LAD #7: Washington's Farewell Address

In his farewell address, Washington thanks the American people for supporting him and their country with zeal. However, he also points out some political freedoms, if left unchecked, could destroy the political unity of the nation, or in a greater sense, dismantle the foundation of the nation. Washington reminds the American people that they are a part of one nation, and while there are some varying perspectives and beliefs between the members of different regions (Northern, Southern, Atlantic, Western regions), the people should remind themselves that they are held together by their common political beliefs, their patriotism, and their economic interdependence. Washington furthers enforces political unity by reminding the colonists of the evils of sectionalism, making it known that no state government should ever attempt to secede from the union. Aside from the necessity of maintaing political unity,Washington points out other dangers, such as political problems that are created by an increasingly large amount of political factions. Political factions represent a wide spectrum of beliefs that deviate from common convictions of the people. Washington provides examples of how this deviation can be a problem by warning the American people that political factions obstruct the development of laws and weaken the power of the constitutional branches. Washington asks the American people to prevent these problems from ever occuring. In order to achieve this, Washing states that the people should lead a religious and moral lifestyle. Not only would lead to both private and public happiness, but it would also allow America's democratic government to flourish.

Republican Motherhood Blog

1. What role did the Revolutionary War play in the transformation of housewifery to Republican Motherhood?

A. The Revolutionary War was the fundamental cause of women's shift from housewifery to Republican Motherhood. Because men were out fighting in the American Revolution, women were left to maintain the home and educate the future generation of Americans. With time, this future generation would grow into respectable young men, who believed that their mothers were the "nurse and the educator" of "...future man and [his] undying spirit..."  for democracy and republicanism. (Document A). As a result, women's role in society became redefined because they were now expected to teach their to express patriotism and to be proud of their country.

2. What were the consequences of Republican Motherhood on women?

A. The consequences of Republican Motherhood proved to be beneficial for women. For examle, they received a proper education and were allowed them to gain some property rights over her husband's land(Document B). Men also now viewed women as a patriot and believe that she "best serves her country by training up good citizens, just, humane, and enlightened legislatures" (Document A). In a broader sense, woman were now viewed as an influence on society as a whole, as women possessed the power to change society as they saw fit (Document D).

3. What is the significance of the ideology of Republican Motherhood as a stage in the process of women's socialization?

A. The ideology of republican motherhood planted the seeds for greater socialization for women. As previously stated, "...the influence of woman [was no longer] limited to the domestic circle. Society is her empire, which she governs at will...." (Document D). When women recognized their increase of power, they gained the confidence to express their beliefs on other aspects of life. For example, women began to group together, "...asserting the importance and the honour of their sex" (Document C). While women were not initially successful in drawing support for their cause, they educated their children to support their beliefs, eventually leading to greater social equality for women.

 

1. Describe the setting.

A. The setting is a room with curtains and a couch. In the room is a mother and her two children, looking content with their surroundings.

2. Who serves at the center of the portrait and why? How does the woman look? How is she "republican" rather than aristocratic?

A. Mary Tilghman, the mother of the two children, serves at the center of the portrait. The mother serves at the center of the portrait to suggest that women are gaining prominance and importance in family matters. This depiction does not appear to be aristocratic, but rather "republican", as the mother is dressed in common clothing and is holding her children close to her. The children's closeness to their mother and expressions of happiness suggest that bonds between mother and child were built by republican motherhood. The children also wear common clothing of the time, further supporting that this is not an aristocratic depiction.

3. What values do her sons exhibit?

A. Her sons exhibit feelings of respect and genuine love for their mother. This is shown by their closeness to their mother. This also emphasizes that the mother played a signifcicant role in her children's upbringing during the time. As a result of their upbringing, her children will retain these values, and become a paragon of the American gentleman.

4. Is there a significance to the position of Mrs. Tilgham's arm?

A. The significance of Mrs. Tilgham's arm is that it is on her younger child. This displays the closeness between mother and child which results from republican motherhood. Mrs. Tilgham's arm also symbolizes that the mother of this era will protect her child from the debauched and amoral evils of society, which will hopefully allow them to grow up to become honest and respectable men.

LAD #6: Washington's Proclamation of Neutrality

The Proclamation of Neutrality in 1793 states that the United States will remain neutral during the war taking place between European powers (Austria, Prussia, Sardinia, Great Britain, the United Netherlands, and France). Washington also advices the American citizens to not get themselves involved in the war, because this would violate the laws of the nation. Should any American citizen go against Washington's proclamation of neutrality, the punishment would be equivalent to breaking the law and the perpetrator would face prosecution.

LAD #5: Federalist #10

1. Factions are difficult to eliminate because they can only be eliminated by either removing its causes or controlling the effects of the factions, thereby forcing all citizens to adopt the same opinions, passions, and interests. Obviously, neither of these solutions are possible. To take away the causes of these factions is an attack on the liberties of man. This goes against the basis of the American Revolution and the fundamental ideology of the nation, which is all men deserve certain unalienable rights and liberties. The later is impossible, because a man is shaped by his personal experiences as well as his own opinions and ideology. These men have a right to express their beliefs, hence controlling their beliefs is also an attack on their liberties.

2. While factions cannot be removed, they can be controlled through the institution of a republic. If the government is a pure democracy, then it would fail because the people would make their own factions to represent their own beliefs. This would lead to a wide spectrum of factions, and with each representing inconsequential beliefs, the government would be too divided to accomplish anything. however, when the government is in the form of a republic, these factions can elect an indivudal that represents their beliefs into a government position. In short, a pure democracy has the people represent their own beliefs, while a republic allows the people to elect a representative.

Blog #4 - Revolution Article

1. By todays standards, the American Revolution was no a horrendous war. This is based on he belief that not many men died, few civilians were affected by hostilities, and that there was not widespread suffering amongst either side. However, This is not the case as 30,000 out of the American population of 2.5 million died because of the war. In ratio to todays population, that would be roughly 3 million American casualties.


2. Because the artillerymen in the Revolutionary War did not possess advanced technology, the armies fought at close range and often engaged in hand-to-hand combat. In some instances the armies fouht in distances no greater than home plate to second plate on a baseball field.

3. Almost half of the prisoners captured in the American Revolution were massacred by their captors. This killing of prisones spurred from loyalists killing seventy five percent of the rebels who laid down their arms in what is now known as the Waxhaws Massacre. With this fresh in the mind of the Continental Army several loyalists that were captured were slaughtered in an enactment of revenge. Prisoners who made it past these slaughterings would later die of being depraved of necessities, as their clothing and commodities were taken off of their bodies and given to the troops.

4. There was an unusually high number of civilian casualties during the American Revolution. Most of these civilians died from diseases that were unkowingly spread bysoldiers on both sides. Civilians also died in frontier Indian attacks, partisan warfare, and battles for cities.

5. Depictions of the American Revolution are misleading distort the views of events. This is because painters of the American Revolution paintings tried to glorify their subjects, hence some of the more disturbing images of the war were not well depicted during this era of history. However, in the Civil War, there are gruesome depictions of battle that does not parallel American Revolution art. For example, Civil War art often shows depictions of mangled corpses and injured soldiers.

Louisianna Purchase Question

Hey Mr DeCarlo,

In case I forget to ask you on Monday and you happen to see this... If France lost almost all of their land in the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War, how did they have claim over Louisiana territory until the nineteenth century.

Thanks,
Mike Gorczyca

LAD #3: The Declaration of Independence

1.  The Declaration of Independence calls for the creation of a government that is built on democratic principles. For example, it states that man is given certain unalienable rights, such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Declaration of Independence also states that the government’s power should be in the hands of the people. This leads to the declarations next belief (inspired by John Locke’s Two Treatise of Government) that should the government not support these unalienable rights, than the people have a right to abolish their government and institute a new one.

2. The colonists wrote the Declaration of Independence as they felt that their writes had been violated by Britain and King George III. Some of the grievances expressed were:

• King George III to allow for the passing of laws that were for public good.
• King George III forbade his governors to pass laws that were for public good.
• Has dissolved representative houses regularly, going against the rights of the people.
• King George III has made judges dependent on him (their tenure and payments are controlled by the king) so they will vote in favor of him.
• King George III quartered large bodies of armed troops among the colonists and gives these troops extraterritoriality.
• King George III has forced the colonists to trade only with Britain through salutary neglect.
• King George III posed heavy taxes on the colonists without their consent.
• King George III took away colonial charters and changed colonial government laws.
• King George III abdicated colonial government.

3. King George III would not compromise with the colonists and placed heavy burdens upon them. With their protests being left unheard, the colonists decided to formally issue the Declaration of Independence, which stated that they wanted to abolish Britain’s political control over America. While the colonists wanted independence, King George III refused to compromise (as he had with previous grievances) and decided to go to war. As a result of the American Revolution, the colonies were victorious and gained what they desired, the ability to become free and independent states.

LAD #2: John Peter Zenger

1.     John Peter Zenger was a German immigrant who arrived in New York from Germany in 1710. After serving his apprenticeship Zenger became the publisher of a New York newspaper, the New York Weekly Journal. In 1733, Zenger criticized New York Governor William Cosby after he prosecuted his fellow interim Governor Rip Van Dam and Chief Justice Lewis Morris. As a result of this he was arrested in 1734 for “seditious label” and was brought to trial in 1735.

2.     The charges brought before Zenger are controversial as Cosby displayed capricious and irrational behavior in his prosecution against Van Dam and Morris. This is because Cosby believed that these men were not paying him enough for his job. Hamilton later created further controversy in his defense by arguing that the prosecution’s evidence excluded the truth and that although Zenger’s stories were offensive, they cannot be considered a libel unless proven false. With this argument Zenger was declared not guilty.

3.     One such influence the trial had on governmental tradition was that it assured freedom of the press in America. This later evolved into the first amendment, which was enacted in 1791. In addition to this it set a precedent to protect to protect a citizen against judicial tyranny, or decisions made by officials unlawfully.

4.     The lasting significance of this trial was the recognition of freedom of the press. As exemplified today, several stories are published which are controversial and offensive to a subset of people. However, there is no action against the writers, as they have a different perspective on the story published. Also, the court system must now recognize that unless information is falsified and biased, no legal action can be taken.

LAD #1: The Mayflower Compact and The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

1.     One major concept that is included is that the colonists will work together to create a “civil Body Politick”. To do this, the colonists who were a part of the Mayflower Compact vowed to create just laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and officers to make sure the people abide by the created rules and regulations. The Mayflower Compact also focuses on God and colonists’ country, with the writers remarking that journey to the new world was a task undertaken for Him and in honor of the king and their country. Lastly, a concept of the Mayflower Compact is religion, as the journey to the New World was also completed to create a haven in the New World and allow their faith (Christianity) to flourish.

2.     The Mayflower Compact reflects to both through the mentioning of God and their home country. The Mayflower Compact attaches to the “Old” world as it is made to ensure the colonists keep their loyalty to the home country. This is exemplified by the colonists agreed that they are developing this colony for the king. The Mayflower Compact also attaches itself to the “New World”. The colonists believe that by coming to America they are advancing Christian faith and believe that now in America they have a covenant with him to create society as He would have desired.

3.     One such difference between the two is that the writers of the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut do not swear its loyalty to the king of England. Instead, the writers state that their colony is entirely devoted to God and that their survival and laws to their colony were made solely for Him. The writers of the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut also include a constitution into their orders. This is because the colonists of Connecticut wanted to create a government and code of law before opening their colony. The Mayflower Compact, on the other hand, simply states that the colonists have an agreement with one another to eventually create a government.

4.     The colonists of Connecticut were prompted to take this approach as they had already established a society (which was not an official colony at the time), into the New World. When becoming a colony, a large amount of Puritans migrated to Connecticut. As a result, it was announced that Connecticut would establish a written constitution to make the rules and regulations of the government known. The constitution was based off of the democratic ideals of previous colonies, so that the laws would already be familiar to others and that those in a position of power would be chosen by the people.

5.     The Fundamental Orders reflects this fear by creating several laws on voting, terms in office, a system of checks and balances within the government. For example, only qualified freemen were allowed to vote in elections. Those elected could not remain in power for long. This is shown by the magistrates and governors only having one year terms. But, should they abuse this power, the General Court could be called upon and can remove those in power from office.

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