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John Adams

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“I am determined to control events, not be controlled by them.” John Adams was a man of strength, will power, subtlety, and intelligence. The quote helped show these major characteristics, the characteristics of a hero. These characteristics allowed him to achieve what he did, which was help the Revolution and settle any major disputes during his presidency. The ways he showed he was a hero through these terribly tough times was by having strength, hope, and discipline on his side. What is strength? It could be determined by how physically strong someone is, but the way John Adams displayed it was in an entirely different category. His strength was that of the heart and mind. His strength of the heart was exemplified when he was able to leave his family, even though it pained him to no end. His strength of the mind, by being able to persevere throughout the entire revolution, even though he might have been able to quit and give up, go back to his simple life as a lawyer and farmer. He, single handedly, defined the word strength into the word we know it today. Where does a man go when he has little left? He turns to where he puts his hope into. John Adams showed exactly where he had his hope, in the Colonies and in the idea of freedom. His hope in the Colonies helped him keep his head high when everything seemed lost. The idea of freedom is such an abstract idea, but what Adams envisioned was exactly what the Colonies needed. With his hope in the places necessary, he was able to keep the revolution alive. The disciplining of one’s mind and tongue is a task that takes an enormous amount of effort. Adams was able to perform this task rather quickly, and when the situation deemed it necessary. The instances in which he used this skill were when he mended the traumatic damage between the Colonies and England, and making peace with France during the quasi war. The discipline shown during the peace making between England and the Colonies was when he helped make both parties content with what had happened during the aftermath. During the end of the quasi war with France by making sure the skirmish did not escalate to an all out war. Of course there are numerous attributes that made John Adams the hero we know today. However, the attributes, or characteristics, highlighted in this paper truly showed how great he was; a strong, hopeful, disciplined man made hero. But, the question must be raised; how could we have obtained independence without this keen mind?

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