LAD #7: Washington's Farewell Address

To begin, Washington states that he does not want to be reelected and he believes it is time for someone new to be the head of the government. In his address, president Washington asks the nation to confirm three principles. The first, is that sectional antagonism should  come to an end in the United States, because they cause nothing but a weaker nation. The second request, was that they discourage the formation of parties, since those parties divided people and influenced the government to support the party rather than the people. Lastly, Washington warned against the formation of permanent alliances, which would eventually drag the colonies into conflicts.  Washington suggested  that America keeps a policy of neutrality rather than joining alliances, which he believed would save American lives in the big picture. Washington also included advice about staying out of debt, and how that led to taxes which led to overall unhappiness for the colonists. He also suggested America should maintain the values and morals they had founded in order to create the best life for its citizens. One last thing Washington mentioned, was that the United States should not rely too much on military, as it could lead to a takeover. President Washington's decision to leave also left a footprint in history such as two term presidency and the formation of a Cabinet.

LAD #6: Washington's Proclamation of Neutrality

To summarize, President Washington begins by statin that the United States would remain neutral in the conflict between European powers. He also encouraged American citizens to refrain from any behavior that might compromise the proclamation. He stated that if any citizen does compromise the proclamation, that they will lose the protection of the United States and be subjected to a court of law where they will be prosecuted due to their actions.

LAD #5: Federalist #10

1.) Why are factions so difficult to eliminate?
Factions are difficult to eliminate because the liberty that gives rise to them is important to political life as well. Removing liberty ruins the whole system. Madison says that mankind will continue improving itself as long as there is freedom of opinion and the different factions continue to be formed. The difference of at least one faction allows that there will always be an opinion that could improve life for the people.

2.) If factions cannot be removed then how can they be controlled?
Factions can be controlled in many ways. If the top faction is placed in power and can use the faction's majority to rule over the other factions. Madison also states that it could be possible to try to stamp out other factions, leaving one remaining faction. This would result in totalitarianism. Madison previously stated that more than one factions needs to exist in order to have peace in the nation.

Republican Motherhood Blog

1.) What role did the Revolutionary War play in the transformation of housewifery to Republican Motherhood?
Women's status was changed by the Revolutionary War from housewife to their children to the base of colonial society. Women were then meant to prepare their children for the future and teach them values according to the American way of life. Eventually, women would become the head of the household and make sure their children have obtained the skills and knowledge necessary for daily life in American society.

2.) What were the consequences of Republican Motherhood on women?
A decrease in the amount of working women was an outcome of Republican Motherhood. Women were now supposed to be the rulers of their household, prepare their children for outside the home and overall devote themselves to domestic life. For women who still had a job, this was nearly impossible, so many of them quit and decided to focus on their families. Another consequence of Republican Motherhood was the average family size decreased as birth rates dropped. This was because mothers were now becoming attached to individual children rather than the family as a whole. This was done in order to prepare the boys to grow up and work in the government or politics and the girls to become good wives and Republican mothers.

3.) What is the significance of the ideology of Republican Motherhood as a stage in the process of women’s socialization?
As women gained access to more power, education, and responsibility from Republican Motherhood, they began to crave more and more, eventually leading to the 1848  Senaca Falls Convention. Without Republican Motherhood, women may not have the freedoms they do today mostly because it became a steppingstone in the Civil Rights movement and began to change history.


1.) Describe the setting. A woman and two children sit in front of a simple gray background, dressed plainly, there is no evidence of extreme wealth or prestige. Their clothing is simple and appears to be a traditional republican setting.

2.) Who serves at the center of the portrait and why?  How does the woman look?  How is she “republican” rather than aristocratic? 
A.) Mary Tilghman is the center of the portrait. She is a Republican mother. She is most likely in the center of the portrait because she was the head of the household and everything that happened was subject to her rule, and she as the Republican mother, reshaped the domestic scene of America.
B.) She appears to be simple, no jewelry or any presence of wealth.
C.) This portrait makes Mary Tilghman appear to be more traditional republican rather than an aristocrat who would no be portrayed so simply. An aristocrat would be painted with an exciting background and with lots of jewelry and makeup.

3.) What values do her sons exhibit? Friendly, happy, obedient to their mother.

4.) Is there a significance to the position of Mrs. Tilgham’s arm? Yes, the position and location of Mrs. Tighman's arm displays her power and control that exists within her household. Her arm position on the child claims it as hers and her responsibility to care for and prepare the child for American society outside the house.

Blog #4 - Revolution Article

5 Things i Learned When Reading the Article

• When compared to Civil War paintings, works of art featuring battles from the Revolution showed no signs of fighting, blood, dead bodies, or shooting.
• The Civil War killed more American Soldiers than any other war since. This is because the war consisted of Americans fighting other Americans
• Few people can name a Revolutionary soldier other than Washington, John Paul Jones, and Benedict Arnold (including me).
• Eighteenth century armies, in order to make their fighting more effective, fought at a close range, leading engagements to end in hand to hand combat and violent bayonet charges.
• The Revolutionary war is the longest war recorded in American history

LAD #3: The Declaration of Independence

1.) The Declaration of Independence begins with the fact that citizens of the United States are entitled to democratic principles which are guaranteed and cannot be taken away from them. For example, the democratic principle that all men have certain unalienable rights such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Another example established in the declaration is that the responsibility of the government is to protect the people and these unalienable rights. The people have the rights to alter or throw off of the government if they do not succeed.

2.) Once the Declaration of Independence was created and the democratic principles were established for the government, they began a list of complaints and complaints against Britain. Some of the complaints have to do with interfering with the colonies and foreign countries. For example, the British cut off the colonies trade with all the other parts of the world besides themselves, imposed taxes on the colonies without asking, forcing the colonists to hold large amounts of soldiers in their homes, depriving  them of trial by jury, and several other grievances that disregarded the basic rights the colonists were entitled to.

3.) The democratic system of government was established by representatives of the United States from all different colonies. The representatives also declared separation from Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence declares officially that the colonies of America are free and independent states and are no longer connected politically to Great Britain. They now have the power to make peace, declare war, trade freely, and form their own allies as independent states. The declaration represented the colonists freedom from Britain and was able to establish a foundation for the future of the United States of America.

LAD #2: John Peter Zenger

LAD #2: John Peter Zenger

1. Who was John Peter Zenger?
In 1710, John Peter Zenger came to New York from Germany. He worked as a journalist for William Bradford who was the printer of the New York Gazette. He then began to work for a group of wealthy men who established the New York Weekly Journal. Zenger was the printer and editor of The Weekly Journal until he was arrested in 1734 for publishing articles criticizing Governor Cosby.

2. What was the controversy over his charges? Talk about Hamilton's defense.
Zenger spent over eight months in prison and was charged with seditious libel upon his arrest. John Peter Zenger was defended in trial by Philadelphia lawyer, Andrew Hamilton, who decided to plead directly to the jury.  Hamilton argued and confirmed that Zenger did publish the critical and offending stories, but denied that it would do harm to Cosby's reputation unless it was false.

3. What influence did his case have on American governmental tradition?
The results of the trial of John Peter Zenger was an important victory in history for freedom of the press. Also, truth was established as a defense against libel in court and the trial set a precedent in libel suits against judicial tyranny. 

4. What is the lasting significance of his trial? Explain.
One of the long lasting impacts of the Zenger trial is freedom of press in America, which was affirmed when Hamilton established that a printed or written statement is not libelous if it can be proved. The trial of John Peter Zenger was a landmark in American History.

LAD #1: Mayflower Compact & Fundamental Orders of Connecticut

LAD #1: Mayflower Compact & Fundamental Orders of Connecticut:


1) What concepts are included in the Mayflower Compact?
Combining the settlers into a civil government, loyalty to their mother country along with King James, and the furthering of the Christian faith were a few of the main concepts of the Mayflower Compact. Also included in the compact was the enforcement of laws, acts, and constitutions.

2) How does the Mayflower Compact reflect and attachment to both the "Old" and "New" worlds?
The Mayflower Compact is able to show their 'old ties' in the fact that the settlers swear their loyalty to the Lord King James. Also, their attachment to the Old World is seen when the Plymouth settlers state that they wish to obtain the northern regions of the pre-established colony. The settlers gained a new goal of spreading the Christian faith in the New world.

3) How did the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut differ from the Mayflower Compact?
The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut are different then the Mayflower Compact in the fact that the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut was a written constitution of specific laws and was to be followed as they were specifically set in place.

4) What prompted the colonists of Connecticut to take this approach to government, i.e.: use of a written Constitution?
The colonists believed they needed a stronger government. Along with this, the wanted a more unified form of government so the Fundamental orders combined several towns into one unified body.

5) In what significant way(s) does the Fundamental Orders reflect a fear of and safeguard against the usurping of power by one person or a chosen few?
Remember to include a related photo for each document.
The Fundamental orders set up their government on a democratic platform in order to keep one single person from gaining too much power. An election by the people determined the officials. The Fundamental Orders also partially limited the powers of government which made it very difficult for a small group or one person to seize control of the government.

Hello

hello! :)