Summary Of Joseph J. Ellis The Silence In Founding Brothers

The founding fathers, or as the book calls them the founding brothers, are an assorted group of men from wildly different backgrounds. In political terms, they were divided. Yet, they came to together to help shape this country into the place it is today. Now on their journey towards the making of this country they did encounter some trouble. They encountered heated debates among themselves though for getting through these debates they show just why they deserve to be called, founding brothers.

“The beginning of the Civil War marked the beginning of the end of slavery in the American South” (Berlin, 3). The Civil War started from opposing states’ opinions; the South thrived on slavery’s economic impact while the North opposed the institution. The issue of slavery divided the nation, and the contrasting views of the anti-abolitionists and abolitionists caused the war to occur. Slavery’s impact in the United States started in the 1600’s, and the large influence made the process of ending the enslavement of blacks more difficult. The Emancipation Proclamation served as an important government document, containing controversial ideas about abolishing slavery. Lincoln issued the

In the book Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis, the author relates the stories of six crucial historic events that manage to capture the flavor and fervor of the revolutionary generation and its great leaders. While each chapter or story can be read separately and completely understood, they do relate to a broader common theme. One of Ellis' main purposes in writing the book was to illustrate the early stages and tribulations of the American government and its system through his use of well blended stories. The idea that a republican government of this nature was completely unprecedented is emphasized through out the book. Ellis discusses the unique problems that the revolutionary generation experienced as a result of governing under the

“’One section of our country believes slavery is right, and ought to be extended, while the other believes it is wrong, and ought to be restricted. That,’ he said with a touch of irony, ‘is the only substantial dispute’” (Oakes 140). People bickered whether or not Lincoln was doing the right thing by signing the Emancipation

The north and south have been arguing over slavery since 1787 when the constitution was first signed and our government as we know it came to be. Before the westward expansion in new unexplored territory began in the United States, it was understood that the Ohio River and Mason-Dixon line would be the boundary between free and slave states. Westward expansion was a very important thing to the United States during this time. The incorporation of new states in the newer, western territory made slavery a full-frontal concern of national politics. “As the free society of the North and the slave society of the South spread westward, it seemed politically expedient to maintain a rough equality among the new states carved out of western territories,” (Alchin, Linda). Balancing the amount of slave and free states was a significant matter to both the northern and the southern political leaders. When Alabama first joined the Union in 1819, it made the political power between free and slave states completely equal, which made political leaders from both sides happy.

Soon after Jefferson’s secret meeting, Quakers from both New York and Philadelphia set up petitions to the House of Representatives asking for what had already been declared unavailable; an end to the African slave trade. At the constitutional convention, Congress had stated that they couldn’t ban the slave trade until the year 1808 since the federal government couldn’t tamper with the slave trade until twenty years after the nation’s birth. James Madison rose as the voice of reason during this predicament. Madison’s main idea was that if the problem was treated routinely with minimum commotion, the problem would just fade away. Jackson had made evident that the challenge towards the constitution made it seem that the opposition to the slave trade had linked to the end of slavery.

Abraham Lincoln is the first Republican president that announced that he wanted to keep slavery out of the territories but he respected slavery where it had already existed. Several southern states seceded and formed the Confederate States of America. The northerners refused to acknowledge the secession because they believed it was illegal and illegitimate. Abraham Lincoln wanted to save the Union in the fastest possible way. He believed as soon as national authority was reestablished, the nation would become the Union it was once before. The main goal was to preserve the unity of the America and whether slavery is saved or destroyed depended if it helps save the Union. Even before the civil war ended, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. Emancipation was not initially a war aim but by the summer of 1862, in order to win support in Europe, the government made abolition an objective. By January of 1863, the Proclamation stated that all slaves in areas of rebellion against the United States, shall then be freed of bondage. Although this was only a start to the political and social transformation in America, it was the start of revolutionizing the social and political status of blacks. Eventually, black males were granted proper social and political rights such as the right to vote and the right to own land (Doc 1, Garraty 398-399).

During the early 1800s, the United States was a new county and constantly expanded westward. Each time the borders of the country changed, the issue of slavery occurred because the north and the south disputed over whether the territory was a free state or a slave state. (Background) Henry Clay, a Kentucky congressman, created the Missouri Compromise addressed the issue of admitting states into the country as either a free or a slave state. However, this dilemma still persisted, therefore, the Compromise of 1850, involving congressmen Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Stephen A. Douglass, and John C. Calhoun, replaced the Missouri Compromise. This issue incited fear, conflict, and danger into the minds of southerners and northerners. In the 1800s, slavery economically effected everyone’s lives and hence, the northerners feared the expansion of slavery threatened their economic well-being, whereas, the southerners feared the termination of slavery endangered their economic status.

Shortly after Thomas Jefferson's dinner arrangement, petitions were sent to the House of Representatives that called for an end to the African slave trade business. Many members of the house were bewildered with these concerns and the Southern representatives opted to ignore the question and encouraged the rest of the House to do the same. The Southerners described the "Quakers" who purposed the question as cowards who didn't fight for independence, and insisted Congress was not allowed to pass laws to end slave trade until much later. The matter was soon out of their control anyways. Benjamin Franklin had signed a different petition that called for the ending of slavery altogether, which was written by the Pennsylvania Abolition Society. This made it hard for the House of Representatives to ignore the situation, which opened up the House to openly confront each other about the situation and course of action. The Constitution, however, postponed any laws about slavery until 1808. Ellis proceeded with implying that the question of slavery and the morality of it cause an inevitable divide that increased with each postponement of the matter. This division continued until the Civil War which separated the U.S. geographically as well because of the South being adamant for pro-slavery and the North being supportive of anti-slavery. Thomas Jefferson was based on how all men are created equal and believed that slavery should not be able to expand to Western territories. His influence in Virginia allowed all slave owners to free their slaves at their own discretion. However, Madison was less convincing as being idealistic because he did not fully support anti-slavery, saying that the practice was immoral, but he did not do anything to push for a federal law, but instead should be decided by the individual states. Both sides were equally passionate, which cause the extended

The American Revolution had many players that made it a successful revolution. The American Revolution began in 1760’s, the author separates this memorable events in history into different chapters following the 1787 Constitutional Convention. The key player in the book are Aaron Burr, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Each of these men contributed greatly during the American Revolution, with these men greatness each came across challenges against each other once in history. Some of the founding brothers serve both their country in battle and through their legislation for the people. The main

To begin, the founder’s lives influenced the compromises made in the Constitution by having their and other people’s lifestyles be contributed to by slaves, even if they were eventually against it. During the early years of the United States, slavery played a big role in the building of our nation. While there were people in the North of the U.S who had opposed slavery, the people in the South had supported it because of how they had viewed people of color and how the slaves contributed to field and housework. Though some of our Founding Fathers had eventually spoken against slavery, they had still owned them at a point in their lives because of how society was constructed in that time.

Throughout the history of mankind, slavery has existed in one form or another. Since the times of ancient civilizations to modern era subjugations, there have forces who feel strongly of its necessity and purpose, while others have devoted themselves to seeing the ideas and acts of slavery abolished. America is not an exception to the concept of slavery and during the nation’s early history, parties from both sides have been made famous for their beliefs in the continuation or the denouncement of slavery in the United States. To understand the contrasting views of pro-slavery advocates versus abolitionists in antebellum America, a comparison of the individual positions must be made to further understand the goals of each party.

One of the most, if not the most, controversial and heated debates following the United States independence was regarding the institution of slavery. In the introduction to his book Half Slave and Half Free, Bruce Levine quotes Carl Schurzs’ observation as the “slave question not being a mere occasional quarrel between two sections of the country divided by a geographic line, but a great struggle between two antagonistic systems of social organization (p.15)”. The Nouthern states that allowed slavery benefited from the agricultural labor that those slaves provided. The Northern states that prohibited slavery did so for moral and pragmatic reasons; they felt it was morally wrong to deny another human any form of rights, and did not like the economic advantage it gave to the Southern states. With the use of slavery largely concentrated in the South, the movement against it came from the North and was led by abolitionists; those who were committed to bringing an end to the practice. In this course we have defined “Practice” as the conduct of policy, such as opinion, election, parties and law-making (Lecture). We define Policy as the goals of politics, those being sovereignty, defense, and a collective well-being (Lecture). The following analytical essay will examine antislavery sentiment and practices in the Northern states and the reaction of Southern states. Additionally how the pressures from both sides influenced the Policy of the United States following independence then

The freedom of America’s slaves has always been accredited to Abraham Lincoln, but he was not always the complete abolitionist as he is commonly portrayed. The “house divided”, as Lincoln depicts it in his famous ‘House Divided’ speech, of the United States during the Civil War, was not always lead towards the freedom of all mankind, and there is sufficient evidence to support this claim. The sixteenth president is most commonly remembered for inducing the courage and determination to end the Civil War, with the Emancipation Proclamation, although when it more closely studied he did not cross the great divide of enslavement vs. freedom with the submittal of that fabled document. When following the many famous quotes and speeches of Lincoln’s life, it appears that he was against all slavery and bondage. Although when they are more closely examined, the quotes and speeches actually leaned towards his lack of strong opinion on the outcome of slavery. Lincoln is perceived as the most famous revolutionary of American history, but he does not live up to his legacy of being the eradicator of forced servitude.

In the third story called The Silence, the author makes a point of the question of slavery being silenced and almost causing America to be destroyed. On February 11, 1790, two Quakers called for a petition to the House of Representatives to put an end to African slave trade. A Representative from Georgia named James Jackson was appalled by this petition. He argued that these Quakers were infamous innocents incessantly disposed to drip their precious purity like holy water over everyone else's sins (81). Another Representative that was angered by this petition was William Loughton Smith from South Carolina, who sided with James Jackson. The Quakers ignored the attack of this petition by the southern politicians. Turns out a petition signed by Benjamin Franklin over the abolishment of slavery was brought up and he is someone you can't ignore and this issue had to be addressed. James Madison under the leadership of the House of representatives quickly formed committees to debate the next course of action even though he tried to avoid the question of slavery. One side was for slavery expanding into new territories and another side was against slavery expanding and wanted it abolished. Unfortunately, no sides would be able to come to an agreement so Madison convinced the only way to keep the country from civil war was to declare it unsolvable and table it for at least 20 years. The issue of slavery was ignored until 1808.