"Some are instantly recognizable-Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson--while other figures will be less familiar. Standing beside George Washington is a man he enslaved, Harry Washington, for whom no image exists. Altogether, the figures represent different sides of the war, of the period's political ferment, and of early American society itself, and convey the ambition of this special issue: to capture the Revolutionary era in all of its complexity, contradictions, and ingenuity."
"We are publishing this at the end of 2025 for a number of reasons: This month marks the launch of an Atlantic project meant to explain the meaning of the Revolution and its consequences, which we will carry through all of next year ... We also recognize that the American experiment is under extraordinary pressure at the moment, and we think it important to do anything we can to illuminate the challenges we face."
A special Atlantic edition titled "The Unfinished Revolution" gathers 21 contributions organized into five chapters including "Defiance," "Conflict," and "Independence." The edition emphasizes the Revolution as one of history's most important events and states its ideals continue to symbolize hope and freedom. A related project will run through 2025 to explain the Revolution's meaning and consequences. The edition recognizes the American experiment faces extraordinary contemporary pressures and stresses the importance of illuminating current challenges. The cover painting by Joe McKendry depicts Revolutionary figures—familiar and less known, including the enslaved Harry Washington—to convey the era's complexity, contradictions, and ingenuity.
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