Gordon S. Wood's The Radicalism Of The American Revolution

Gordon Wood’s Radicalism of the American Revolution is a book that extensively covers the origin and ideas preceding the American Revolution. Wood’s account of the Revolution goes beyond the history and timeline of the war and offers a new encompassing look inside the social ideology and economic forces of the war. Wood explains in his book that America went through a two-stage progression to break away from the Monarchical rule of the English. He believes the pioneering revolutionaries were rooted in the belief of an American Republic. However, it was the radical acceptance of democracy that was the final step toward independence. The transformation between becoming a Republic, to ultimately becoming a democracy, is where Wood’s

First Generations: Women in Colonial America delivers a broad analysis over American women in the colonial period. It is evident that married women in colonial America were not considered equal to their husbands or to society in general. The rights of American women have come a long way in regards to civil rights. The control a woman in early Colonial America had over her own life was linked to race, religion, and class. Berkin organizes the first chapters according to race and region. Other chapters are organized by African American women, New England, and the middle colonies, Native American Women, and white women in the Chesapeake. Within each chapter, Berkin gives details about one woman from the region. European, Indian, and African women of seventeenth and eighteenth-century America were protectors of their native land, pioneers on the frontier, like-minded immigrants, and courageous slaves. They were also, as most scholars tend to leave out, just as important as men in shaping American culture and history.

The American Revolution was a war that happened between 1775-1783 where the 13 colonies in America gained independence from Great Britain and became the United States of America. Over time there have been several different historical interpretations about the causes of the American Revolution. Many of these interpretations lack evidence or provide a very one sided claim. The best explanation for the causes of the American Revolution out of the 5 passages provided is “A Democratic Movement” written by Robert Brown because it had the most historical evidence to back the explanation.

In regards to the American Revolution, the point that armed rebellion became inevitable arrived when after nearly five constant years of American colonist protesting. American 's had enough and needed to take a stand for the numerous inequalities they were forced to deal with. It was foreseeable that the American Revolution took place due to the unfair taxes that the British were giving Americans. Also, England was not allowing Americans their freedom, along with violence and the political dominance by the Parliament over the colonies by announcing the Stamp Act in 1765, which happened to nearly affect all Americans tremendously.

Bailyn, Bernard. The Ideological Origins of the American Revolutions. Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1992.

Chapter 7 of Alan Taylor’s American Revolutions begins by describing the tense state of affairs between American Patriots and Native Indians in 1775. Both sides feared the other and were determined not to let their enemy defeat them. The Patriots were angry with the British for seeking alliance with the Indians, compromising their “racial solidarity”, in order to gain a military advantage. The Natives believed that American independence would be the catalyst for their downfall into slavery and landlessness. The author moves on to say that this was not the case with all tribes. For example, weak bands of Indians in the Carolinas allied with Patriots and fought in their army in hopes for protection after the war. However, the reality was that

Between 1770 and 1776, resistance to imperial change turned into a full-on revolution. The American Revolution, also known as the Revolutionary War, was a time of revolting and political uprising, in which the 13 colonies separated from the British Empire, forming the independent nation known as the United States of America. Though the American Revolution began because the colonies wanted independence from Britain, many important historical events and revolts also lead to the tensions and resistance to what resulted in freedom and independence for the colonies from British rule. Events such as the Stamp and Sugar Acts, the Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party, Intolerable Acts, and the Continental Congress led to expanding tensions and soon to the outbreak of the American Revolution.

Philip D. Morgan argues that although masters continued to “emphasize order and authority, they were more inclined emphasize their solicitude toward and generous treatment of their dependents.” (Morgan). With this being said, it exemplifies that not only did the apparent shift affect slaves, but also the master’s children. In a typical 18th century household, the man saw over everyone,

“The revolution was effected before the war commenced. The revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people.” - John Adams, 1818

1. Historians of the American Revolution have disagreed on whether to characterize the revolution as radical or Conservative. Compare and contrast the arguments of Bernard Bailyn and Gordon Wood and make and build an argument for which interpretation is most convincing.

The American Revolution is typically looked at as a conservative movement, but it seems most of the actions taken were very radical. They were fighting to defend their rights, governed and natural. The American Revolution was as radical as any other revolution, in a special 18th century way, and this seems to hold true while looking at the new waves of thinking. It involves the Whigs and Tories, and while they are at opposite sides of the spectrum, they consecutively agreed to not address and higher-law principles so they would not have to rework their entire system.. The Revolution worked against this, and the parties chose to pretend it was not a serious movement and act, as they believed it would not take any effect. More people got involved and all aspects of life began to be questioned and revolutionized. The Revolution seems to be radical in a more definitive way as it caused segregation of beliefs, the Declaration of independence, and

war, it is a sign of radical action. Britains' army was four times as big

Leading up to the American Revolution, were a chain of events that created a spark in the colonists to obtain independence from Great Britain. The American Revolution could not be tied to one single event but instead by the feelings and determination brought on by this chain of disgraceful actions. Gordon S. Wood explains what he believes caused the rebellion of the American colonists from Great Britain and how those causes help explain the outcomes of the revolution in his essay, “Radical Possibilities of the American Revolution.” Wood argues that the colonists were motivated to rebel against the British monarchy due to their need to preserve their liberties and through this revolution a radical change in government and American life occurred.

The American Revolution is considered a story of great success and perseverance of the colonists. It is full of grand battles and hard working soldiers, who fought against the Empire of Great Britain in order to gain the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This is the story that most Americans know and it is certainly what is taught in elementary and middle schools. Howard Zinn, author of A People's History of the United States, castigates this idea. In fact, he tells a very different story. Zinn believes that instead of a great fight for freedom, the American Revolution was full of inequality of rights, lack of American war effort and injustices in the Constitution.

While looking at families across the centuries of time, one reoccurring theme seemed to appear. It was the idea of a household being run by a man. Everything in the house, from his wife to the furniture and food, belonged to him. Even in recent ages, we can see this idea of the man being the bread winner and the women being at home taking care of the kids and house. Although this might not be the case in all cultures, most societies believed in the idea of a “paterfamilias,” which roughly means “fathers family” in Latin (added the meaning to the end of the sentence). The idea of “paterfamilias” is explored in Mary Beth Norton’s novel Founding Mothers and Fathers: Gender Power and the Forming of American