The Founding and the Constitution Readings and Links Beard,
Charles. An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the
United States. New York: Macmillan, 1913. The most famous critic
of the framers, Beard argues that the Constitution was written
to protect landed elites. Dahl, Robert. How Democratic is the
American Constitution? 2nd ed. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University
Press, 2002. Dahl raises provocative questions about the
government created by the American Constitution. Ellis, Joseph
J. Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation. New York:
Vintage, 2002.A popular and fascinating portrayal of the
founders. Jensen, Merrill. The Articles of Confederation.
Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1963. An account of the
first government of the United States. Storing, Herbert, ed. The
Complete Anti-Federalist. Seven vols. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1981. A comprehensive collection of
Antifederalist writings. Wills, Gary. Explaining America. New
York: Penguin, 1982. A leading public intellec