Monday, March 13, 2017

Four Men Who Created a Country by R. B.


  1. Joseph Ellis's main argument in this lecture is that the American Revolution did not establish the nation, the constitution and it's making did so. He argued that the Founding fathers brought a new prosperity of liberty to a founding nation that allowed it to govern and make its own laws in independent states. Joseph Ellis also provides Lincoln's speech as a true American speech that reflects the constitution. Joseph Ellis also provides facts the France helped us win the American revolution, and how we won the war when the British could not afford to continue the war. The war was won when Britain could not afford to continue the war.
  2. The main purpose and main point of view that the author is conveying is that the war itself did not prosper and secure American rights and prosperity but the making and writing of the constitution was. Another purpose that the author is trying to convey was that the Americans did not fully win the war by themselves, they were offered much help from the French. Some things that the author is trying to prove is that they were other founding fathers that were not mentioned and helped with a good cause while helping write the constitution. The significant contributions from John Jay is what helped shaped our constitution.
  3. Some of our work in class enhanced our understanding to this topic when we asked ourselves what examples does the author give to his conclusion. we learned that James Madison wrote the Bill of rights and was ratified 2 years after signing. We understood what John Jay wrote and explained to Washington about the constitution and what should be on it. We also explained how the Articles of confederation was made and what it stands for, the articles of confederation were written to give colonies some sense of a unified government. A new governing document was needed in order for these new states to act together, under one nation.
  4. Some of the historical questions we asked in class was how and why the jay treaty was created and made. Some other questions were how England and America became neutral after the war and the agreement was reached after The Bill of rights. What expectations did America face after the war with its rising economy and how they gained money. The economic problems faced with congress deeply touched the lives of most Americans in the 1780's. The war disrupted the American economy greatly. The British navy destroyed most American ships which crippled the flow of trade to Europe. Both armies regularly stole from farmers even after the war and farmers suffered tremendously.
  5. I would like to know why John Jay was not part of the Founding Father? Some other things I would like to know is how Madison and Washington delt with radicals who were against them? How did the government gain money after the war?