In the small section, Debating the Past, the book discusses that many believe that the American Revolution was not as much a fight for freedom as it was a clash between social classes. This idea connects the Revolutionary War and the economic tensions it caused to social problems, claiming that mobs and rebellions broke out due to the war. In addition, the debate about slaves, minorities, and women became a growing controversy against the Declaration of Independence and its signers. Representatives from all 13 colonies signed the declaration and many of these men had clashing beliefs that questioned their principles.
While studying the Revolutionary War, many historians believed that the war was more social than it was an actual fight for independence from Britain. In the reading Carl Becker says on the revolution, "The first was the question of home rule; the second was the question...of who should rule at home." This suggests that the 13 colonies were not only fighting the British, but having political and economical problems as well. Also, these historians say that the economic pressures is what caused the colonists to be so rebellious, so in a way the new taxes Britain put on the colonies to raise revenue, hurt the British because these taxes are what created the economic pressures.
Although the Revolution was not caused solely on the conflicts between social classes, the Revolution had a major impact on the social classes and society in general. The war brought up huge debates with Native Americans, slaves, and women. Britain's Proclamation of 1763 forbade the colonists from settling past the Appalachian Mountains, however during and after the war, the colonists started settling in Native American territory. During the war, most Native Americans stayed out of the war, but some tribes joined Britain and attacked the colonies. Once America had won the war, the demand for more land rose and Native Americans were forced to give up their land. The Patriots treated the Native Americans as conquered, so they had no regard for their land. Native Americans were given less land and less power, but the idea of slavery became a huge controversy. Some of the same signers of the Declaration of Independence, that said that all men are created equal, also owned slaves. These men justified their actions saying that slaves are not men, but property. After the war, many northern states abolished slavery, but the South continued to believe that African-Americans were inferior and not citizens. Ultimately, the Revolution helped slaves gain freedom, but for a while, slavery existed. The colonies had slaves and fought for freedom, but they eventually abolished slavery, so do you think that slavery and the fight for freedom could exist together?
In addition to slavery, women's rights became a new topic of conversation. Before the Revolution, women had no rights at all. They could not vote, had no legal authority over her children, or could not issue a divorce. The Revolution helped give women more rights and it helped people change the way they thought about women's roles in society and in family. Do you think that if the Revolution never happened, would the ideas about slavery and women have changed? Or would slavery and rights of women stayed the same?
In response to your first question, the American Revolution was the change that slaves needed in order to effect change in their situation. The revolution changed the structure of American society from a set of colonies dependent of the crown to a republican country that had different ideals. Societal change spurs more societal change, and, in the case of the revolution, the ideologues who valued liberty and who questioned, especially in Philadelphia, the repressive policies of the British Parliament also later questioned the validity of the concept of slavery. Even though slavery existed in the south in the nineteenth century, the ideological change that occurred in the United States during the Revolution accelerated the emancipation of African-American slaves from their white owners, both in the North and later in the South. Liberty for all American people, including slaves, was only an extension of the Revolutionary concept that Americans should have individual freedoms.
ReplyDeleteSo you think that America needed the Revolution in order to change their ideals? That the Revolution was necessary for America's change in their views on women and slavery?
ReplyDeleteJason,
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that the answer to the question, "Do you think that slavery and the fight for freedom could exist together?" is clearly yes, since as a matter of fact they did exist together; slave owners were among the leaders of the revolutionary movement. So the more difficult question is something like, how could they exist together? Or perhaps, how stable is that coexistence?
Jason, you said the revolution helped women to gain rights, when in reality it took them away. Under English common law, women had few rights before marriage and absolutely none after. They were prohibited from all legal transactions. The Revolution provided no change, and took away a widow's right to regain her dowry after the death of her husband. While during the revolution itself gave women the opportunity to break from their stereotypical roles, they soon returned to them when it ended. However, women did begin to question these roles, and their very ability to doubt them creates change.
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