History on Colonial and Revolutionary America Of these six topics, you will be answering THREE, one from each section, with each response consisting of two paragraphs
(Each at the very least four sentences), in which you must address both components of the question, with arguments that must be based on specific ideas and concepts from the course. There is no correct opinion on where you place your emphasis, but you must have some foundation of support from your broader discussion. If you borrow language or specific ideas from sources, be it lectures, your textbooks, or the internet, you MUST include in-text citations, otherwise, you will receive a ZERO on that answer, and badly damage your final grade.
Below are the six possible questions. Answer all three questions in one file submitted in Blackboard. Please indicate by a number which question you are answering.
Section 1: Colonial & Revolutionary America. Answer ONE
1] In what ways were Britain’s North American colonies interconnected, socially, economically and politically, to a broader Atlantic community (including Europe, Africa, the Caribbean & etc.) in the eighteenth century? Which of these connections do you feel had the most impact on Colonial American society?
2] Was the American Revolution a “revolution”? And if so, for whom? (You should define what revolution means to you, and consider if/how different peoples benefited more or less from the political changes between the 1760s and 1780’s)
Section 2: Women & Minorities in America.
Answer ONE
3] How did the roles, rights, and opportunities for women change from the colonial period to the era of Reconstruction (ending in 1877)? Which of these changes do you feel represent the most significant improvement for the lives of American women? (Bear in mind women’s suffrage is not achieved until 1920)
4] What role did minorities (you may choose among ethnic/racial, religious or other minorities) play in the shaping of American institutions and culture from the mid-18th to the mid-19th century? What was the most significant contribution of one, or all, of these groups you addressed?
Section 3: American Politics & Society. Answer ONE
5] How did Americans’ attitudes towards democracy and political participation change from the era of the Early Republic (the 1780’s) to the Jacksonian Era (1820’s-40’s)? What do you feel was the most significant/indicative example of this change?
6] Discuss three ways/instances in which conflicts between Democrats and Whigs/Republicans over the purpose, functions and/or authority of the Federal Government contributed to the Civil War. You may discuss any movement/event/law/court case & etc in the period between 1850-1861. How do the instances you discussed undermine (if at all) the argument that the Civil War was largely caused by a conflict over “states’ rights”?
