Count the Cost

Daggett, David, 1764-1851Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.6

Word count: 66K words
Chapters: 7

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Count the Cost by David DaggettAuthor: Daggett, David, 1764-1851,Language: English, Class: F001: United States local history: New England, Release Date: Jan 1, 2004

Editor's review

Count the Cost, a short work by the late 18th- to early 19th-century Connecticut politician David Daggett, bears the clear imprint of its era. Judging from available sources, it belongs to the literature of New England local history and early American political writing, and is best read as a primary source for understanding public discourse and local social context in the early American republic. Its value lies not in literary merit but in offering a concrete individual's expressive sample at a particular historical moment, allowing readers to glimpse the political rhetoric, moral concerns, and modes of public argument of contemporary New England. It should be read in historical context: first understand the author's time and regional background, then examine the argumentative logic and rhetorical choices in the text. For readers studying early American history, local documents, or the history of political thought, it is a concise and targeted historical source; for general readers, it is more like a narrow window onto a historical scene.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and students of early American republic politics and local history
Readers interested in New England historical documents and public discourse
History writers and teachers needing primary textual material

Not a good fit for

General readers seeking literary appreciation or narrative reading
Those lacking background knowledge of early American history and unwilling to look it up

Reading tips

Before reading, learn about the author's life and the historical background of New England at the time
As you read, trace the text's argumentative structure and rhetorical strategies, taking brief notes
Read alongside other early republican political pamphlets to observe similarities and differences in discourse

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book suitable for general readers looking for casual reading?

Not really. It belongs to early American local history and political documents, and its style and context are remote from contemporary readers, lacking narrative appeal; without relevant historical interest or research need, the reading experience may be rather dry.

What background preparation is needed before reading?

It is advisable to first understand the era of David Daggett, the political environment of Connecticut, and the tradition of public discourse in the early American republic before entering the text; this will make its argumentative intent and wording easier to grasp.

Where does the historical value of this text lie?

It provides a sample of argument by a concrete individual at a particular historical moment, useful for observing New England local political discourse, moral concerns, and modes of public argument; it is a primary source for studying early American history and local documents.

Comments

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About the author

Daggett, David, 1764-1851 Author · American · 1764–1851

David Daggett (1764–1851) was an American jurist and politician who served as a United States senator from Connecticut and as a justice of the state supreme court. Public information about him is limited, and details of his life are not widely circulated; readers today generally know him through his writings and public career. One work by him is held in the collection, Count the Cost. Judging from its title and from the author's legal and political background, the book is a piece of political or moral argument, discussing the cost of public affairs, social conduct, or life choices. It reflects the concerns of early American New England men who combined public office with letters: practical in style, direct in argument, and attentive to civic duty and real consequences. Such works were representative of the newspapers and political pamphlets of the period and remain useful for understanding early American legal and political thought.