I think this is my favorite piece in the musical. It depicts John Adams struggling with despair as he sees his efforts at independence possibly coming to naught. It reflects his fervent belief in the cause and shows his indomitable spirit winning out over the doubts and fears. I find it uplifting and inspiring.

 

This scene in the musical is all the more powerful because it comes right after a touching exchange between Adams and his wife, Abigail. Early in the musical, Adams asked Abigail to have the women make saltpeter for the muskets in support of the war effort. Abigail responded that she would only if Adams sends her pins. (It is true that Adams frequently sent Abigail pins from Philadelphia, which she sold to help support the family. The women also made saltpeter and bullets for the war effort. It is unlikely that she held the saltpeter hostage to the delivery of pins, however.) In this final exchange, Adams is pouring out his despair to Abigail, who attempts to console him. During the exchange, barrels of saltpeter are delivered to Adams, which Abigail had recently sent to him. This show of support from Abigail so inspired Adams that he was able to push forward with the independence effort, despite mounting difficulties. While this exact exchange is unlikely to be true, it is true that Abigail was very supportive of Adams and frequently encouraged him to continue the fight. Nor was she shy about giving her advice on many of the issues Adams faced, advice which he frequently took. The musical does a great job of depicting the relationship between Adams and Abigail and showing how influential her support was to his ability to continue in the face of nearly insurmountable obstacles — and succeed.