...What is an American? This question can have very diverse answers. Many factors go into answer of this question when asking it. For example, take the time period in which you focus the question of what an American is. After reading a letter written by a farmer named Hector St. John de Crevecouer, who was a farmer from Pennsylvania in the colonial days of early America, I got a perspective to this question in a way I never thought before. I enjoyed the examples he gave to what differentiated an American from a European. For one, in Europe you never got to look out and see a new nation or land that was uninhabited. Crevecouer explained this experienced inspired a good citizen. Another difference was Europe has and for the most part always had lords and royalty. When you looked around in Europe you saw lords who had everything and people who had nothing. In America there were no “Aristocratical families, no courts, no kings, no bishops.” In Europe there was one great one and thousands working for him. The colonies were very different from the already established European countries. The people who formed the colonies worked for themselves and were people of cultivators. They were united by their works which, to me, sounds like they took a lot of pride in. How inspiring it must feel to be a part of a royal monarchy and leave that life and move to your own new land where everyone is pretty much equal. This foundation the new colonies built bred people to respect the laws because they...
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...where disease are killing many people, along with trying to get along with the natives and to see evil looks from people that dislike you and your colony? This was the time when many colonists came to the Americas to start a new life, which is a place surrounded by mysteries. These colonists leaders made every effort to build a successful colony. The colonists left England and reached the North American shores in April of 1607. These colonists who move here eventually learn many new things such as gaining leadership skills, and to learn to fulfill expectations. One thing that the colonist learned in the early Jamestown experience was to keep away from casualty. The colonists did not know that what awaited from them was a nightmare. In the Americans textbook, chapter 1, section 3 it states that “...the colonists hoped to find gold to satisfy them.” This means that they thought they could live in wealth but the truth is that life is not that easy when you come to place full of mysteries. These colonists suffered from hunger and diseases called malaria. These colonists were not immune to the disease which caused a lot of death. However John Smith has helped the colonist by teaching them how to farm and also to get support...
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...causing the colonies to rebel. The American Revolution was inevitable because of the English lack of ability to make good managerial decisions. The English saw the colonies as a source of revenue. The English civil war in the 1640, put the English in debt and they were looking for ways to find a solution out of it. The first mistake or bad attitude came shortly after when England discovered its colonies. Trade and Mercantilism were introduced to the colonies and to the English government. The colonists believed that their power is hidden in free trade and were motivated by self-interest, which they believed would help to develop a strong economic strength. The English Government on the other hand, saw the opportunity to limit the colonies trade and shift it to go through them. Starting at 1660, the English government enforced 4 navigation acts. The 4 acts were dealing with the way to trade and were limiting the colonist to choose a carrier for the goods, transferring good from one colony to the other, receiving goods from foreign ships and lastly creating a custom system which will be regulated by England. Those acts were forced on the colonies and therefore a black market was created and this was the first act the England had put down on the colonies but maybe that was the first act that helped the colonies to realize that they are becoming an important economic power which will do much better on its own. The Stamp Act (1765) was the first act that really drove the colonies into thinking...
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...past generations and Zinn’s own ideas and knowledge. Howard Zinn was a very educated man, author of multiple books, a war veteran, professor, and activist. Before going to college, he joined the US Air Force at the age of 18 in World War II. After the war he went to Colombia University and earned his Ph.D. in history. He spent most of his time after teaching at Spelman College and Boston University for over 20 years while participating in the Civil Rights...
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...resulted with the arrival of European explorers and colonies. Was this interaction more harmful or beneficial to both Europeans and Native Americans? The cultural interactions between the Europeans and the Native Americans were ultimately destructive for the natives, but overall beneficial for the Europeans. It is clearly stated in many history books that the European diseases brought over to the Americas decimated much of the native population. This dramatic loss of population affected the natives willingness to resist European assimilation, and thus contributed to the loss of many native cultures but a blending of European and native cultures. Furthermore, the natives were often...
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...THE MISEDUCATION OF THE FILIPINO By Prof. Renato Constantino (An Essay Review) Introduction I learned and realized many things about the history and relationship between the Americans and the Filipinos upon reading this paper. It is quite intriguing what the main reasons really were for Americans in taking power over the Philippines. Was it for the good of the Filipinos or the Americans’ good? Whatever it was, they succeeded in almost every aspect of conquering the land because they knew the most effective way to subjugate the minds is by controlling their education. They created a new generation of good colonials, the “unFilipino” Filipinos. The indigenous ways of life of Filipinos had been changed to the American way of life. The Americans insisted on creating a “carbon-copy” of themselves in Filipinos through the imposition of their language in their education. I went to elementary and high school in the Philippines, and I know for a fact they used both English and Tagalog as the media of teaching. In the long run, I think this resulted in both positive and negative ways — positively, because I was uprooted to the U.S. and I was able to communicate with others, and negatively, because as I have just realized, I feel the “impediment” in my thought process because I cannot think consistently in one language. NATIONALISM IN EDUCATION To have nationalism, Filipino must understand their Filipino culture on discipline, to have a unity in pursuing well-organized educational...
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...What is Fourth of July Really About? What do people know about the, Declaration of Independence? The signing of the Declaration of Independence was always questioned. The date that is used is the Fourth of July 1776. It had 56 different signatures on it. In the passed people did not freedom or equality. Before Americans were not Americans, they were British. Before Americans governed themselves, they were governed by a distant a British King. Before America was an independent state, it was a dependent colony. Before Americans claimed equal rights, they were subject to British rights. What brought about these transformations? It was all changed by one speech in 1776, The Declaration of Independence. It was important to the colonies, because the British were not controlling them anymore. They did not have to follow the British rule. The Declaration of Independence is the most powerful document ever written, because it helped the United States and foreign countries, led to independence, and men were created equal....
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...understanding the causes, course, and consequences of the American Revolution, one cannot grasp the history of the United State. The American Revolution was the political commotion during the end of the eighteenth century. The thirteen North American colonies united to break free of the British Empire and become a new nation; The United State of America. A revolution can be defined as, the change in power or the constitution stirring in a relatively short period of time. Aristotle described revolution as complete change from one constitution to another (Sinclair 190). And this is precisely what happened two centuries ago in the United State. But the question needed to be answered is, was the American War of Independence really a war for independence or a revolution? The American War of Independence (1775–1783) was a climax in the political American Revolution rather than just a war for independence, ideologically influenced by the Enlightenment philosophers and writers of the Great Britain. Benjamin Rush remarked in 1787, "The American war is over, but this is far from being the case with the American Revolution. On the contrary, nothing but the first act of the great drama is closed." 2 This drama staged in the Pennsylvania State House in summer of 1776 remains the only most important chapter in the archives of American Revolution. Although, the political atmosphere in France during its uprising was to a certain extent dissimilar than that in America reason...
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...Ian Mack American Political Thought Professor Weiner Evidence of Liberty When analyzing the content of past documents, including the mayflower compact, the declaration of independence, and the rights of the British colonies asserted and proved you can see many consistencies. Constants of policy, including the puritan, revolutionary, and constitutional thought all establish a parallel theme. These themes relate to the assumptions about purpose and nature that show basic institutions of politics. This matter relates back to liberty, which correlates with the desires of religion and government from the puritans. In the 3 documents mentioned earlier, you can see that liberty is prevalent in all of them. The Declaration of Independence shows us this desire of sovereignty in the first sentence by stating “When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them” (151). This consistency of these symbols started with the puritans and the Mayflower compact, which sets a standard of laws being for the general good. With God as a witness to this compact, a violation is very serious, and being a symbol of deliberative self governing. “In the presence of God, and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic” (73) which is...
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...Common Sense, Thomas Paine has two main arguments: American independence, and to create a democratic republic. Paine starts off talking about government and society. According to him, society is everything constructive and good that people come together to accomplish. On the other hand, government is a group of people whose purpose is to protect us from our own weaknesses as a society. Paine says that the governments purpose is to protect life, liberty and property, and that a government should be judged by how they accomplish this goal. Paine then starts talking about a small group of people being put on an island and cut off from everything else. Over time these people will become close to each other, and law making becomes a must. He says that people are much happier if they are the ones that originally came up with the laws and that makes a lot of sense to me. I mean who wouldn’t want to make their own rules? Paine then starts to talk about and attack the British government. He says that their system is too complex and that the monarchy...
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...Major Event/Epoch in American History Time Period/Date(s) Description and Significance of the People/Event(s) to American History 1) Describe three different American Indian cultures prior to colonization. 1200-1900 C.E. Great Indian societies such as the Aztec, Mayan, Inca, and Toltec would emerge. They had complex structures of government and built large cities. These cities would even be seen as impressive to the Europeans when they later arrived on the continent (Brands, Breen, Williams, Gross, 2012). The Aztecs were the most powerful of the Indians and expanded their empire as they conquered many other tribes all throughout what is now Mexico. The groups along the Atlantic coast were smaller in numbers and not as agriculturally advanced. These cultures were more peaceful and even had some democratic type qualities to them. Many of the Europeans first contact would be with these communities. 2) The effects of British colonization on the Native Americans. 1600’s Despite Columbus and other explorers going off to the New World, the British did not show any major interest until the late 1500’s. The most immediate effect of the arrival of British settlers was the issue of land. They were taking land and resources that were not their own. However with peaceful relations there was plenty of land for both early settlers and the Native Americans. Early contact between English settlers and Native Americans was not filled with hostility but was rather peaceful. Both parties were interested...
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...Economics in Early America Early America was shaped and transformed by the economy. There were many factors and purchases that happened throughout that aided in the upbringing of the American economy we know today. We know some events of American history, for example, the finding of Native Americans already on America, slavery throughout history, wars, and inventions were all factors of shaping the economy for us. Before there was such a thing as the “New World,” there were millions of people living in America. The indigenous people of America had been there for thousands of years before the Europeans had arrived. Money was not an issue for these groups of people. They relied on the land and trade between the different tribes. The economy consisted of hunting, gathering and a complex agriculture system. They did not have the need for the money like the outside European world did. They relied on each other and the tribes around them. Different tribes were able to specialize in certain areas and then they could trade what they needed. While they did not have the sophisticated economy like the Europeans had, they were doing much better than after the Europeans arrived and started to try to change their way of life. Thomas Morton stated “, that the natives of the land lived so poorly in so rich a Country.” 1 There were so many things that the Native Americans did that Morton could not believe they did because all the travelers saw was vast land that could be sorted through. The...
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...you need larger payload capabilities Space X also has the Falcon Heavy which is capable of carrying heavier payloads. As of right now 6.4 tons or less will cost $77.1 million dollars or for loads over 6.4 tons will cost approximately $135 million dollars. (SpaceX, 2014) Elon Musk is the CEO and Chief designer of Space X and he also co-founded PayPal services. “The key thing for me is to develop the technology to transport large numbers of people and cargo to Mars. That’s the ultimate awesome thing.” Musk envisages a colony with 80,000 people on the red planet. Musk believes he can get this under way in the next 10 to 20 years with the first manned mission to the Red Planet. The key is developing a reusable rocket to help keep cost down. (Coppinger, 2012) “Tickets to go to the Red Planet will cost about $ 500,000 dollars” says Musk. The initial equipment would be machines to harvest methane, oxygen and carbon dioxide from Mars’ nitrogen enriched atmosphere. Life would be hard early on with initial systems in place the first people would begin to pressurize the domes with Mars’ atmospheric carbon dioxide, infusing the soil with nutrients to provide habitants with capabilities of growing earth...
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...the pilgrims first landed here from England, and prior to the revolution, lived under the government and laws of their native country. Over time, the colonists became eager to gain their own freedom and become an independent country. The conflict began when English parliament began placing unfair taxes on the colonists on items like stamps and tea. Because of this, the colonists revolted, and in 1773, the event we now know as the Boston Tea Party occurred. Sam Adams and the Sons of Liberty, an organization of leaders, politicians and members, boarded three British ships after sundown. Some were hesitant as they feared the law and whether or not they...
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...Steadman English 201 Mrs Baggett September 24, 2014 An Analysis of John Smiths Performance leading the colonies John smith has had an immense impact on the colonies and the lasting history of soon the to be United States of America. Good, bad and sometimes both of these in conjunction. John smiths reputation has been, and will be immortalized in the birth of a new world, for both negative and positive reasons pertaining to his vision for the colonies, his personal troubles, and his leadership among the people. John smith had a clear vision for the colonies and what they could be. His vision consisted of hard, hard work and the notion that every Englishman could achieve the American dream through hard work. He had a vision of establishing a new social order where one could gain or attain personal honor. Unfortunately he had a rather “iron fisted” mindset and is said to have been a bit of a “slave driver” he was a military man who wanted to maintain order so he didn’t really fit the mold of creating this new social order....
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