November 2011 Archives

The Political Spectrum - From Left to Right and In-Between Remember that the terms "left" and "right" to describe political views dates back to factions that sat together in the Legislative Assembly hall. Then, the "radicals" sat on the left, a term used today for those who typically are more in favor of change, the liberals. On the right were the "conservatives," the term we still use today for those more likely to want fewer changes. In the center were the moderates.

Let's take a minute to see where you fall. First, I'll show you a political spectrum and invite you to guess where you will end up. Then, you can take a quiz and see where your answers place you.  There are many versions on-line, but we'll take the "World's Smallest Political Quiz." (Note that the survey is hosted on a libertarian political site. The survey itself, however, is developed to be non-partisan and has been taken more than 15 million times.) We'll walk through the questions together to make sure everyone understands them.

Napoleon: PBS Video - I've mentioned it before, but PBS really does an excellent job with their websites that accompany shows they produce. Here are some of the features from their series on Napoleon that you should check out.

"Beginning at the left on the Polish-Russian border near the Niemen River, the thick band shows the size of the army (422,000 men) as it invaded Russia in June 1812. The width of the band indicates the size of the army at each place on the map. In September, the army reached Moscow, which was by then sacked and deserted, with 100,000 men. The path of Napoleon's retreat from Moscow is depicted by the darker, lower band, which is linked to a temperature scale and dates at the bottom of the chart. It was a bitterly cold winter, and many froze on the march out of Russia. As the graphic shows, the crossing of the Berezina River was a disaster, and the army finally struggled back into Poland with only 10,000 men remaining. Also shown are the movements of auxiliary troops, as they sought to protect the rear and the flank of the advancing army. Minard's graphic tells a rich, coherent story with its multivariate data, far more enlightening than just a single number bouncing along over time. Six variables are plotted: the size of the army, its location on a two-dimensional surface, direction of the army's movement, and temperature on various dates during the retreat from Moscow" (p. 40).

HOMEWORK for next session - Monday, November 21st

Please begin your reading in Chapter 24, "Nationalist Revolutions Sweep the West," with Section 1, "Latin American Peoples Win Independence." (pp. 681 -  686)

Your Napoleon Bonaparte acrostic (as well as the other two) should be posted before class time on Tuesday. Post as a comment to this entry. 

We're still looking at the Unit #5 Exam the week after next. I'll have more information about the format during Monday's class.

HOMEWORK for tomorrow - Friday, November 18th 

Please finish your reading in Chapter 23 with Section 5, "The Congress of Vienna," (pp. 672 -  675)  for tomorrow.

• Are you ready to present? (1 point)
• Are you speaking on the correct side and obeying the time guidelines? (1 point)
• Is you thesis (or overall position) clear? (1 point)
• Do you make and support a first relevant claim/argument? (1 point)
• Do you make and support a second relevant claim/argument? (1 point)

• Resolved: The British were justified in expecting American colonists to pay for a greater share of Britain's North American war debts.
• Resolved: The American Revolution would not have happened without the Enlightenment.
• Resolved: The causes of the American Revolution were more economic than political.
• Resolved: Thomas Jefferson and the Americans were justified in declaring independence from the British and King George III.
• Resolved: John Locke would have supported the actions of the American colonists throughout the American Revolution.
• Resolved: The conflict between the colonists and the British was a "war for independence," not a true revolution.
• Resolved: The colonists' victory in the American Revolution was a remarkable upset of a much stronger opponent.
• Resolved: The "Founding Fathers" are hypocrites for not ending slavery in the Constitution.
• Resolved: The Constitution failed to fulfill the Declaration of Independence's statement that "all men are created equal."
• Resolved: The Bill of Rights is a document of greater historical significance than the Declaration of Independence.
  

The French Revolution: Throughout the 18th century, France was generally considered the most advanced country in Europe. Through a combination of factors, they found themselves in the midst of a revolution and "reign of terror" as the century came to a close. We'll look at these events, as well as the rule of Napoleon which follows, from a variety of perspectives. Initially, we'll introduce a "model" for revolution and see how well it fits here.

Crane Brinton - The Anatomy of Revolution In his 1938 book, Harvard historian Crane Brinton argued that a revolution was a process where power was overthrown and which passed through particular phases. He likened it to the process of a fever, leading some to call it a "fever chart" for revolution. In his book, he analyzed the English Civil War, American Revolution, French Revolution and Russian Revolution.

You can download a description of the Brinton model for revolutions. I'll give you a handout with this description, as well as another, slightly different description of Brinton's stages of revolution. I'm also going to give you a larger sheet of paper. Working in a pair or on your own, I want you to test the model's value in analyzing the French Revolution.

• Read through the "phases and symptoms" on the handout.
• Sketch out a fever chart on the paper provided for you.
• Decide where you think the "phases" should fall along the fever chart.
• Label you chart with at least fifteen (or more) specific events from Chapter 23's first two sections. (NOTE: You probably won't be all the way to the far, right end of your fever chart. The events from the time of Napoleon are yet to come.)

HOMEWORK for tomorrow - Thursday, November 17th 

1. British: In 1651, the British Parliament passed the Navigation Act. (textbook)
2. British: In 1765, the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act.
3. Americans: In the summer of 1765, the "Sons of Liberty" used a variety of tactics to undermine the Stamp Act.
4. Americans: The colonists accuse the British King of "taxation without representation." (textbook)
5. British: In 1770, British soldiers fire into a rioting crowd in what comes to be known as the "Boston Massacre."
6. Americans: In 1773, a group of colonists dump a load of British tea in to Boston Harbor. (textbook)
7. British: The port of Boston is closed down by the British navy in response to the "Boston Tea Party."
8. Americans: In September of 1774, the First Continental Congress protests the treatment of Boston.
9. BOTH: On April 19, 1775, gunfire is exchanged at Lexington and Concord. (textbook)
10. Americans: In July of 1776, the Declaration of Independence is issued. (textbook)

• What caused the American Revolution?
  

• As you read the document, identify its three main parts. They are the preamble, the list of grievances, and the formal declaration of war. Mark these parts somehow.
• Thomas Jefferson chose to begin the Declaration with the words, "The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America." Do you feel this was necessary? Why or why not?
• Find three examples of Thomas Jefferson's use of the ideas of the Enlightenment. Mark them.
• What is Jefferson's view of the "social contract?" According to Jefferson, what was the purpose of government? What does Jefferson suggest should happen whenever government becomes "destructive of the ends for which it was created?" According to Jefferson, how do governments derive their powers?
• Jefferson noted that "all men are created equal," suggesting that this was "self evident." Speculate as to what he meant by that statement. What sorts of conflicts and misconceptions may have stemmed from this statement?
• Look at the list of grievances that Jefferson lists as reasons that the King has violated the natural rights of the colonists. Below, list the three grievances that you feel are the worst violations. Explain why you believe them to be important.
• John Locke died in 1704, over 70 years before Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. In your estimate, would Locke be happy with the way Jefferson used his Two Treatises to justify independence from Britain, which was Locke's native country? Why or why not?

• Resolved: The British were justified in expecting American colonists to pay for a greater share of Britain's North American war debts.
• Resolved: The American Revolution would not have happened without the Enlightenment.
• Resolved: The causes of the American Revolution were more economic than political.
• Resolved: Thomas Jefferson and the Americans were justified in declaring independence from the British and King George III.
• Resolved: John Locke would have supported the actions of the American colonists throughout the American Revolution.
• Resolved: The conflict between the colonists and the British was a "war for independence," not a true revolution.
• Resolved: The colonists' victory in the American Revolution was a remarkable upset of a much stronger opponent.
• Resolved: The Articles of Confederation were a sound basis for the American governmental system.
• Resolved: The United States would have benefited more had the Anti-Federalists won control.
• Resolved: The "Founding Fathers" are hypocrites for not ending slavery in the Constitution.
• Resolved: The Constitution failed to fulfill the Declaration of Independence's statement that "all men are created equal."
• Resolved: The Bill of Rights is a document of greater historical significance than the Declaration of Independence.