I went to see Hamilton on Broadway this week, and I was so glad I finally did. What an extraordinary production. I’ve always loved historical fiction, and it makes the founders of this country feel immediate and alive. But seeing it now, at a moment when the basic foundations of this country feel as if they are being steadily dismantled, gave it an entirely different weight. Hamilton is a story about power, about ambition, about legacy, and about the ideas this country was built on. Which seemed all the more important at a time when we are realizing how fragile those ideas become when power is left unchecked.
What made it feel even more striking was that on the day I saw it, the Supreme Court basically gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The idea of three coequal branches of government — executive, legislative, and judicial — was central to the vision of the founders. That structure of checks and balances was meant to make sure that the country is run in a well-reasoned and thoughtful way. It was meant to protect against exactly what the founders feared most: concentrated power in the hands of too few people. Remember – they were the original Americans saying No Kings! But right now, it is hard not to feel that both Congress and the Court are too often serving the interests of the President, rather than acting as independent checks on power.
Give all the power to the many, and they will oppress the few. Give all the power to the few, and they will oppress the many.
– Alexander Hamilton, Speeches in the Federal Convention, June 18, 1787
I loved all of it, but for this blog, I was interested in the song, ” The Ten Duel Commandments, which is, after all, about the process of conflict resolution. This one little song shows that even in a duel, there are rules. There are steps. There are intermediaries. There are multiple opportunities to pause, to apologize, to negotiate, to find another way forward. The ritual matters because the ritual is designed to interrupt impulse. It is designed to create space between injury and retaliation. It is designed, however imperfectly, to prevent escalation.
That is true in almost every conflict that has repeated chances to prevent irreversible harm. Conflict is inevitable. Hurt is inevitable. But what matters is what happens next. Do we escalate? Do we entrench? Or do we create enough space to interrupt the cycle before pride, fear, and grievance take over?
Here are the lyrics… (we all know what happened!)
Ten Duel Commandments
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
It’s the ten duel commandments
It’s the ten duel commandments
Number one!
The challenge: demand satisfaction
If they apologize, no need for further action
Number two!
If they don’t, grab a friend, that’s your second
Your Lieutenant, when there’s reckoning to be reckoned
Number three!
Have your seconds meet face to face
Negotiate a peace
Or negotiate a time and place
This is commonplace, specially ‘tween recruits
Most disputes die, and no one shoots
Number four!
If they don’t reach a peace, that’s alright
Time to get some pistols and a doctor on site
You pay him in advance, you treat him with civility
You have him turn around, so he can have deniability
Five!
Duel before the sun is in the sky
Pick a place to die where it’s high and dry
Number six!
Leave a note for your next of kin
Tell ’em where you been
Pray that Hell or Heaven lets you in
Seven!
Confess your sins
Ready for the moment of adrenaline
When you finally face your opponent
Number eight!
Your last chance to negotiate
Send in your seconds
See if they can set the record straight
Alexander
Aaron Burr, sir
Can we agree that duels are dumb and immature?
Sure
But your man has to answer for his words, Burr
With his life?
We both know that’s absurd, sir
Hang on, how many men died because Lee was inexperienced and ruinous?
Okay, so we’re doing this
Number nine!
Look him in the eye, aim no higher
Summon all the courage you require
Then count
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine
Number (Ten paces!) Fire!