Founding+Brothers+-+6th

=WEEK ONE =
 * = **Day of Discussion** ||= **Date****to complete reading:** ||= **Read the following pages:** ||
 * = Friday ||= 11/19 ||= 20-47 ||
 * = Tuesday ||= 11/23 ||= 48-80 ||
 * = Thursday ||= 12/2 ||= 81-119 ||
 * = Friday ||= 12/10 ||= 120-161 ||
 * = Friday ||= 12/17 ||= 162-205 ||
 * = Friday ||= 1/7 ||= 206-248 ||

Barry D: Job #1

• Why does the author choose to focus on all of the little details about Burr and Hamilton's duel? o Author wants to talk about Burr and Hamilton’s relationship o Author gives details in order to give the reader an opportunity to decide who was at fault by themselves o The author says “We should be able to conjure up a mental image of this dramatic moment, a more richly textured picture of the duel” (20). If one just knows what simply happened, he would not be able to understand fully what happened between the two people, Burr and Hamilton. • What effect could the shooting duel have on the formation of the United States? o Burr and Hamilton are very prominent figures at the time o Hamilton is one of the most powerful figures in the federalist party- stirs up trouble in the party o Symbols of American bipartisanship o Hamilton’s influence gone- changes in the ideas of the people in his party o Could be a sign of weakness- John Quincy Adams hoped that America would be a strong nation for a long time o The nation is still very young- if Britain saw a weakness, they could attack • What other duels are mentioned besides the physical shooting duel in the beginning of the book? o Burr said the Republican Party and Jefferson, who was the vice president, were disloyal. o In 1800, Burr and Jefferson ran for president, and Jefferson won easily. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o In 1804, Burr ran for governor of New York, and lost again <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o Hamilton said while he was running for governor that Burr should not be in a political office. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o Because of this disagreement, Burr decided to challenge Hamilton to a duel, and Hamilton could not say no because it would “scar his honor”. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">• What are the main rules and parts of the Code Duello? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o Was a code outlining the rules of dueling <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o If someone challenges you, you must take up the challenge and cannot decline. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o The person who is challenged gets to pick their weapon first, and the same one goes to the challenger <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o The one challenged picks their position <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o The two people must be 10 paces apart <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">o If one man fires before the other, the assistant will say 1-2-3 Fire. If the other one does fire when the assistant says fire, he loses his turn. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sean M: Job #2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"I have resolved...to reserve and throw away my first fire" (pg 23) 1st paragraph, line 10. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The author uses the actual quotes of Hamilton to show evidence that he was in fact, going to waste a shot.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"They did concur, however, that a discernible gap of time separated the two shot" (pg 28) paragraph 2, line 2. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Joseph sums up his analysis very well by adding this simple phrase. It also explains that both apprentices heard a distinct gap between the two shots.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The offensive word was despicable. Burr wanted Hamilton to explain or disavow the word" (pg 32) 2.10 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Joseph says it very simply, explaining the start of their feud that would lead to the duel.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Their fatal encounter represented a momentary breakdown in the dominant pattern of nonviolent conflict within the American revolutionary generation" (pg 39) 2.8 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This definitely shows Joseph's view on the Duel. He believes this event was the event that might stop the revolution and stop America from forming.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Burr was a kind of anti - Washington, who manipulated the public interest for his own unscrutable purposes" ( pg 43) 3.9 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">I love how he portrayed Burr this way. It clearly states that Burr was an anti- revolutionary man. His word choice in this sentence is brilliant and I love how he said it.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"What did worry him to no end was the ominous fit between Burr's political skills and the opportunities for mischief so clearly available in a nation whose laws and the institution are still congealing" (pg 45) 2.8 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This is shows that Burr's actions were dangerous for the new nation that is America. Joseph says it like a writer truly would.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Enigmatic: Pg 25, 2.6: Perplexing; mysterious <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Maxim : pg 21, 1.4: Expression of general truth <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Diffidence: pg 21, 3.5: Hesitant through lack of self confidence

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Caroline C: Job # 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 33: Vagaries: an unpredictable or erratic action, occurrence, course, or instance; a whimsical, wild, or unusual idea, desire, or action <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Reciprocity: the relation or policy in commercial dealings between countries by which corresponding advantages or privileges are granted by each country to the citizens of the other.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 36: Paramours: an illicit lover, esp. of a married person; any lover.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 37:Animadversions: the act of criticizing.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 38: Vilifying: to speak ill of; defame; slander; to make vile.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 42:Catiline of America: an ultimate accusation of character. Reference to bringing down a republic single handedly

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 21: "Burr had finially trapped Hamilton in his diabolical web, and he was now moving in for the kill" (21) I really like the analogy of their duel and reltionship as one of a spider and its prey, which the author uses very well in this paragraph.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 22: "(Hamilton) to regard worldly problems as personal challenges" (22).And Pg 26 citing Hamilton's funeral as a "extravaganza of mournig" I think that these shows the dedication that Hamilton had for his country, and how much he was loved by the American people.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 23 saying Hamilton uses "language of deniabitly" is a good quote to sum up the issues that Burr and Hamilton had, because Hamilton insulted Burr and denied it, refusing to apologize because of hsi beliefs between personal and political conflict, which inevitably caused Burr to challenge Hamilton to the duel.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Evan R: Job #3:

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This week's reading focused on the famous duel between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, the controversies of what actually happened during the duel at a specific time, and the events that led up to the duel. We learned that Burr was the one who invited Hamilton to "the interview". This was because of constant verbal harassment from Hamilton towards Burr in an effort to sabotage his campaigns. The trouble between the two politicians began during the election of 1800. Thomas Jefferson was running for a second term in office against Burr and defeated Burr. After losing to Jefferson in the presedential election, Burr ran for governer of New York but his campaign was sabotaged by criticism from Alexander Hamilton, who was Jefferson's vice president. Being vice president, Hamilton's opinion was valued far more than that of the average politician and people listened to him when he spoke of Burr not being qualified for the position. We also learned however, that at first, Burr was only marginally frustrated with Hamilton's accusations and allowed him a chance to apologize for what he had said about Burr. Instead, Hamilton felt that he had just cause to say what he had said and refused to apologize. This refusal is what sealed Hamilton's fate.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ford B: Job #4 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The chief reason, however, for this legendary status, and the main reason why we call it "The Duel" without much fear of being misunderstood, is the relative prominence of the two participants. Burr was the second-ranking official in the federal government. Hamilton was, after George Washington, the most powerful figure in the Federalist party and, his advocates would have added, the intellectual wellspring for all the political energy that Washington merely symbolized. Their fatal encounter represented a momentary breakdown in the dominant pattern of nonviolent conflict within the American revolutionary generation." (Ellis 39)

=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">WEEK TWO =

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Caroline Clarke: Job #1 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Discussion Questions: <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">1. Why did Ellis add so much detail in describing Madison, Hamilton and Jefferson? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">There was a lot of detail because the only first hand account of the dinner between Hamilton and Madison came from Jefferson. Because of the political mess that the dinner got these men in it makes sense that Jefferson might alter the events to put himself in a better light. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The dinner was meant to solve the controversy between Hamilton and Madison over how the debt should be handled in America. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Showing the personalities of these men helps us to understand why they made the political decisions that they did and how their social relationships (that were made for the use of politics) affected them. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">After the debate an agreement was made and Madison did not vote against Hamilton's proposal and Hamilton moved the capital of the United States. This blew up because the cost to move the capital was the same as the amount of debt Hamilton wanted each state to pay. This is what caused us the question how reliable Jefferson's account would be. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">2. What is the relationship between social and political relationships? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In politics the reason that you make social relationships is so that they can be transferred and help you politically. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">No matter what, politics affects social relationships. It doesn't matter if you are a politician or not because people debate over politics and social relationships can be altered. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Madison and Hamilton only created their social relationship (with the help of Jefferson) so that they could use each other to get what they wanted politically. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3. What are the 'sides' of the economic debate that Madison and Hamilton have? What side do you have? What side do you believe the author is trying to make us agree with? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The issue that Madison and Hamilton disagree on is state debt. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Hamilton wants assumption which would mean that all of the states should start over and pay the same debt, showing unity through the United States. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Madison disagrees. He agrees with discrimination which is where every state should keep paying off their debt until they pay it all off. Keeping it fair because southern states like Virginia have almost no debt left while the northern states have a lot of debt left to pay off. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Which is better for the United States (at the time); Assumption of Discrimination? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Discrimination because in a new country unity is important, but fairness and taking responsibility is more important. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">With discrimination everyone would take on what they (their state) spent and not that of anyone else. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The assumption proposal therefore did them an injustice, by 'compelling them, after having done their duty, to contribute a=to those states who have not done their duty'."(57).

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Barry D: Job #2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“…natural and almost nonchalant way history happens in an ideal Jeffersonian world” (48). It is very interesting how the author brings in the idea of a “Jeffersonian world”, which really helps to engage the reader with a vivid picture. The words “natural” and “nonchalant” both relate to being very relaxed, which makes Jefferson seem like an expert in the field of politics. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“Any attempt to answer that question would carry us into the labyrinthine corridors of Jefferson’s famously elusive mind” (51). The author uses the word “labyrinthine”, which means a large, complicated maze. Instead of simply saying Jefferson was complicated, he describes his mind as being like a maze, being a very thorough, smart, and complicated thinker that is hard for some to understand. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“Second, there is the Hamiltonian confidence that the concentration of political and economic power was a dynamic force; it was not a threatening cluster of invasive corruption, by a synergistic fusion of developmental energies” (63). I love how the author relates Hamilton’s balancing of politics and economics to words that relate to energy, such as “dynamic”, “synergistic”, “fusion”, and “energies”. This emphasizes how well he is able to balance two generally contradicting parts of a nation. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“Cross that line and you set off explosions and torrents of unbridled anger of the sort that got spewed at George III in the Declaration of Independence” (68). This sentence is loaded with just how strong Jefferson is, because of his “unbridled” (unrestrained) anger. I love how it relates back to the Declaration of Independence and how his anger showed through in it. The author also relates his anger to huge, powerful, natural processes, such as “torrents” (flowing river), “explosions”, and “spewed”, to express his anger even more effectively.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ford B: Job #5 (#2)


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Jefferson thought [Hamilton] looked "sombre, haggard, and dejected beyond comparison." Even his manner of dress appeared "uncouth and neglected." He was, at least as Jefferson described him, a beaten man." (p.48)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">sombre- gloomily dark <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">haggard- having a wasted or exhausted appearance <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">dejected- depressed in spirits <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">uncouth- awkward, clumsy, unmannerly

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Clearly, the current political situation, and Madison's southern congressmen resistance, led Hamilton to go become completely depressed.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Mr. Madison's acquiescence in a proposition that the question [i.e., assumption of the state debts] should be again brought before the house by way of amendment from the Senate, that he would not vote for it, nor entirely withdraw his opposition, yet he would not be strenuous, but leave it to its fate." (p.49)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">acquiescence- permissive, concurrence <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">strenuous- demanding vigorous act or effort

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Madison concurs that the question of state debts should be once again brought before the Senate in the form of an amendment, then vote for or against it, and not be vigorous in act or effort, but "leave it to its fate".


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"...a negotiation was in the works that would make assumption more palatable to Virginians of Monroe's persuasion..." (p.51)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">assumption (in this context)- the act of taking possession of something <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">palatable- acceptable or agreeable

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">A negotiation was in the works that would make taking the Potomac area as the new capitol agreeable to Virginians.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">OTHER IMPORTANT QUOTES RELATED TO PAGES 48-51 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The true reason of the removal of Congress from this city will be explained to the people in the course of a very few days. To the lasting disgrace of the majority in both houses it will be seen, that the Pennsylvania and Patowmack interests have been purchased with twenty-one and one-half million dollars," which just happened to be the size of the assumed state debts." (p.50) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The political deal Jefferson described would never go down in Virginia, where assumption was regarded as a "fatal poison" and the Potomac location "of but little importance" in comparison." (p.51) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"In 1792 [Jefferson] told Washington that the bargain made that evening with Hamilton was the greatest political mistake of his life." (p.51)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sean Mann: Job #3 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This chapter focuses on the agreement at a secret dinner in 1790. Madison would make sure Hamilton's Assumption Bill would pass, and Hamilton would make sure the Capital would be on the Potomac river. The author gives background information on three of the attendees at the dinner: James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and Thomas Jefferson. The reader finds out that there are multiple sites that are in the running for the Capital and that there were more secret dinners than just this one. The author also discusses how people argued that Virginia had too much influence over the federal government at this time. In the end, we also see that of gather around all the power of the population, putting the capital on the Potomac was separating the political and financial centers (New York) of the United States.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Evan Ruda: Job #4

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In other words, Jefferson brokered a political bargain of decidedly farreaching significance: Madison agreed to permit the core provision of Hamilton's fiscal program to pass; and in return Hamilton agreed to use his influence to assure that the permanent residence of the national capital would be on the Potomac River. (Ellis. 49)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Our group decided to make this sentence our overarching quote because it best describes chapter two of this book. It lets us know who the agreement at the dinner was between, and what agreements were actually made. This chapter was unbelievably confusing and this quote made it a lot easier to comprehend.

=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">WEEK THREE = <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ford B: Job #1

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">1. Why? In other words, how is this chapter relevant, and why is it important?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It's relevant because it has to with America
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It's not to the other chapters
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Abolishing slavery is important. not this chapter.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">2. Why was the proposal of abolition so embarrassing?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The Constitution said it couldn't be dissolved until 1808
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">states depended on them
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">half the country wanted theirs for their economies

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3. Why was the graph on page 102 necessary?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Showed how many slaves
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Showed how the more populous states had more slaves
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The Quakers used the census in their argument
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It shows where slavery is more tolerated and where it's not

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">4. How does the text reflect the author's view of events?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">He's trying to make it seem like he knows something
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">His view is twisted and detailed, like this chapter
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">showing off facts

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">5. In what way did you conduct a "social exchange" with the author?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"I wanted to punch him in the face." -Caroline Clark
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It highlights his bias, in this chapter with the Quakers
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">He only shows the modern day viewpoint, i could recognize that.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">6. What is the overall argument of the text (chapter)? Is there one?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">There is not..
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">He trails off too much to be making an argument
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">He doesn't take a stance, he just tells a story.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Caroline Clarke: Job #2:

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 81 “…embarrassing intrusion…awkward interruption…inflammatory proposal…” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">These are phrases that are used to describe what the government thought of abolishing slavery. Nobody was open to it, and almost everyone thought that it was the wrong time and place to propose something like that.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 82 “the vigilant voice of cool reason” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This is how James Madison is described and what most people think of him as. It is interesting but still expected that his opinion is asked on so many political issues.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 83 “fearful prophecies” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">That were made my Jackson concerning other states wanting the government to abolish slavery (which did end up happening).

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 84 “’trumpets of civil war’” were being blazed when there was debate over whether or not the proposals sent to abolish slavery should be read in front of an audience. As petitioners were “ ‘blowing the trumpet of sedition’”.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 85 “an implicit but broadly shared understanding that the newly created federal government could do nothing to interfere with the existence of slavery in the South” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This is just what was known in the time about the governemtn and how it was run, and what the people thought of it. I think it is interesting that the people during the time thought so little of the government that they couldn’t do anything.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 87 “The real threat was silence” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This is a key issue (and the title of the chapter) because people didn’t want there to be silence because that would mean the slaves had gotten wind of the talk of abolishing slavery and would try and rebel even more.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 107 “…presumptive dreams of a continental empire…” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">I think it is interesting that during this time where there is so much debate over slavery and abolishing it that the government is still thinking so hard about expanding the United States. This drive during difficult times is one of the things America is always known for.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 114 “’enlightened obfuscation’” <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Was a different was of writing that makes things harder to understand so that people can say things that they wouldn’t always necessarily say, and still get wawy with its because of the way it was formatted.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Pg 119 “…the tragic and perhaps intractable problem” that the whole House was going to spend a month mourning. This all sprung from the debate of slavery, which shows what a powerful issue and topic is was and still is.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sean M: Job #4 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"In short, the Quaker petition for an end of the slave trade was really a slave trade was really a stalking horse for a more radical and thoroughgoing scheme to end the institution of slavery itself." (pg. 82) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This sentence sums up the book very clearly. It is the fear of slavery disappearing in America and what it would to the economy.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Evan Ruda: Job #5

 * ======<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Jackson rose to thank Ames and his northern coleagues for seeing the light and recovering the old conciliatory spirit that had once permitted northern and southern interests to cooperate." (pg. 116) ======

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ellis probably means that Jackson is happy that Ames are going back to fair and ethical ways of thinking.

 * ======<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"It was taboo because, more than any other controversy, it possessed the political potential to destroy the union." (pg. 115) ======

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Taboo: Banned on grounds of morality or taste.
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ellis is probably talking anout how fragile the topic of slavery was in politics back then.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"The convoluted syntax, multiple negatives, indefinite antecedents, and masterful circumlocutions of this statement defy comprehension." (pg. 114)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Convoluted: Sophisticated or intricate
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Antecedent: A word whose denotatino is referred to by a pronoun. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Circumlocution: Using an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea.

=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">WEEK FOUR =

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Evan Ruda Job #1

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">1. Is there an argument in this section of the text, if so, what is it? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">It is not the common people who shaped this nation, but individual politicians who wielded power over others.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">2.Why does Ellis put so much emphasis on hindsight? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">One should have an equal balance of hindsight. and understanding of the present, in order to not falsely predict events. Focus on individual hindsight might lose respect for them.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">3. Why was the American Revolution inevitable, and what facts does Ellis use to support this? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> It was inevitable mostly because of what Tom Paine said. "You cannot govern an entire continent from an island"

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">4. How did the diversity of personalities and ideologies of the "founding brothers" shape America? (see page 17) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Their personal relationships both good, and bad, influenced their politics. Also, trust in each other played an essential role to important decision making.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">5. Ellis mentioned that "in addition to being a fascinating tale" [the chapter about the duel], it will bring up themes that we will se throughout <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">the book. Have we seen any of these themes? If so explain. <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Two common themes that we noticed in the book were constant problems arising in the states and how the system of checks and balances was more personal then political.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ford Bowers: Job #2


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"No event in American history which was so improbable at the time has seemed so inevitable in retrospect as the American Revolution." (P.3)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">improbable: unlikely <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">inevitable: bound to happen <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">retrospect: looking back on

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The American Revolution was unique in that back then no one thought they would fight for a revolution and win, but today we see it as something that was bound to happen.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"...it is true that all alternative forms of political organization appear to be fighting a futile rearguard action against the liberal institutions and ideas first established in the United States in the late eighteenth century." (P.4)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">futile: pointless <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">reargaurd: any sort of offensive action

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Any other type of government is pointlessly fighting the new and improves system founded in he United States.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Chronology, so the saying goes, is the last refuge of the feeble-minded and only resort for historians." (P.18)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">chronology: in order <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">refuge: place of escape <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">feeble-minded: weak-minded

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Putting events in order is an escape for weak-minded historians. (This answers our question as to why he decided to put everything in random order!)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Caroline Clarke Job #3: Chapter Summary:

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> In the preface Ellis tells us about the struggle that the founding brothers went through in order to form America. Some thought it was manifest destiny that America removes it self from England, but either way it was risky, but they had faith that it would pay off. When Ellis talks about the struggle he acknowledges two opposing ways to view that pivotal moment in history when we became independent. The republican interpretation thought that our need to get away from British rule was what mainly brought us to becoming independent. The ‘Jeffersonian Interpretation’, which Ellis believes Jefforson and the other founding brothers worked together as a collective group because they knew that their actions would shape America. Ellis tells us that he believes that the personal relationships between the founding brothers was important because that forced them to use their emotions in deciding what was best, and they knew how to counteract and balance each other both personally and politically. He also believes that not making slavery a priority was important, because they needed to focus on forming America, and that could come at a later time. Finally, Ellis believes that knowing their actions would be analyzed by generations to come made the founding brother especially cautious and well-behaved while making the important decisions regarding America. Ellis is using the stories about said founding brothers and his analysis of them to prove these things to us.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Barry Dunn Job #4: Essential Quote ====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"What distinguishes the American Revolution from most, if not all, subsequent revolutions worth of the name is that in the battle for supremacy, for the "true meaning" of the Revolution, neither side completely triumphed. Here I do not just mean that the American Revolution did not "devour it's children" and lead to blood-soaked scenes at the guilloting or the firing squad wall, though that is true enough. Instead, I mean that the revolutionary generation found a way to contain the explosive energies of the debate in the form of an ongoing argument or dialogue that was eventually institutionalized and rendered safe by the creation of political parties" (Ellis, 15). ====

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sean Mann Job #5:
====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Several other prominent American revolutionaries also talked as if they were actors in a historical drama whose script had already been written by the gods"(pg 3, paragraph 2, line1) ==== ====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ellis does a good job of showing how arrogant the founding brothers a re. His viewpoint shows that although they shaped our country, they couldn't help but feel all powerful. ====

====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Hindsight, then is a tricky tool. Too much of it and we obscure the all-pervasive sense of contingency as well as the problematic character of the choices facing the revolutionary generation" (pg 6, paragraph 2, line 1). ==== ====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">He makes a valid point here that I would never have thought of. It gives the reader an enlightening sense of, "He is so right, if we know whats going to happen, it is hard to think of it in the founding brothers' eyes." ====

====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Historians have emphasized the several compromises the delegates in Philadelphia brokered to produce the constitutional consensus: the interest of large versus small states; federal versus state jurisdiction; the sectional bargain over slavery" (pg 9, paragraph 3, line 2) ==== ====<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ellis gives us the historians view to show one side, and then talks about the other. This way, he lets the reader make their choices while also conveying his viewpoints. ====

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">coerce: pg 7.2.13
=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">WEEK FIVE = <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Sean Mann Job #1

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Discussion questions <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 1. What would your reaction be if the only president you knew...left? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 2. Do you think Washington made the right choice taking two terms? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 3. What does this chapter reveal about our culture at the time? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 4. What does this chapter reveal about Jefferson? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 5. Is there anything you would have done differently as Washington? <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Evan Ruda Job #2


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"At the start he enjoyed an overwhelming majority and regarded his position as impregnable." (page 138)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">impregnable: incapable of being taken by assault.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> What Ellis is talking about here is that at first, most of the country was on his side about Jay's Treaty and he thought that with all the support he had, he couldn't possibly lose. Washington proved him wrong.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Hamilton also realized that he was being asked to write for posterity as much as present" (page 150)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">posterity: the offspring of one progenitor to the furthest generation

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Hamilton recognizes that in Washington's Farewell Address, he is responsible for writing not only about current issues, but issues that future generations will face.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"Jay's views of prospective English beneficence, like Jefferson's vies of French solidarity with America, were only seductive pieces of sentimentality, juvenile illusions in the real world of international relations." (page 152-153)

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">beneficence: doing or producing good; especially : performing acts of kindness and charity <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">solidarity: unity (as of a group or class) that produces or is based on community of interests, objectives, and standards <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">sentimentality: marked or governed by feeling, sensibility, or emotional idealism

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">What Ellis is trying to say is that two opposing viewpoints of a certain subject are irrelevant compared to the problem as a whole. In this specific case he talks about how Jay likes the British and how Jefferson likes the French, but in terms of international relations, individual opinions are not important.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ford B: Job #3

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">From 1776 through the first half the 1790's, George Washington was the symbol of American Politics. "A legend of his own time", Washington was often known as "the Father of the Country." By the time he was president, no other candidate was even considered. The truth is, when Washington freed the nation, the European powers expected him to assume dictatorship, or become the next Oliver Cromwell. When he didn't, and designed the role of the president, George III, his former enemy, called him "the greatest man of the century" In this chapter, George Washington refuses candidacy for a third term. In retrospect, we see this as a great precedent. But back then, it meant the Americans were on their own. It was unbelievable to anyone that after getting to where he was, he would just give it up. When George III heard word of him giving up that power, he called Washington "the greatest man in history".

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Caroline Clarke: Job #4 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Essential Quote: <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">"He summarily rejected their offer to become the American caesar and denounced the entire scheme as treason to the cause for which they had fought."

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This sums up George Washington and the impact that he had on the shaping of America. He knew that it was going to be hard for the people to have a new president, and that it would be easier if he just stayed in office. But he wanted to keep the founding of America wholesome, so left office when his time had come, and refused to stay any longer so that Amercia could stay far away from the monarcy that they fought to get independence from.

=<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Week Six =

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Evan Ruda Job #3

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">This weeks reading was about the relationship between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both before and during their time in office. Like most stories, our two "collaborators " started out as friends, both had promising political skills and Jefferson eventually became Secretary of State while Adams, became the Vice President under Washington. Adams hated his job because he thought he didn't do enough. He wasn't even allowed to speak before Congress. This is because during the few times that he did speak, he made a blasphemous suggestion; that the president be greeted as "his majesty". For the rest of his life, people thought him to be like a monarch because of this remark. Jefferson used this against Adams a lot in the press but it was a lost cause because in the first election, Adams placed first and Jefferson, placed second. During the first days under Adams, it looked as though their friendship would resume but Madison had to ruin it by intercepting a congratulations letter from Jefferson to Adams and made him reconsider sending it. However since Jefferson and Madison were both republicans, they didn't agree with Adam's Federalist decisions like his alliance with France. They organized anti-adams propaganda DURING his time as vice president. But that didn't hurt Adams, what did was the Alien Sedition Acts. The acts prevented distasteful speech towards the president which made him look like a king. Also, the acts increased the years that immigrants had to live in the country to become citizens, and deported foreigners from the country during peacetime. This poorly thought out decision lost Adams many voters and Jefferson easily beat him in the second election.