The United States Constitution
The US Constitution is one of our most remarkable inventions of all time. A lot of people in other countries think so too. It is a robust self-correcting legal OS. But it was written in an arcane code long ago. To make any sense from it you need some help.
This lively graphic novel adaptation of the Constitution is by far the best aid I've found to deciphering its code. It is the comic book version, but rather than dumbing it down, it smartens it up. The graphic novel goes through the Constitution article by article, and explains what each bit means, why it is there, and how it came to be. Like the Bible, the Constitution doesn't say what you thought it did. I was surprised what was not there as well as what was. I learned tons from this annotation, despite studying it in high school. It renewed my respect for it, and in a way, also makes clear its limitation. I feel I can be a slightly better citizen. Best of all, this book does all that with pictures, which makes it a page-turner.
Recently my brother-in-law, who is an immigrant, had a lot of questions about the Constitution. I handed him this book and he came back very informed. I gave it to my son who would normally have nothing to do with such boring material. But it's a comic! You've always wanted to read it, and should. Here's the perfect excuse and ideal method.
If you want the unadorned, raw version, get a pocket version. This sturdy shirt-pocket-sized one contains both the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. I have a few friends who pack this pocket version in their travel bags. Good conversation starter.
The United States Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation
2008, 160 pages
$12
Available from Amazon
The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States of America
(Pocket)
2000, 58 pages
$5
Available from Amazon
Favorite (15)
Tetsubo
I've seen a Bill of Rights printed on a steel sheet the size of a business card. So you have to surrender it when passing through a metal detector. I'm sure the irony is lost on TSA agents.
John
The constitution isn't THAT difficult to read for most people. And it SHOULD be a bit difficult to read, after all it is the basis for all our laws and how we treat each other. I wouldn't want such a document to be successfully boiled down to a comic book.
Besides, shouldn't every American know and understand the constitution on their own? Isn't allowing others to convince us of their (false) interpretation of it where we get into trouble? Or if you're too lazy to read it and at least try to comprehend the original document, maybe that is the problem?
Not everything should be in comic book or Cliff Notes form.
Steve P.
John,
The problem is that some of the language of the Constitution is hard to interpret without realizing the intent. Of course, there have been many legal battles over the intent of parts of the constitution, and I'm also somewhat doubtful that all sides can be faithfully represented in comicbook form. However, seeing more of the problems of the day and other writings as shown in the except here can only be helpful, if it is not taken as the absolute answer to all the hard problems.
Spoonman
The Constitution absolutely should be easy for every single person to understand, clearly and without any possibility of misinterpretation. Otherwise, you have some people claiming that others misinterpretation of it is wrong without knowing what that interpretation is. Today, most of our fundamental problems are based on people interpreting the Constitution one way or another. This is a document that's supposed to describe our basic values, what we hold dear, and what we will not tolerate...how can that possibly work if everyone has their own interpretation? The current state of affairs in our country clearly proves that it cannot.
Although, even the clearest parts are elusive if you never read the document. There are some, for example, who believe the Constitution specifically states the Christianity is the official religion of the US, despite the fact that the 1st Amendment clearly states there can be no establishment of an official religion of the US.
When it comes to lazy, your argument provides an excellent example. You didn't bother to use any critical thinking skills whatsoever to form it.
dingo
This doesn't contain anything like "the 2nd means the states can have militias", the "Consitution *creates* rights", "only citizens have rights", or any other Bush-era crap?
If not, I might buy it.
Jay
Hey guys, just found this site. I just wanted to tell you all that there's an app (for free!) on the iTunes App Store that has the Declaration and Constitution (one app for each, not together). It's pretty cool, and handy. For those of you, like myself, that carry around your iPod Touch or iPhone, it's really kinda cool that one can carry around such reference material in ones pocket.
ProfWombat
Another vote; my high school kid and I really enjoyed this from a not very wild-eyed lefty position.
One looks in vain for the word 'God', or any reference to Christianity, in the Constitution.
The actual words of the Constitution are a starting point, an essential one, but hardly the end of the story, obviously. To cite but one example, the Supreme Court's power of judicial review emerges from its decision Marbury v Madison, and not specifically from the Constitution...
Ron
On a related note, a couple of years ago I ran across a translation of the Magna Carta (with commentary), published by the University Press of Virginia (ISBN 0-8139-0121-9). It's an interesting read, and in some ways I think it might be more relevant than our constitution to people in counrties that have traditionally been ruled by local "strongmen" (analagous to the English barons who wanted to limit the power of the king). It was not intended to increase the rights of peasants, but in the long run it had that effect anyway.
See also:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta
Edo
In Chavez' Venezuela, the constitution is printed everywhere. You can't miss it. Food packaging - yeah, buy a bag of rice and have a reminder of what your rights are at the same time...
On a personal note, that first sample page shows it all... yeah, really easy to understand...
chug
You can get a free Pocket Constitution from TheCapitol.Net, a DC-based training and publishing company, and unlike the others they do not collect your name and address info for a marketing db. You just have to send a self-addressed stamped envelope, with enough postage for 2 ounces, to get a free copy.
See here for details:
http://www.thecapitol.net/Publications/PocketConstitution.html
They are also blogging the Constitution section by section with links and videos. Link on the above page.
tse
I'm a citizen of a country (UK) that doesn't often use the idea of a constitution. I currently live in a country (France) that periodically rewrites its constitution (the current one dates from 1958). That being said, both countries do a pretty good job of providing justice, freedom and respect for civil and human rights etc.
My perspective on the American Constitution is that it is a worthy document that should be studied and debated in order to bring its ideas and concepts into daily life. This 'comic book' approach seems a very good way to do that.
Ruthann Fletcher
There’s a great site called Shmmop that is a wealth of information on the U. S. Constitution that you should definitely check out as well. It’s an intelligent easy to understand take on the history of the Constitution and why it matters to us. For students, I think this is even more important. Shmoop explains how and why the Constitution was created and what each article implies to our lives even today.
http://www.shmoop.com/constitution/