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to The Boisterous Sea of Liberty Teaching Guide
A
Land of Contrasts
Historical
Overview
The
most distinctive feature of colonial America was the diversity
of its population, which was a product of the way that the colonies
were originally settled. The earliest settlements were established
by commercial companies, religious organizations, and individual
entrepreneurs. In the mid-seventeenth century, the English government
adopted a more systematic approach to colonization; it annexed
New Netherlands and New Sweden and began to grant territory
to specific persons called proprietors. Some proprietors projected
utopian fantasies over the lands they were granted. Schemes
to set up feudal manors and Georgia's attempt to ban the importation
of hard liquor and slaves failed. To attract settlers, it proved
necessary to guarantee religious freedom, offer land grants,
and permit self-government through a representative assembly.
Debating
the Issues
1.
Why do you think that the Dutch, the English, and the French
scrambled to establish overseas colonies and trading posts during
the early seventeenth century? To ensure that they would not
be shut out of the New World by Spain and Portugal; to tap sources
of wealth.
2.
Foreign travelers were more impressed by the differences among
the colonists than their similarities. What linked them together?
In what ways were the colonies and colonists diverse? Linking
the colonists together was the absence of a titled aristocracy,
widespread ownership of land, and religious diversity. The colonies
were diverse in their economies, climate, and topography. The
colonists were ethnically, racially, religiously, and in the
source of their livelihood diverse.
3.
During the colonial period, slavery could be found in every
one of the 13 colonies. Why didn't slavery offend the colonists'
sense of morality? In part because they lived in a society in
which many people lived in situations of "unfreedom":
as indentured servants, apprentices, household servants.
4.
What were the English liberties that Americans kept demanding
for themselves? Limits on the power of government and protection
for individual liberties; certain basic political rights and
freedoms, including the right to self government, representative
assemblies, and rule of law.
What
If?
How
would American history have been different:
1.
If there had been no Indians in North America?
2.
If German settlers in the Middle Colonies had continued to speak
only German?
3.
If Indian peoples had uniformly supported the French?
Interpreting
Maps
Ask
your students to look closely at the map on page 86. What is
the picture of the various people supposed to illustrate? What
can this picture tell us about the values and attitudes of the
Dutch toward their colonial possessions?
The
picture shows Indian peoples and African slaves providing various
goods for the Dutch.
Making
Ethical Judgements
The
Zenger case helped establish the principle of freedom of the
press. Should there be limits to freedom of the press? Does
the principle of freedom of the press mean that newspapers should
be able to publish anything?
Analyzing
Primary Sources
Document
1
It
is useful for students to know the difference between capitalism
and mercantilism. Under capitalism, the production and pricing
of goods largely takes place as a result of competition within
a free market. Mercantilism, in contrast, seeks to increase
a nation's wealth through strict government regulation of the
economy. It usually involves the establishment of foreign trading
monopolies and development of agriculture and manufactures.
According to the mercantilist economist Thomas Mun, how can
colonies contribute to the wealth of nations?
By
reducing a nation's imports and encouraging shipping.
Documents
4-8
In
interactions between the English and neighboring Indian peoples,
power was not only on one side. Throughout the colonial period,
the English felt forced to deal with Indians as nations. Why
did the English find it necessary to negotiate with Native Americas?
To
establish military alliances against the France and to gain
access to furs.
Document
10
The
idea of religious tolerance is a relatively recent historical
development. As the example of the Quakers illustrates, even
in colonial America religious intolerance existed. A key question
that your students might want to ponder is how religious conflict
eventually grew into greater religious tolerance in the colonies.
This selection by William Penn, the Quaker leader, points to
a possible answer. On what grounds does Penn reject the idea
of religious uniformity?
He
argues that the quest for religious uniformity increases religious
dissent and discredits Protestantism.
Document
12
How
is the founding of Georgia an example of a noble ideal that
was overcome by human nature.
James
Ogelthorpe had a utopian vision of Georgia as a haven for
English debtors and persecuted European Protestants. A rational
plan for a good and orderly society was worked out on paper,
but the realities of human weakness, greed, rivalry, and conflict
with the Indians prevented it from working out in practice.
Document
13
Two
contradictory trends were at work in colonial America. On the
one hand, there was a growth of wealthy regional elites that
aped English manners and fashions. On the other hand, there
were growing claims of English liberties against all forms of
tyranny and subservience and mounting challenges to social deference.
How does the legal case involving Governor Joseph Dudley and
Thomas Trowbridge illustrate both of these trends?
Two
cartmen refuse to show deference to the Massachusetts governor
and are charged with insubordination. This case limited the
authority of public officials.
Document
15
Ask
students to define the word "redemptioner." What does
Mittelberger's account tell us about the plight of German redemptioners,
forced to sell themselves or their children into servitude in
order to pay for their passage to the New World.
Mittelberger
describes the sale of human beings in Philadelphia. In this
case, the people who were sold were not Africans, but Germans.
Document
16
Colonial
Americans were very familiar with a variety of forms of unfree
labor. Many youths, like Javin Toby, served a term of years
as servants or apprentices, which gave a highly charged meaning
to such words as liberty, freedom and tyranny. You might ask
your students how long Toby's indenture was supposed to last
and what restrictions he was supposed to obey.
Document
17
The
trial of Peter Zenger for seditious libel is a landmark in the
history of freedom of the press. What are some of the issues
raised by the Zenger case?
One
of the key issues raised by the case involves the freedom
of the press to print truthful criticisms of a public official.
The jury ruled that truth is not libelous.
What
does the article from Zenger's Weekly Journal in 1733 tell us
about popular attitudes?
That
the colonists considered themselves English citizens with
the rights and liberties guaranteed by English law and custom.
The article underscores the popular suspicion of arbitrary
and unchecked power.
Document
19
One
of the greatest challenges that historians face is trying to
determine what actually happened in the face of contradictory
or ambiguous evidence. Even today, no one knows for sure whether
there was a concerted plan among slaves in New York in 1741
to burn down the city. What do your students think: Was there
a conspiracy to commit arson, or did civic official exaggerate
the threat? Did the fear of a Spanish invasion and severe food
shortages lead New Yorkers to overreact to isolated fires?
Document
20
Why
does Benjamin Franklin believe that the American population
is growing much faster than Europe's?
In
contrast to Europe, which was fully settled, an abundance
of land in America meant that even a laborer could establish
a farm, marry at an early age, and have more children than
his European counterpart.
On
what grounds does Franklin criticize the institution of slavery
and foreign immigration?
He
contends that slavery is inefficient because slaves lack incentives
to work hard and he criticizes foreign immigration because
he wants a homogeneous population.
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