Religious Motivation As Depicted In Thomas Jefferson's Portrait Of America

The revered and respected first president, George Washington, gave the US hope during one of its most difficult times. Using the events and circumstances of his life to learn and advance his position, he grew from humble beginnings into a legend. George Washington had a valuable, well-rounded education from ages seven to fifteen, studying all the subjects (Nevins and Graff). Due to his father’s death, George grew up under the supervision of his half-brother Lawrence at Mount Vernon, learning many lessons and developing thoughts, actions, and manners he used later in life (Nevins and Graff). He worked as a surveyor for his first career and learned the benefits of hard work, endurance, and resourcefulness (Nevins and Graff). After Lawrence died, George took over running the family plantation and found farming an honorable, delectable, amusing, and profitable occupation (Nevins and Graff). Standing six feet tall with broad shoulders, Washington cultivated a lavish lifestyle of dancing, cards, billiards, and hunting as a prominent and active member in his community and church (Nevins and Graff). George Washington started his military career in November of 1752, and in 1755 he took the position as commander of all the Virginian troops at the young age of 23 years (Nevins and Graff). Washington desired more honor and respect than he received, so he resigned from the military in the fall of 1758 full of frustration (Nevins and Graff). War moved slowly, troops did not receive enough

Over the past few weeks of class, we have covered the first five chapters of our textbook, written by George Brown Tindell and David Emory Shi called, “America, A Narrative History.” Each chapter told the reader a narration of the history of America, as opposed to an expository version of America’s history. Each chapter had its own main idea over a portion of history, along with many details that cover the importance of the main idea. As a reader, one may obtain a deeper appreciation for the country 's history, prior to entering the class on the first day. The most important aspect of history, besides the battles that are fought, is the different cultures that make up today’s modern America.

During the early formation of our nation, many great authors were putting their thoughts and feelings down on paper. These early American writers were the foundation upon which the literary culture of America was founded. Among these are the early writings of John Smith, Anne Bradstreet and Thomas Jefferson. Their writings were completed during a time of exploration and colonization characterized by many historical political and cultural transitions, and their literature accurately describes the events of that period. The literary works of these important authors convey the hardships that they experienced in a new land, as well as the evolution of the government and culture.

The lack of “imperial chains” caused the Revolution’s effects, compared to drastic well-known revolutions, to be small (Wood 127). But the quick colonization of America over just a few centuries driven by the motivation of religious freedom and escape from persecution translated to the radical idea of equality and independence in men and later the abolishment of slavery and the support of women’s rights (132, 129). This battle caused America to unify against a common enemy and transformed the landscape of individual colonies to an interconnected continent with radically different social relationships and mindset

The introduction of George Washington and the explanation of how much of an unorganized, unruly bunch of soldiers he was stuck with in the Continental Army was definitely one of the most interesting parts of the book. I realized in reading this, how little I actually knew about Washington. The author describes him in such a way that gives you the understanding of why people were drawn to follow him. Nathaniel Green and Henry Knox were just as important as Washington throughout the war, Knox especially in the in the success of removing the British from Boston. His heroic effort of bring cannons and munitions form Fort Ticonderoga to Boston was a tremendous achievement. It’s hard to imagine the difficulty in successfully being able to achieve something like that. Both Knox and Greene were almost entirely self educated. Knox owned a book store and was married to a woman named Lucy Flucker whose father was royal secretary of the province and even arranged for Knox to be commissioned in the British army, but he declined, which to me, showed how incredibly loyal he was to his country .

Whether we would like to admit it or not, slavery is a part of American history. Benjamin Banneker was aware that slavery was and is a terrible thing and took a step during these times to write Thomas Jefferson. When writing him he used a few rhetorical devices including religious appeal, emotional diction, and repetition.

History is the framework of every nation. It describes what life was like in a nation, hundreds perhaps thousands of years previously. With history, many citizens are able to examine what lead to a crisis in a nation such as the Stock Market Crash of 1929 or the Civil War in the 1800s in the United States of America. Likewise, the moments of growth and economic success are looked at. From these past endeavors, the people can examine what went wrong and what went right and determine how they can stop themselves from making similar mistakes or act in a way that has been proven to work. In Eve Kornfeld’s “Creating an American Culture 1775-1800,” many different areas of national identity are discussed, including the beginnings of documenting the history of America as an independent nation. This was especially hard for Americans to create a singular national identity because there was bias in the early works, the different colonies or states were extremely diverse, and many intellectuals had different perspectives on the American identity.

The following chapters portray the sections of Washington life when he was a soldier, his days as a general, and his duty as the president. The book details the military plights Washington faced as a leader. Ellis says that Washington “lost more battles than he won; indeed, he lost more battles than any victorious general in modern history.” The War for Independence emerged as the most significant milestone in George Washington's life, a time in which he evolved into a grown man, a notorious politician, and a national icon. Ellis does not take us through each battle in detail, but describes the events that shaped Washington’s life and made him a human

Everyone knows George Washington as the first president, but most people do not know his other roles in the creation of the United States of America. In Joseph J. Ellis’s book, His Excellency George Washington, Ellis tells about Washington’s life. He includes his time as a general in the Revolutionary War, his life in retirement after the war, and also his time as the president. Ellis’s main focus in the book is to paint a picture for the reader so it almost feels like they are right next to Washington as his life is explained. The information in his book allows for readers to have a better understanding of what Washington went through in his life and also ,at times, gives educated guesses on what Washington might have been thinking. Through this book, it is easy to see why George Washington is referred to as one of the greatest Americans to ever live.

Keene, J., Cornell, S., & O'Donnell, E. (2013). Visions of America: A history of the United States. (2nd ed.) Upper Saddle, NJ: Pearson.

During 1789, the year George Washington was elected president of the United States, he appointed Thomas Jefferson to be the secretary of State during his time in office. Jefferson was a man who believed that the government should not be in any part of the citizens’ lives during a period in time where America was trying to break away from Great Britain’s ways. He was a man who wanted the government to stay out of his business and worry about problems that had to do with the country and not individual states. He believed in a small government, a weak army, and an agricultural society. He also had a “rivalry” of some sorts with Alexander Hamilton who disagreed with every belief that Jefferson had. Jefferson was also the author of the Declaration of Independence. He was a believer in running your own household the way you wanted to run in. His vision was a country where you have a government that stay out of problems that weren’t worth getting into like state problems and a country where the people would live a life of freedom and prosperity.

     When the Federalist party was organized in 1791, those people who favored a strong central government and a loose constitutional interpretation coagulated and followed the ideals of men such as Alexander Hamilton. The first opposition political party in the United States was the Republican party, which held power, nationally, between 1801 and 1825. Those who were in favor of states rights and a strict construction of the constitution fell under the leadership of Thomas Jefferson. These Jeffersonian republicans, also known as anti-federalists, believed in strict adherence to the writings of the constitution. They wanted state’s rights and individual rights, which they believed could only be granted under

This essay will examine the rise of “modern America”, there were economic, religious, and aspect of life changes took place and it was greatly changed the Americans society’s perceptions, specifically, the north and the south. The rise of “modern America” was greatly motivated immigrants to come to the United States for economic opportunity, industrialization in the North after the civil war created new businesses and job regulations, and the demand for social changes; all of these factors shaped America socially, politically, and economically.

Tindall, George Brown, David E. Shi, and Charles W. Eagles. America a Narrative History. 10th ed. Vol. 1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2004.

In the mid 1600’s, Puritan pastors began preaching a different sermon. It was based on the teachings of the biblical prophet, Jeremiah, and known as the jeremiad. An intense change in the church led to the creation of the Half-Way Covenant. It erased the segregation between the converted and non-converted members of society. Many believe this arrangement diluted the religious values of the church because it intermingled the sinners with the saved. (Cengage Learning , 2013)