*Students will answer questions from Chapter 14 and 15 Module 3 in their textbook. I ha e !i en possible answers to the "hapter questions.

Chapter 14 and 15 Module 3 & 4

Chapter 14 3. What did the writers of the Declaration of Independence mean by the statement we hold these truths to be self e!ident" that all men are created e#ual$% The purpose of writing the Declaration of Independence was to show England and the rest of the world the reasons why America wanted to break away from England. We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created e!ual" is one of the best#known phrases around the world that identifies the American culture. $eace is a complicated thing something we all strive for. The year %&&' is a time of slavery and labor there was no freedom or e!uality. This statement is very interesting and it needs to be looked at in conte(t. Thomas )efferson was the author of the Declaration of Independence. *e wrote it to sever ties with +reat ,ritain. -ore importantly it helped give the ../. foreign aid from 0rance and encouraged American patriots to fight for the cause of liberty. The language of the Declaration was written by Thomas )efferson who is not saying that everyone is e!ual what is saying is no one man like 1ing +eorge III should be able to infringe upon those 2certain unalienable 3ights2 attached to that freedom and independence4 namely the rights to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In the new world a person could raise their status by owning land and slaves. I think slavery in ,ritish 5orth America was due to the superior dominant belief in the superiority of 6hristian Europeans over those of other cultures and faiths. The second was the need for a cheap large and easily replaceable labor force to tend to labor intensive crops that grew in the south#east region of 5orth America. $eople in 5orth America did not believe African slaves were there e!uals and began treating them in barbaric cruel ways. This is shown in the book Americans7 5otwithstanding you have and do you continue to treat us crueler than any heather nation ever did a people it had sub8ected to the same condition that you have us." This sentence shows that the white men did not treat the slaves well. /lavery steals and denies the right for the person to own anything to him or herself. The Deceleration is a great document that 8ustifies the American 3evolution to the world but I do not believe that it was declaring the slaves free. The people of the colonies were angry with the /ugar Act /tamp Act Townshend Acts Tea Act 9uartering Act and Intolerable Acts the colonists began to be angry and view themselves separate from ,ritain. The founding fathers were actually mostly slave owners. I think if the Declaration had tried to free the slaves it would never have taken hold because people would have re8ected it. The need for slaves was too great. We gained our independence from the mother country and the Declaration was written in response to that. The Declaration was produced to declare our independence from the 1ing of England. The use of phrase all men are created e!ual was probably not a deliberate attempt to make a statement about women. It was 8ust that women were beyond consideration as worthy of

the inclusion. They were politically invisible." Declaring the e!uality of all men did not however prevent the .nited /tates from continuing the widespread practice of slavery. $eople during this time did not see African Americans as e!uals because they were not 6hristian. The !uestion is simply this4 6an a negro whose ancestors were imported into this country and sold as slaves become a member of the political community formed and brought into e(istence by the 6onstitution of the .nited /tates and as such become entitled the rights and privileges and immunities guaranteed by that instrument to the citi:ens;" /lavery take hold in ,ritish 5orth America mainly due to the belief that the slaves were a lesser being and the superiority of Europeans over less civili:ed people began a con!uest. America was a growing land and we needed more hands to drive the labor force for crops like sugar cotton tobacco and rice. .sing a slave population to grow these crops had economic and social advantages for slave owners. In addition to being a self#replenishing work force slave owners also en8oyed increased profit margins. 5o other place had or treated slaved like that of America. Americans slaves were abused for labor purposes. $lus the concept of Durante vita which means servitude for life took place. The slaves were not acknowledged as part of the people nor were they intended to be included. /lavery is a sad part of our history and it would not stop until the years of <incoln. =ur country was founded on hate and it really took our country a long time to grasp the notion of e!uality and e(tend that to all members of the human race.

&ited sources http'((en.wi)ipedia.or*(wi)i(+ll,men,are,created,e#ual &ource 1- p* 15./101 &ource 11 p* 150/152 http4>>www.ushistory.org>declaration>document>inde(.htm

4. 3istorian 4ohn 3a5elton concluded in a 1.10 study of the Declaration of Independence that the Declaration chan*ed war of principle/a defensi!e war" a war for the redress of wron*s/ into a war for the establishment of a separate *o!ernment% Is this conclusion !alid$ The revolution was a change in the attitudes and policies of the Americans who saw themselves as independent from the mother country. ,ritain practiced about a hundred years of neglecting the colonists and ignoring their voice>vote. The policies changed which led to ta(ation and other ta( against the colonists which led to the defensive war. In addition the king and his government imposed ta(es upon the colonists without their consent. Their income was ta(ed to finance e(pensive and growing pro8ects that the king wanted and that he thought was good for the people whether the people themselves wanted them or not." The colonists got angry about not being represented and were growing tired of attempting to do what the ,ritish told them. ,ritain saw the new world as a labor force created for their benefit. In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned by redress in the most humble terms. =ur repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated in8ury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant is unfit to be the ruler of the free people." The Declaration was written as a response against the 1ing and all his wrong doings in it is lists the grievances the colonies had which created a defensive war ?a war for the redress of wrongs@. The people began seeing themselves as members of the new world vs. ,ritain@s. In the very genesis of English settlement the leaders of the English colonists were liberal and even radical when they first set foot on the shores of the 5ew World. Their early migrations had in the main been caused by the political and religious conflicts of the ageA" The American Declaration changed the colonies and declared themselves free because of the wrongs of 1ing +eorge. The ,ritish did not work the land or build towns or harvest the food. The labor was done by the colonists. The !uestion was not whether by a declaration of Independence we should make ourselves what we are not but whether we should declare a fact which already e(ists." The colonists saw they had the strength to survive without ,ritain and so with new ideas and philosophies they created a separate government. Every turn the ,ritish 6rown had concentrated political power and decision#making in its own hands leaving the American colonists with little ability to manage their own affairs through local and state governments. <aws and rules were imposed without the consent of the governedB local laws and procedures meant to limit abusive or arbitrary government were abrogated or ignored." The colonists were not sub8ects of the crown and following different influences such as philosophers they began to want their own liberty and representation from a country that was not hundreds of miles away.

5ever before had a people made clear that self#government meant not only the right of electing those who would hold political office and pass the laws of the land but also meant that each human being had the right to be self#governing over his own life. Indeed in those inspiring words in the Declaration the 0ounding 0athers were insisting that each man should be considered as owning himself and not be viewed as the property of the state to be manipulated by either king or $arliament." We are who we are today because of the establishment of the Declaration and how defending our rights turned into us creating a separate government. The colonists tried many times but the government believed they were represented virtually. If ,ritain had not practiced salutary neglect or tried listening to the colonists then we may still be a part of the ,ritish empire today. /ITED /==.36E/4 %. %. 6hanging Interpretations pg %CD#%CE D. D. 6hanging Interpretations pg %FG#%CH 3. E. http4>>books.google.com>books; idI9Jc/AAAA-AA)KpgI$ADDHKlpgI$ADDHKd!ItheLDeclarationLchangedLwa rLofLprinciple#aLdefensiveLwar LaLwarLforLtheLredressLofLwrongs# LintoLaLwarLforLtheLestablishmentLofLaLseparateLgovernmentKsourceIblKotsIp ypFD+kD8*KsigI'9*-0(Hc.pcw(geE)<A8mEd/hDAKhlIenKeiI03(c/!/-<o1 csg$a#I+H6gKsaIMKoiIbookNresultKctIresultKresnumI% 4. F. http4>>ritter.tea.state.t(.us>ssc>primaryNresources>pdf>te(as>Te(asNDeclarationNofNInd ependence.pdf C. C. http4>>www.aier.org>research>commentaries>%'GH#a#declaration#of#independence# from#big#government

Chapter 14

5. &amuel 6liot Morison asserted if the +merican 7e!olution had produced nothin* but the Declaration of Independence" it would ha!e been worthwhile.% Defend this comment. The American 3evolution was very important in our history. We were able to declare our independence from 1ing +eorge because of this document. The Declaration would have been worthwhile because of what it stood forB it@s still one of our most cherished symbols of life liberty and above all freedom7 The people demanded 8ustice and separation from their mother country because of the tyranny that had been taking place. The political philosophy of the Declaration was not newB its ideals of individual liberty had already been e(pressed by )ohn <ocke and the 6ontinental philosophers. What )efferson did was to summari:e this philosophy in 2self#evident truths2 and set forth a list of grievances against the 1ing in order to 8ustify before the world the breaking of ties between the colonies and the mother country. =ne charge that )efferson had included but 6ongress removed was that the king had 2waged cruel war against human nature2 by introducing slavery and allowing the slave trade into the American colonies. A few delegates were unwilling to acknowledge that slavery violated the 2most sacred rights of life and liberty 2 and the passage was dropped for the sake of unanimity. Thus was foreshadowed the central debate of the American 6ivil War which Abraham <incoln saw as a test to determine whether a nation 2conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created e!ual2 could long endure." The Declaration established the reasons why the colonies wanted to separate from the mother country and in doing so entitled them to dissolve their political ties to ,ritain. The document helped those that were loyal to ,ritain break away and identify themselves as Americans. Thomas )efferson wrote that parliament never really had sovereignty over the colonies and that +eorge III had persistently violated the compact between himself as governor and the Americans as the governed." These ideas were a revolutionary way of thinking which changed American perspective. The concepts presented were new and more revolutionary then any philosophy before. The Declaration helped create an energy that lifted the men@s hearts and

spirits toward freedom and 8ustice. A lot of people believe the Declaration is the revolution in writing form. If the American 3evolution had produced nothing but the Declaration of Independence it would have been worthwhile. The bill of wrongs against 1ing +eorge III and parliament naturally is e(aggerated. 0acts will not sustain many of the alleged in8uries and usurpations. ,ut the beauty and cogency of the preamble reaching back to the remotest anti!uity and forward to an indefinite future have lifted the hearts of millions of men and will continue to do so." The words of the Declaration created a new way of thinking that would follow us up until today. During the civil rights movements people were able to look back at the Declaration and use it as a basis for 8ustice and e!uality for all races and genders. ,efore the Declaration many people were scared of the crown and that there disloyalty would be punished. ,ut when the Declaration came out the words and new ideas inspired the nation to become a new nation. As the last line of The Declaration of Independence affirms signing your name to the document meant that you literally pledged your life your fortune and your sacred honor to the cause of freedom. 6onse!uently several of the heroes who signed The Declaration of Independence paid a heavy price for doing so." Even if we did not have the war and the Declaration was the only thing created during this time it would still be enough to inspire the change that came about in the colonists. The Declaration makes us e!uals and gave us the right to establish the new form of Democracy which had never been tried before. America is the way it is because of our constitution. The Declaration was important in establishing independence and separation because it was essentially an attempt to prove that rebellion was not the proper word for what they were doing." The people were angered by 1ing +eorge and they wanted representation. 3ebellion against an established authority is always a serious matter." The writers of the Declaration wanted to 8ustify themselves as a new nation as well as establish a new government that would be founded on the politics philosophies and writings of others that would consider all men e!ual. The famous words our founding fathers wrote became a constant challenge and reminder of who we are as a nation and what it right. /ITED /==.36E/4 1. %. http4>>www.essortment.com>all>americandeclaraNrotg.htm D. D. 6hanging Interpretations pg %'H E. E. 6hanging Interpretations pg %CG F. F. 6hanging Interpretations pg %CO C. C. 6hanging Interpretations pg %C& 6. '. http4>>www.ushistory.org>declaration>document>inde(.htm 7. &. http4>>www.lehighvalleylive.com>entertainment>inde(.ssf;>base>living# H>%DF''OHEDED'CGFH.(mlKcollIE

Chapter 15 1. 68plain the process that led to the abandonment of the +rticles of confederation and the adoption of the constitution. 9y what authority did the con!ention draft and present to the +merican states a new constitution$ The Declaration was written against 1ing +eorge. When ,ritain read the document they laughed. The articles of confederation were a government that tried to bring everyone together. Article II says each state keeps its power and freedom. Article III says each state will enter into a friendship. The main idea was that the document had to bring together the %E colonies different opinions and make one government. The articles of confederation were a failure. We have people that want states rights who don@t want federal government involvement because they feared that a person would gain too much power such as the 1ing. The articles were written in %&&% and ratified in %&O%. This form of government did not really workB it was inade!uate and could not follow through on laws. This can be seen by The confederation has been deservedly reprobated for its inadequacy to promote the public welfare. The confederacy did not work and needed to be changed. The Articles had several things wrong with them. Some are apparent, and some took a while. The first thing that strikes you when you first read the Articles was the specific number, nine, mentioned in several places, as a minimum required to agree to things like the declaration of war or the admission of new states. As soon as one new state were added, that nine would no longer be the two!thirds it was intended to be, and to correct each instance would require the assent of all "#, "$, or however number of states. That is another apparent problem ! the requirement that all changes to the Articles must be unanimous. Several attempts to change the Articles prior to the adoption of the %onstitution had been held up by one state&s refusal to ratify. The 'nited States had no independent power of ta(ation, relying on the good faith of the states to pay bills sent to them for the maintenance of the national treasury. )n several instances, such notices were ignored, and since the national government had no power of enforcement, there was little that could be done about the defaults. The new nation was unable to repel the

encroachments of the *ritish on the borders set by the Treaty of +aris, because the states would not pay the requested ta(es. The Spanish similarly encroached unfettered on the southern borders of the 'nited States. The 'nited States also had no power to regulate commerce between and among the states, leading to bitter tariff wars between them. This type of in!fighting did not help alleviate the economic depression that set in after the war ended. In )anuary %&O' Jirginia called for a meeting of the states at Annapolis to discuss the modification of the Articles. =nly five states sent delegates. Disappointed those who did assemble called for another meeting the following -ay. In the meantime a popular uprising in -assachusetts led by bankrupt farmer Daniel /hays had started and the .nited /tates found it had little power to put down the uprising. 0or si( months /hays and his rebels terrori:ed the -assachusetts country side. *is forces were finally broken up when they marched on a federal weapons depot. The slow reaction of ../. forces led to 6ongressPs endorsement of the -ay convention suggested earlier. The result of that convention was the ../. 6onstitution. The constitution was the work of brilliant elite minds and it was not voted upon because most people would have ob8ected to the 6onstitution if they had been allowed. 3atification as achieved because the elite had skills and political influence disproportionate to its members." The constitution was a work created by brilliant minds and the influence of +od. The whole people did not create the constitution but the elected delegates did meet to ratify and perfect the document into what it is today. The leaders represented there people and gave the colonists a voice. In the beginning the constitution was started by a small group and it grew into becoming the e(ample for the comple(ity of the American system. The constitution was adopted in a society which was fundamentally democraticB not undemocraticB and it was adopted by people who were primarily middle#class property owners especially farmers who owned realty not 8ust by the owners of personality." The great compromise was a great moment in our history by 3obert /herman from 6onnecticut. *e suggested the idea for a two#house government where every state would have D representatives and there would be three branches. This would be the government we see today.

/ITED /==.36E/4 O. %. 6hanging Interpretations pg %&' G. D. 6hanging Interpretations pg %&C %H. E. 6hanging Interpretations pg %&F %%. F. 6hanging Interpretations pg %&% %D. C. 6hanging Interpretations pg %'& 13. '. http4>>www.usconstitution.net>consttopNarti.html

14.

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http4>>findarticles.com>p>articles>miNm%%ED>isNn&NvFD>aiNGDF%O&H>

:. ;atric) 3enry described the constitution as a counter re!olution. What mi*ht this ha!e meant$ The constitution did not have the support of a lot of colonistsB many still were loyal to the mother country. The 6onstitution represented a counter#revolution against its central principles because it was a disparate coalition of competing view#points and conflicting interestsB it met initially with a chilly reception. -embers from Jirginia along with representatives of 5ew Qork spoke against it." There were many revolutions and world changes before the American 3evolution such as the 0rench 3evolution. =ne of the differences between the 0rench 3evolution and the American 3evolution was that while the former 3evolution was seeking to restructure the culture social order and the sense of what it meant to be 0rench the American 3evolution was a revolution that was seeking to preserve the traditional rights and relationship of the colonialists to England. The 0rench 3evolution sought to remake the meaning of 0rance and all things 0rench while the American 3evolution sought to retain the meaning of what it meant to be a colonialist. *enry proposed to the colony@s legislature through action in the Jirginia *ouse of ,urgess a list of seven resolutions outlining the view of many colonialists /ummari:ing these we see the following %. # D.R The colonists possess all the rights of Englishmen. E.R The principle of colonial self#ta(ation as essential to the ,ritish constitution. F.R The Jirginia colony had the right in its internal matters to be governed solely by laws passed by its own legislature and approved by its royal of governor. C.R A repeating of SE phrased in a more confrontation fashion. '.R The colonies are not responsible to obey laws that are passed by alien $arliaments. The /tamp act was such a law. &.R Anybody who disagrees with these basics is a traitor to Jirginia. 5ote the theme here is what I mentioned earlier. The ma8or complaint is that the $arliament was not a $arliament that had standing in the colonies. The colonies were not under the $arliament but were under the 6rown. )ust as the legislature of Te(as today can@t ta( people in -ichigan so the $arliament couldn@t ta( the colonies. The American 3evolution was a conservative counter revolution. This stands in contrast to the 0rench revolution. The colonists were fighting for the status !uo. The 0rench desired to remake the world. /o the constitution established the rights of Americans to as the colonists vs. an attempt to reinvent society. They were simply trying to secure their rights as established as ,ritish citi:ens. Those rights were being taken away without representation within the ,ritish parliament. At the other end of the 3evolutionary coalition wore the American nationalists # men such as

,en8amin 0ranklin +eorge Washington 3obert -orris Ale(ander *amilton and )ames -adison. 3epresenting A powerful array of mercantile creditor and landed interests the nationalists went along with independence but opposed the 3evolutionPs libertarian thrust. They sought a strong and effective American central government which would reproduce the hierarchical features of the eighteenth century ,ritish /tate only without the ,ritish." Therefore the American 3evolution and the American constitution were to establish those rights. We were not trying to remake the world. /ources http4>>www.la#articles.org.uk>0<#C#F#E.pdf /ource D and E /ource F http4>>www.independent.org>newsroom>article.asp;idI%FHH

:. Was the constitution intended to establish democracy or to retain aristocratic rule$ ;resent ar*uments in support of both possibilities. 5othing like our Declaration had ever been seen before. We lived in a time of 1ing and !ueens and the founding fathers saw what power did to leaders and they decided they wanted a new government and way of life for the people and by the people. .nlike ,ritain the 5ew world wanted all citi:ens to be able to vote and discuss issues. This was an advanced form of government because of how most governments at the time were ruled by monarchs or small groups of people. The idea of giving people the power to make important decisions is an important democratic principle. The American constitution establishes that all men are created e!ualB therefore men could not claim the aristocracyPs rights above the people for all men are created e!ual. /o by establishing a democracy we inverted the old aristocratic power pyramid where the people retained the most honored social position and the political leaders would descend to the rank of public servant.As the story goes European immigrants coloni:ed the 5ew World in order to escape =ld World persecution T+austad and /chmidt DHHDR. <ife was tough in the 5ew WorldB there was deprivation danger illness and insecurity. *owever colonists stuck out the difficulties in eager pursuit of the 5ew World@s boundless prospects T$hillips DHHDR." The 0ounding 0athers found many things such as philosophical works as inspiring sources to influence and create there new government. Despite ideological differences colonists remained content with European#based aristocratic rule for some time. It was not until colonists grew

wealthy and privileged that they grumbled for change. /ince it is an empirical fact that all humans are biologically similar the colonists rebutted the king@s claim to divine fabrication by asserting the e!uality of all humankind i.e. all men are created e!ual." In the 5ew World men could claim birthright to nothing save e!uality. ,y demoting the king the colonists scorned the notion that aristocrats were somehow embodied of finer stuff than commoners T<loyd DHHDR. Indeed democracy promised to invert the old aristocratic power pyramid4 the people" would retain the most honored social position whereas political leaders would descend to the more manageable rank of public servants. 5o king could countenance such license. *owever being preoccupied with the 0rench 1ing +eorge III could spare only a token military force to !uell the rebellion T0ortescue and /hy DHH%R. After a long and weary battle the colonists managed to secure independence from England and set course for a new political hori:on." Democracy began very slowly during the establishment of the colonies when ,ritish travelers agreed on a set of laws that would govern their $lymouth colony in -assachusetts. These laws which came to be known as the -ayflower 6ompact in essence stated that the government would make 28ust laws and e!ual2 with the consent of the colonists. Democracy means rule of the people. The two most common forms of democracy are direct democracy and representative democracy. In direct democracy everyone takes part in making a decision as in a town meeting or a referendum. The specific rules may vary4 perhaps everyone must agree perhaps there must be consensusB perhaps a mere ma8ority is re!uired to make a decision. The other better known form of democracy is a representative democracy. $eople elect representative to make decisions or laws." The causes of the American 3evolution were that the colonists wanted and believed they had the right to self#government. The evidence is overwhelming that the men who sat in the convention had no faith in the wisdom or political capacity of the people. Their aim and purpose was not to secure a large measure of democracy but to eliminate as far as possible the direct influence of the people on legislation and public policy." The founders wanted to establish a strong fireless government that would not be weakened or overturned in a short matter of time and there success was from revolutionary and philosophy movements which inspired them. =ur founding fathers wanted and meant to create a democracy so that all men could be heard. &ited sources http4>>www.williampmeyers.org>republic.html /ource DD /ource %C %' %& /ource %%