The story of America is a centuries-long collision between high ideals and grim reality. The words of the Declaration of Independence conflicted with the brutality of slavery. The terror of Jim Crow conflicted with the promises of the Civil War Amendments. This five-week course will examine the philosophies that shaped the two foundings — one born out of revolution, the other out of civil war — and how those philosophies continue to call us to a higher and better version of ourselves today.