Controversial History & Educational Theories of Captain Alden Partridge Quotes

“[Captain Alden] Partridge became famous for his habit of what some today might describe as “extreme” walking. It is hard to fix a date of when Captain Partridge began his long pedestrian adventures, but they were likely the result of his work as an engineer and desire to survey the heights of local mountain ranges. It is interesting to ponder if Thomas Jefferson had any influence on Partridge, as Jefferson was a powerful advocate for walking. Writing to his nephew, Jefferson once remarked, “There is no habit you will value so much as that of walking far without fatigue.”
― Franklin C. Annis, Controversial History & Educational Theories of Captain Alden Partridge

“These deep interactions with Greek and Roman culture, to include Stoic philosophy, certainly affected the zeitgeist of the era and most certainly impacted the educational theories in the early days of the Republic. With so much interest in reviving and adopting elements of Stoic philosophy within America, many intended references to Stoic ethics may be hidden within the works of the early generations of America, as they explicitly referenced “American” ideals that would have incorporated Stoic philosophy.”
― Franklin C. Annis, Controversial History & Educational Theories of Captain Alden Partridge

“Before concluding the discussion on Partridge’s connection to the Stoic tradition, I present what is probably the greatest proof Partridge was a Stoic: he suffered the public doom of one. Ironically, Partridge may have missed a powerful warning about his own fate within one of the key texts he used in his academies. A footnote within William Duncan’s translation of Cicero’s orations recalls the ill fortune of Quintus Aelius Tubero in the eyes of the people of Rome caused by his Stoic behavior at the funeral of Scipio Africanus:
"[It was the same from the study of Tubero] Cicero here ridicules the doctrine of the Stoics, shows the absurdities into which it may betray a man and paints the ill consequences that often arise from it. [Quintus Aelius] Tubero, of whom he speaks here had professed himself a Stoic and resolved to regulate his conduct by the tenets of that sect. Accordingly, in an entertainment he gave the Roman people on occasion of the death of the great Scipio Africanus he made use of plain wooden beds, goat skin covers, and earthen dishes. But this ill-timed parsimony was so displeasing to the Roman people that when he afterwards stood for the prætorship they refused him their suffrages though a man of illustrious birth and the most distinguished virtue."
Is there a passage more fitting for the legacy of Partridge and his Stoic behavior? Even when Partridge had built an ideal model for educating a complete virtue-driven citizen worthy of the Republic, few would find the lifestyle required appealing. Being a virtuous man with a sufficient plan for American education was not enough to guarantee his acceptance among the masses.”
― Franklin C. Annis, Controversial History & Educational Theories of Captain Alden Partridge

“For the military community, philosophy isn't something casually debated. But something that should be fully embodied in everyday thought and action, with the abandonment of all principles not shown practical in the most extreme of environments.”
― Franklin C. Annis, Controversial History & Educational Theories of Captain Alden Partridge