Lin-Manuel Miranda's hit musical "Hamilton" captured the world's imagination and brought a new focus on the founding generation of the United States. Join fellow alumni as Professor Seth Cotlar answers all your questions about the real historical events that are represented in the acclaimed musical.

Professor Cotlar specializes in the history of the United States in the years between the American Revolution and the Civil War. He is the author of Tom Paine's America: The Rise and Fall of Trans-Atlantic Radicalism in the Early Republic. At Willamette University, Professor Cotlar has taught courses on the Early American Republic, the Abolition of Slavery, the History of American Conservatism and more.

Special thanks to Joe Gruber '09 and the Bay Area Alumni Chapter for their help in organizing this great event.

For more videos like this, visit: http://www.willamette.edu/go/wu-stream.

Timestamp:
0:00 - Intro
2:14 - Discussion Begins
8:30 - Q1: Do you believe that the way that recreations of historical events are made, in order to appeal to modern audiences, can be problematic?
12:43 - Q2: What was the wildest exaggeration you saw in the show?
16:21 - Q3: Are there any links between our modern day polarization and the polarization in the 1790s?
21:40 - Q4: Do you have any idea of how they may perceive modern day politics?
22:37 - Q5: Would you consider Hamilton to be pro immigration?
24:23 - Q6: Do you have any idea if Hamilton would be a modern day strict constitutionalist?
26:59 - Q7: What did Hamilton think of the Federal Reserve, how would he think of how it functions today?
29:15 - Q8: What do you think leads to Hamilton being held up to a high pedestal to modern day conservatives?
31:55 - Q9: Were Hamilton and President Washington close friends like shown in the play?
33:49 - Q10: If Hamilton did not go through with the duel, would he have become president?
36:42 - Q11: Do you know if Hamilton was romantically involved with Angelica?
37:05 - Q12: Why do you think we care about Hamilton’s romantic scandals?
39:00 - Q13: Was Aaron Burr just as disliked as he is portrayed as in the play?
41:36 - Q14: Were any of the secondary or tertiary historical characters slave owners?
46:06 - Q15: Were Hamilton and Laurens romantically involved?
47:12 - Q16: Due to PoC being cast as white characters, are there PoC stories that we may not know of that should have been included?
51:30 - Q17: What is the difference between seeing the show in person as opposed to on a screen?
52:30 - Q18: Was Hamilton an original thinker or did a lot of his ideas borrow from others?
54:17 - Q19: Did Lafayette have a lot of influence on Hamilton's thinking or is that overplayed in the play?
55:39 - Q20: What would these figures be like in our modern time? How would they react to things like fake news?
57:06 - Q21: Did most of their beliefs on politics stem from historical governments or did it mostly come from more modern governments?
1:00:17 - Q22: Were there any specific individuals from the revolution that should have been included in the musical?
1:04:10 - Q23: Are there any names from Hamilton that you shouldn't name your baby after?
1:05:29 - Q24: What is your favorite Hamilton song?
1:06:04 - Q25: Do you view yourself as more of a Hamilton or Burr?
1:07:17 - Q26: What was your interpretation of the last scene of Hamilton?