Sophia Estes

Mr. Fletcher
Hamilton
November 19, 2019
Hamilton in Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton’s legacy has been continued not only through our federal financial
system, but through the genius of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit Broadway musical, Hamilton.
Although uber-successful in its Off-Broadway and Broadway runs, the musical does have its
indiscrepancies in historical accuracy. Not only does Miranda’s use of diverse casting stray from
Hamilton’s (and other Founding Fathers’) white heritage, but his diversion from major issues
from the time keeps Hamilton in a heroic position of power, when that was simply not how it
happened.
Portraying Alexander Hamilton as a hip-hop and rap icon is a major step outside of the
box, but Miranda’s eloquence and perfectionism in his lyrics does emanate the genius that was
Hamilton’s writing. However, Hamilton portrays Hamilton as a more progressive, democratic
leader of the day, which isn’t entirely true. While Hamilton fought for a more strong federal
government, and planned for a stronger financial future, his ideas about international affairs
(his lack of involvement in the French Revolution) and slavery were far from today’s Democratic
opinions.
Slavery was a huge issue in Hamilton’s time, and Miranda all but ignores it completely.
This is due to the fact that Hamilton never was an outright abolitionist, like his close friend John
Laurens. Due to the high status of his wife’s family, slaves were given to Alexander and Eliza
when they were married and moved into their home. Clearly, Hamilton was conflicted by this,
as slaves were still a symbol of status, and he reached to heighten his status and future legacy
in every way, but he admired Laurens’ ability to find the strength in these people. In the
musical, Miranda does not mention Hamilton’s lack of political movement against slavery, as via
today’s standards, that would almost eliminate all ability for Hamilton to be a hero in history. I
also believe that this would have been tricky with a diverse cast, as it would be a weird scenario
to have a black man as a servant to a black actor. The power struggle would be difficult for
audiences to swallow.
Outside of the Reynolds Pamphlet, so coherently described in the song of the same title,
Hamilton’s relationships are a little sticky in the musical, specifically his relationship with
Angelica Schuyler Church. In order to make the meeting of Eliza and Hamilton more smooth,
Miranda brushed over Angelica’s married status so that she could introduce him after a bit of
flirting. And although Satisfied is one of the greatest songs of the show, it may not be
completely accurate in the love triangle. Although the letters found between Angelica and
Alexander were deep, and romantic, perhaps in today’s eyes, there are theories that Angelica
was just using Hamilton’s (and Thomas Jefferson’s) political prowess to push her ideas into
American government, as, due to her being a woman, she had little power herself.
Because it is a musical, there are some less general examples of historical inaccuracy
due to making the show itself more high-stakes and dramatic. The two that come to mind are
Eliza burning her letters, something which was never proven she did, and Hamilton and Burr’s
duel. While debated by historians since the day, Hamilton and Burr definitely shot within
seconds of each other, not at the same time. Also, Hamilton dramatically shooting to the sky
would never have actually happened, due to violation of the Irish Code Duello, a code of
conduct for duelling used in America. Just some overdramatizing of historical scenes does not
change the tone, just the accuracy.
Due to the catchy music, gorgeous cast of voices, and closeness to historical accuracy, I
think that Miranda’s Hamilton: An American Musical is a glorious work that not only emanates
the beauty of Hamilton’s skillful writing and connects the country’s history with today. In
researching historically I am conflicted about my own thoughts about Hamilton, though. As a
hero in the musical, a storyline led by a hip-hop icon, and incredible connections between then
and now, I think that Hamilton would be proud of that legacy, and I connect with the character
positively. Due to some of his moral wrongdoings, such as his decision to publicize the affair and
not speak up about slavery, I am not fully on board with his beliefs as a Federalist from early
America.