Burr had already shot (by accident?), but it was not the
typical throwaway. The musical portrays Hamilton as an honest man, and by his
own account he planned to throwaway his shot. He was adamant to make it known
to the world that he was the good man in this duel, he was the martyr. For a
man whose life had so far focused on improving his country, facing the decline
of his political influence, as well as a great personal loss, he knew there was
little chance of dying the death of a martyr as his life went on. Was the duel
an opportunity? He certainly taunted Burr, he pushed him into the duel, his
actions made his opponent believe he would not be wasting his shot. Burr, a man
Hamilton saw as ‘despicable’, as a threat to the country he had helped to
build, a threat to his truth.
Picture this:
Hamilton, a
good shot by all accounts, shoots first. His shot is not a typical throwaway, but
misses Burr. Still Burr hears the shot, sees that it was not the typical waste,
and makes his own – but this one hits. Hamilton eventually dies, with notes he
left reassuring everyone that he fully intended to throwaway his shot. Maybe his
shot was an accident. Either way, he is the one who dies. Meanwhile, Burr is
despised for the rest of his life, and his reputation never recovers. The duel
grants Hamilton his martyrdom, while dragging down the man he believed could
not be trusted in high positions. Two birds…?
Of course, we
can never truly know what occurred, and there are many possibilities. This one
I considered because of the connections between Hamilton and Socrates, but
naturally I do not pretend that it must be accurate, simply something to
consider.[4]
Side note: I would definitely recommend listening to the Hamilton soundtrack, as well as Leslie Odom, Jr.'s album Mr.
[1]
While we do not have Socrates’
own writings, and therefore views presented as his were likely those of Plato
and Xenophon, using him as their mouthpiece, for the sake of this post they
will be referred to as Socrates’ ideals and beliefs.
[2]
Socrates was accused of
impiety, a charge with little evidence; when found guilty, he was given the
option to denounce his beliefs, his truth, or he would face execution. While
his family begged him to take the offer, he refused and was executed. Socrates
is considered a martyr because he died for the truth.
[4]
This post has omitted some
information simply because it was already growing and I encourage you to read
about both of these men because what you can find is very interesting!
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