History of the United States - Essay Example

History of the United s History Definition of history The word history de s an explanation of pastevents. It entails the precise findings that significantly occurred at the time (Mulhall 34). History relates the past events to the present world and seeks to employ the concise meaning of those events to an ongoing situation. On a different dimension, the word history may seek to imply a particular series of evolution from the past to the present (Akers 45). A detailed explanation of History The term originates from the Greek community implies on the finding and accounting on chronological data (Breen 68). It emanates from deep research on archeological facts and other real life events in order to make a discovery at the long run. History is at times denoted as the art of finding, and accounting on the past events. The study revolves around the social lives, cultural systems, and political systems of the target community of research problem. The difference between a primary and a secondary source Data sources differ in accordance to the method of research and the target source of information. For instance, primary data sources involve the originality of researching on a particular subject for the first time, with little or no reliance to the available information. On the contrary, secondary sources serve researchers with already processed information, which calls for editing to fit the desired purpose. Therefore, the two different resource approaches imply on originality of information and borrowed data respectively (Mulhall 38). The data sources used in the study are mainly secondary data sources. The factor stimulating the use of secondary data sources is the availability of past information in a readily presented source. Examples of the secondary data sources include American historical society, and History matters. The research further involved the use of questionnaires to collect data from a sample population, instrumental to the research expedition (Grześkowiak-Krwawicz 64). 2. Freedom in the 17th century In the 17th century, America was turning out to the most suitable continent for agriculture, and to accommodate excess population from the English countries. However, acceptability into the newly formed white society in the American territories turned to be a tricky affair (Rasor 34). Considerations revolved around the gender, ethnicity, social class, and skill of every individual. Therefore, freedom remained a disguise as the respected group of the society benefited from it at the expense of the inferior groups. Royal and American merchants turned to Africa in the zeal to obtain slaves, with a target of subsidizing labor in the settler farms. According to the governing constitutions, slaves were subjects to their owners and could not decide on any crucial decision without the consent of their masters. Further, slaves faced denial into the education systems and would not be taught reading and writing skills. These approaches served to distinguish slaves from the white indentured servants. According to history, the indentured servants were those white farmers who lost their land to scarcity and were willing to work without provision of wages, with the aim of passing through different colonies to acquire land in the most suitable colony (Grześkowiak-Krwawicz 65). Indians represented the indigenous population and were too aggressive to the white population, specifically when a dispute arose in the fur market trade. However, their freedom remained minute to that of the white society, and often lost their properties to them. Women suffered lack of freedoms in decision making and could not enforce any effect to leadership as they represented the minute ratio of the population. However, their rights in marriages were safeguarded by the puritan’s congregation. 3. Revolution The main goals of the colonists in relation to the imposition of the Stamp duty focused on amassing financial support from the subjects by way of taxation. The duties applied on all printed materials, ranging from ship papers, and legal documents to licenses and playing cards. The target objective was to achieve an unchallengeable capability to support the 10,000 troops who were serving as American frontiers (Ayers 66). Following the 1765 Stamp duty revolutions, the American merchants organized gangs against the tax collectors, with the emphasis that the country could ensure self governance and abandon the colonial oppression. The revolutions reached an edge whereby all the 13 states of America revolted against the British, which led to the fight for independence with the urge to self governance. John Locke’s scripts of the mid-seventeenth century were significant to the resultant revolution the England, America, and all the other colonies. The English libertarian declared that t government needed to reflect concern in ensuring protection of its subjects, and their possessions. These rights were enjoyed by the Englishmen, and the Americans seek them as well since they English descendants. The glorious and English civil war revolutions, that so the exit of King James and enthronement of King William led to the American enlightenment period, which led to a series of revolutions and independence. 4. Federalist v. Anti-Federalist The federalists deeply supported the constitution and emphasized on its implementation for the benefit of the American citizens. Prior to ratification, the anti-federalists grew more aggressive in their bid to hinder ratification of the constitution. The anti-federalists seemed to implicate valid reasons for their anti-constitution campaign. Mainly, they preached to the citizens about the shortcomings of the constitution and that it lacked the clause to implement the rights of Americans. Secondly, they denounced ratification on the basis that extreme power rested upon the national government as subjected to the state government (Blight 56). Further, the anti-federalists argued that power and military control vested on the central government would implicate threats even when the country was at peace. Federalists saw the arguments as threatening to fail the constitution’s process of ratification. They resolved to downplay the anti-federalists movement and their arguments to the public. On the issue of rights for the American citizens, federalists explained it to the public that all human rights were equally important. At this juncture, the federalists ensured Americans that the constitution could not entail any rights as all human rights were equally important. This argument shed light to the Americans, with the notion that the government aimed at protecting all rights, with non to violate. Federalists embarked on emphasis that the national government comprised of three sub-divisions and none would express more power than the other thus; federalists outweighed the anti-federalists and the American constitution was ratified accordingly (Murrin 57). 5. Women Through the history of Abigail Adams, forecasts are that women lived as subjects to the American community, a factor that emanated from male chauvinism and the urge to control the entire society. Women faced oppression towards the right to education as they could not access formal education systems. For instance, it took the effort of Abigail’s mother to teach her the skill of reading and writing as she could not access any formal and professional form of education. However, her interest in writing played a consequential role in expression of her interests and those of other inferior groups to American constitutional and law makers (Dornbush 68). Through heir letters, she emphasized on the value that women held in the American society and their importance to consideration. Her revolutionary endeavors focused on achieving a ground that would suppress men’s superiority towards their wives. For example, in a letter she wrote to the political system, in which her husband was the president, she conferred that there was actual need for the constitution to reduce the power of men over their wives. In the letter, she emphasized on the submissive nature of women, and declared that no matter the amount of power vested upon a man, he would try hard to turn into a tyrant. At a different occasion, she visited London and wrote to her sister dictating on the ease of exchanging property thus; she somewhat influenced America’s constitution in property ownership (Hamilton 45).Through her sole efforts, Abigail managed to stimulate reconstitution of the American law. Eventually, women grew more powerful in expression of their rights and enrolled into education systems following mid 19th century. 6. Slavery Since the founding and independence of the country, American influential leaders had continuously preached for democracy in the federal government and towards the citizens. However, their emphasis remained a disguise as they looked down upon the inferior group of citizens in the society. According to chronological accounts, the American forefathers and founders of the country reflected the word freedom as beneficial to the superior white citizens and not the enslaved and Indian communities. The constitution provided for different rights and freedoms for the white families and reflected on the black slaves as creatures and mere subjects of their white masters. Therefore, the word freedom remained rhetoric to the inferior races as they would not enjoy its effects despite the fact that it was a constitutional right to all Americans (Ketcham 45). In order to achieve freedom and equity in the American society, different groups resulted to involvement in heated debates as to value the inferior races or subject them to oppression. The proslavery group of the American society observed the inferior races as subjects to the whites, and could not be better beings than their enslaved status of the society. Therefore, they advocated for continuity in the slavery practice. With the enlightenment of the inferior black and Indian races, the anti-slavery advocates arose and stipulated on the need to value the races. They demonstrated against the constitution and would join up in arms to harbor continued oppression from the laws imposed for the benefit of the white race (Carlisle 46). The anti-slavery movement succeeded and the inferior races gained relevance and a level of influence in the American society. 7. Manifest Destiny O’Sullivan, a writer of the 19th century focused much of his artistic works on the salvation of human beings in the American continent. As a Jacksonian follower, he believed in the manifest destiny but on a contradicting approach apart from the original approach that dictated on expansion of American territories. The writer implemented in his several articles that the phenomenon of manifest destiny meant divine destiny and thus; meant to ensure equity among all American citizens, democracy across the states, and shunning of anti-social practices (Carlisle 68). Through O’Sullivan’s articles, the behavior and approach to the manifest destiny deviated from aggressiveness towards their neighboring powers to resolution of the indigenous problems. For example, they halted intrusions into the Mexican territory and resolved to handle internal affairs among the different races. Although the democrats observed the approach as most critical towards achieving national coercion, republicans termed it as a haven for its political enemies, a factor that fuelled a continued range of animosity. The citizens of the country, having divided into two groups of supporters and opponents of the manifest, grew aggressive towards each other (Gómez 67). Since the divisions reflected on the race, and class of the citizens, civil wars erupted with the urge to halt the process of freedom and equity for all Americans. 8. Glory The 1989 film casting represents civil war at an American Fort that was dominated by over 1000 rebels. Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman represent the unchallenged black race leading a war to save an American fort. The 54th regiment of Massachusetts is reflected as an all black regiment but with the will to fight for freedom and liberation of their country, America (Cox 65). The movie reflects on the inferior weapons that the blacks used to engage into the war and the resulting deaths due to the lack of combat skill. They black race fights relentlessly ahead of American white regiment that freaked behind the battlefield despite their dominance on the crucial weapons. Glory films on the killings that occurred during the American civil war that left over half of the black soldiers dead (Blatt 67). Despite the rule that oppressed blacks terming them as inferior, they showed bravery and fought relentlessly to achieve freedom for the country’s benefit. The civil war remains one of a kind as the soldiers fought out of will to liberate America (Moriarty 90). Work cited Akers, Charles W. 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Manifest Destinies: The Making of the Mexican American Race. New York: New York University, 2007. Print. Grześkowiak-Krwawicz, Anna. Queen Liberty: The Concept of Freedom in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Leiden: Brill, 2012. Print. Hamilton, Alexander, James Madison, and John Jay. The Federalist Papers: Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison. New York: Cosimo Classics, 2006. Print. Ketcham, Ralph L. The Anti-Federalist Papers: The Constitutional Convention Debates. New York: Signet Classic, 2003. Print. Manifest Destiny: Fire on the Water. Abbott Pr, 2012. Print. Moriarty, J T. Manifest Destiny. New York: Rosen publications group, 2005. Print. Mulhall, Jill K. Abigail Adams. Huntington Beach, Calif: Teacher Created Materials, 2005. Print. Murrin, John M, Paul E. Johnson, and James M. McPherson. Liberty, Equality, Power: A History of the American People. Boston: Wadsworth, 2012. Print. Rasor, Paul B, and Richard E. Bond. From Jamestown to Jefferson: The Evolution of Religious Freedom in Virginia. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2011. Print. Read More