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History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology
Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science
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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
The Politics And Piety Of Neoclassical Architecture: How Early American Elites Practiced An Old Religion To Subvert The New One, Christopher Saint-Carter
The Politics And Piety Of Neoclassical Architecture: How Early American Elites Practiced An Old Religion To Subvert The New One, Christopher Saint-Carter
Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science
The Western political revolutions of the 18th century established the ideals of liberty, patriotism, and democracy the United States government grounds its identity into this day. The motive of these ideals, particularly their visual manifestation in Neoclassical government architecture, remain unquestioned. This study provides a historical analysis of the psychology informing the early American elite’s choice to structure the new nation around Roman political and aesthetic standards. Chronicling the subservience inherent in Roman civic religion, as well as the internalizing nature of visual propaganda, the borrowed ancient schematic proves to be a method of de-revolutionizing the American people at …