Thomas Jefferson
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Thomas Jefferson |
| Occupation: | |
| Relationships: | |
| Fandom: | Hamilton |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
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Thomas Jefferson was a founding father of the United States and is an antagonistic character in Hamilton: An American Musical.
Fandom
Common Tropes, Fanon & Themes
Thomas Jefferson, (mostly referred to by his last name in the fandom and in fanfiction where he is a side character) is commonly seen as the antagonist in fanfiction or fanmade animatics.
One of the many popular tropes includes his addiction of macaroni n’ cheese (a reference to how he brought the cheesy pasta from France, and greatly enjoyed it...). You can’t get very far in a story with him without reading something about mac n’ cheese.
Jefferson also seems to greatly favor the color magenta. This is due to the fact that his iconic costumes in the musical, Hamilton, the eye-catching outfit is a bright, flamboyant magenta. This is an aspect about Jefferson that Alexander Hamilton insults or makes fun of in fanmade works.
Despite his rough edges in history, he is a very adored and loved character in the fandom. You can find a lot of works about him on ao3, and Wattpad.
A common theme of Thomas Jefferson in fanfiction is that he is either bisexual, or homosexual. And it’s almost always guaranteed he has a religious, homophobic family. In works with the tag, “Thomas Jefferson/Alexander Hamilton”, there is usually a scene where Hamilton gets angry or upset with how Jefferson is treated by his parents. That is another common trope...
Thomas Jefferson and James Madison are always depicted as close friends, ad they were friends in history. You can find stories about them being shipped on Ao3 or Wattpad. Their ship name is “JeffMads”, and you can almost guarantee it’s a Friends to Lovers arch.
Martha Wayles, his historical wife is often shown as an ex-girlfriend, ex-wife, close friend, or family friend. She is rarely shown as Jefferson’s partner.
In fanfiction where he is not a main character, he is shown as a rude, arrogant bully towards Alexander Hamilton, and other main characters. It is very rare that his character is shown in a good light when he is not a main character in the fanmade story.
Controversy
Thomas Jefferson is either adored or hated by fans that are a part of the Hamilton fandom. He is shown as a flamboyant, sarcastic, and witty antagonist in the musical, making him a likeable character.
But the controversy starts when people actually start doing their history lessons. People starting seperating Fanon Jefferson from Canon Jefferson when it was shown that he was not only a slave owner, but he had also fathered multiple of his slave, Sally Hemmings’ children.
In fanfiction, this detail is almost always cut out, but no one has really tried to defend this act. The fandom doesn’t ignore this fact, since it’s so well known. They just choose not to share the awful history in their idealistic fanfiction.
Example Fanworks
Fanart
Archives & Fannish Links
- Thomas Jefferson tag on AO3
Resources
- Thomas Jefferson on Hamilton Wikia
- Thomas Jefferson on Wikipedia