Dr. Mode will present a brief character sketch of John Adams, Including factors that shaped his Ideas. A man of strong convictions, Adams again and again took positions that might have damaged his political fortunes, because he considered those positions to be right (e.g., re the Stamp Act, the John Hancock/smuggling case, the Boston Massacre). Such bravery enabled him to play a leading role at the time the Declaration of Independence was debated. His writings on political history and theory, along with Madison's, provided the main philosophic Ideas and practical structure for the American Constitution.