My Dear Hamilton

Hamilton is Eliza’s husband whose actions and ideas contributed to the Revolutionary War, the Constitution, and the early growth of the United States. Hamilton is born in the Caribbean to a mother who is imprisoned and accused of sex work, with rumors circulating that his father is a Scottish noble. Hamilton’s childhood is one of hardship, but the highly ambitious young man wants to educate himself and uses his intellect to get himself to New York. He dreams of elevating his station by joining the army and rising through its ranks. He is recruited as General George Washington’s aide-de-camp during the Revolution and meets Eliza at an official function. Hamilton has no family before he becomes part of Washington’s staff. He befriends men like James McHenry, Aaron Burr, James Monroe, and John Laurens, the latter of whom the fictional Hamilton begins a romantic relationship with. When he meets Eliza, he is still likely involved with Laurens but continues to dream of raising his station. He understands how beneficial it would be to marry a wealthy general’s daughter. Yet Eliza and Hamilton form a genuine connection due to their similar interests in justice and their shared patriotism.

Hamilton’s primary characteristic is ambition, and in this sense he remains a static character. Hamilton knows how unrealistic some of his ambitions are, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to achieve them, and others are rarely able to change his mind when he sets it on something. Hamilton is most ambitious for an honorable name, as he wasn’t born with one. He cares about his reputation more than the feelings of others. When he is spurned, Hamilton often becomes reckless, going so far as to have an affair with the wife of a man who embarrassed him. Hamilton’s ambition and concern for his legacy cause his demise. In his duel with Burr, Hamilton throws away his shot, showing courage and principle to the point of being killed.

Monroe is a Virginia stateman, who encounters Eliza when she and her father meet Lafayette and his forces. Monroe changes greatly because of Eliza’s relationship with him, starting as a mild-mannered soldier and ending as a conniving president of the United States. Eliza’s outspokenness surprises him, leading her to assume that his Southern upbringing makes him believe all people are as proper as he is. Later, Eliza and Monroe meet every now and then due to Monroe and Hamilton’s military and political connections. Monroe’s rise is not unlike Hamilton’s, as both men, despite their political and biographical differences, share similar ambitions.

Eliza watches Monroe’s morals crumble as he becomes a Jeffersonian. Though he keeps his word when Eliza asks him to keep Hamilton’s affair a secret, he refuses to publicly exonerate Hamilton in the Treasury fraud as it would not win him favor in his political party. Eliza calls him a coward, and when they meet years later, she still refuses to speak to him. Eliza’s relationship with Monroe bookends the novel, as the Prologue and climax both occur during his final visit to The Grange. Eliza sees he is still not sorry for failing to announce Hamilton’s innocence, and she refuses to talk to him. Monroe dies shortly after this encounter, symbolizing that his health deteriorated along with his morals.