LS.Essential+Question+Responses

Essential 1. 8-30-09 In 1606, England decided to voyage to the New World, now known as America. At this time, England’s economy was suffering, and the country was having social and religious problems. It did not help that Spain had already conquered Mexico, twice, and with that victory the country gained gold and other riches that once belonged to the Aztecs. Richard Hakluyt believed that if other European countries could successfully colonize America, England could as well. With this source, Hakluyt hoped to open up the eyes of England and to prove that it is necessary to make the drastic move to America. The decision to sail to the New World was not a quick process. It took at least ten years to be completely ready to voyage. Materials such as ships and food, money, people willing to go on this possibly very dangerous journey and a charter were all things that needed to be considered and prepared. From the time that Englishmen left for America in 1606, to the time they reached Jamestown forty people had died. The “gentlemen” that had come on this voyage refused to work for themselves and wasted time searching for gold instead of for food which at this point was much more important. Eventually, John Smith emerged as the leader and made sure everyone understood that if there was no work there would be no food, and if someone continued to not work they would be killed. John Smith was also the intermediary between colonists and the Powhatan, who had assumed the English were ship wrecked and helped them unknowing of their true intentions. As food became more and more scarce, the colonists began to raid Indian villages for food, destroying the relationship between the English and Native Americans. The Indians who had once been provisions and a helping hand had been replaced with attacks, beatings, and killings. From 1607 to 1610, at least three hundred English colonists had died. The colonists persevered through all of these hard, almost impossible times, for many reasons. Not only was England competing with Spain, to show that Spain was not the only country who could prosper, but England had used up a lot of time and money for this voyage to the New World, and the voyagers realized this and refused to return empty handed. Returning without success would destroy most of the respect that the “Gentlemen” had gained. Also, as the colonists saw what was happening to the people around them, they decided to persevere through their hardships so that their fellow colonists would not have died in vain. Through all of their troubles and issues, the English colonists must have seen a light. They knew that they had not come this far for nothing and knew that if they continued to be as strong as they had been, there would be great reward, which there was; being free of England and its’ problems, and starting a new way of life in America.

Essential 2 9.6.09 In 1681, William Penn was given a grant to establish a colony for the Quakers in Pennsylvania. William Penn was an aristocratic Englishmen who was attracted to the Quakers’ religious beliefs because they went against modern belief and were a counter culture religious group. Quakers did not meet with a paid clergy, did not treat upper classes any different and believed that all were children of God. I think that being a colonist in a Quaker society would be much better than living in a Puritan community for these and many other reasons. Opposed to the Puritans, Quakers had a liberal land policy that attracted many. Quakers were ‘colonial hippies’. They did not see the need in pressuring people to believe a certain thing or to be prejudice against certain social class. Living in this type of society is much better than living in a fake utopia. The Puritans were intolerant, close minded and saw no room for people who did not follow their beliefs or do what was considered “right”. They eliminated everyone and anyone who stood in the way of or could be considered a threat to their “City upon a Hill”. The Quakers were honest and welcomed all. They had no restrictions on immigration and no provision for military descent. They were a home for all religious misfits and many ethnic groups and had a no slavery policy. William Penn, a significant figure in the Quaker society, made peace with and had great respect for the Native Americans. The Quaker society gave citizens economic opportunity, civil liberty and religious freedom. Everything about their way of living and their outlook on life makes me believe that my life as a colonist would be care free and pleasant, never having to worry about fitting into someone’s definition of “perfect” and being able to live the way I wanted to.

Essential Question- Constitution Debate 10.11.09 After the Constitution was created in 1776, there was questioning of whether it should be interpreted loosely or very literally. The constitution states all men are created equally, but African Americans only counted as three fifths of a person when it came to voting and white men could not be enslaved by an African Americans. Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson both worked very closely with George Washington, our countrys' first president. They both had competely oppisite views on how to handle certain situations or how to establish law using the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson believed in the Constituion and was focused on the individual rights of people. Alexander Hamilton believed in a strong central government. These two men, along with George Washington and the Constitution can spark a very enduring debate for multiple reasons. The Consitution states that our country is based off of freedom and being united. After the American Revolution, the country was in serious debt. Alexander Hamilton requested paying the debt off as a whole country, because it would bring each state closer together because they would be working for the same purpose. Thomas Jefferson believed that each state should pay its own, even though in a way that would be seperating the states and "going against" the Constitution. This conflict caused major issues on what the Constitution actually means when it says that we are united. The Constitution also states that each citizen has a right to their own freedoms. After the Whiskey Excise Tax was placed on the people it was like dealing with King George III all over again, the citizens of the United States were dealing with more social discipline. This was contradicting the Constitution and the rights it was supposedly suppsoed to give the people. This could have sparked a large rebellion or even another revolution. The Constitution was created to give the new people of the United States liberty, justice, and freedom. But with these rights came secret or uknown limitations. African Americans were allowed to be slaved, and were not treated equal, and there was confusion on how to get rid of the serious debt the country was in.

The Revolution of 1800 10.25.09 The true definition of a revolution is a radical and pervasive change in society and the social structure. The Revolution of 1800 was a real revolution because it was a change from a Federalist president to a Democratic-Republican president which effected the country as a whole. Thomas Jefferson wanted to re-establish his beliefs of interpreting the Constituion very literally. Jefferson fearing history repeating itself by limiting citizens and wanting to protect the rights of American citizens caused a mass turmoil. It was a revolution because if he had not one the election then our country could be run completely different. Thomas Jefferson made it a point to make sure every citizen had his or her rights and freedoms and most importantly liberty. If John Adams had one the election there would have been no revolution, but because Thomas Jefferson did and instated how he felt about the Constitution and every persons rights the Revolution of 1800 was in fact an actual revolution.