Thursday

Today - we will look at "Common Sense" and begin to read chapter 9.

First, lets look at John Green as a introduction into the Constitution Era.

Study questions: 

CHAPTER 9:  THE CONFEDERATION AND THE CONSTITUTION: 1776—1790

The Pursuit of Equality

Know:    Leveling, Society of the Cincinnati, Virginia Statute for   Religious Freedom, Abigail Adams, Republican Motherhood, John Singleton Copley

1.         What social changes resulted from the American Revolution?  

Constitution Making in the States

Know:    State Constitutions, Fundamental Law

2.         What was the importance of the state constitutions?

Economic Crosscurrents

Know:    Navigation Laws, Empress of China, Speculation

3.         What were the positive and negative effects of the war on America?

A Shaky Start toward Union

Know:    Natural Rights

4.         Why was the end of the war difficult on the national government?

Creating a Confederation

Know:    Sovereignty, Articles of Confederation

5.             What forces served to unify the separate states during the war?

The Articles of Confederation: America's First Constitution

6.         What weaknesses plagued the Articles of Confederation? What was good about it?

Landmarks in Land Laws

Know:    Old Northwest, Land Ordinance of 1785, Northwest Ordinance of 1787

7.         Explain the importance of the Land Ordinance of 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance.

The World's Ugly Duckling

Know:    Natchez, Dey of Algiers

 8.        Using examples, explain the title of this section.

The Horrid Specter of Anarchy

Know:    Shay's Rebellion, Mobocracy

 9.        Were the United States of America in danger of falling apart under the Articles of Confederation?  Explain.

A Convention of "Demigods"

Know:    George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, Patrick Henry

10.        What kind of men gathered in Philadelphia for the "sole and express purpose of revising" the old government?

Patriots in Philadelphia

11.        How does George Washington's quote, "We have, probably, had too good an opinion of human nature in forming our confederation." help to explain the purposes of our founding fathers.           

Hammering out a Bundle of Compromises

Know:    Virginia (large state) Plan, Bicameral Legislature, New Jersey (small state) Plan, Great Compromise, Electoral College, Three-fifths Compromise

12.        Describe the compromises that were achieved by the delegates to the Constitutional Convention.

Safeguards for Conservatism

Know:    Checks and Balances, Separation of Powers

13.        How democratic was the Constitution as originally written?  

The Clash of Federalists and Antifederalists

Know:    Antifederalists, Federalists

14.        Who were the antifederalists and why did they oppose the Constitution?

The Great Debate in the States

15.        Did most of the states approve of the Constitution?  Why?

The Four Laggard States

Know:    Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, James Madison, The Federalist

16.        Explain some of the opposition to ratification of the Constitution?

A Conservative Triumph 

17.        What does your text mean when it says that the Constitution, "...elevated the ideals of the Revolution even while setting boundaries to them."?

The Constitution: Revolutionary or Counterrevolutionary?

Know:    Nationalist School of Historians, Critical Period, Charles Beard, Gordon Wood

18.        Why have historians disagreed about the reason why our Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution?