Done

I just took my last exam for History 350 (American Revolution) and i have to say it was awesome. I learned so much about that time period that i think i could write a book, or at least a long essay. Oh wait, i did that already! I am pretty sure this is the part of history that i want to cluster around but i still have a long way to go before i decide for sure and at least 12 more history classes to take. I am on break now until January the 8th when i take two more classes. See you then :)

What does Thomas Paine mean by common sense?

Common sense is a pretty simple concept; it’s urging the colonist of America to open their eyes and see that they don’t need to be dependent on Great Britain to make it in this new world. Thomas Paine wrote common sense using simple writing and biblical references so that the regular colonist would understand what he was trying to say. It was a radical move at the time because no one had really come out and said “Let’s do it!!” just yet. In common sense Paine discusses things like the society and government, the British monarchy, the relationship between America and Great Britain at the time, and America’s great potential. He makes a lot of great points that turned the heads of a lot of people.

Personal journal entries of John Adams and Anna Green Winslow

I honestly wasn't looking forward to reading these journal entries but i actually kind of got into them. Its nice reading something that the person actually wrote, rather than reading something someone else wrote about that person. You get to see their exact thoughts, and see how they phrase things; you can tell a lot about a person from their writing style.

I really liked Adams' entry about getting up late. You could tell from that entry that he was just a normal guy who didn't want to waste his life away sleeping (i can relate). Adams had a thirst for knowledge that i really admire, i find myself doing the same things he was writing. He talked about his ambitions in regards to reading certain books and allotting time to thinking and mediating on his thoughts. He was a total people watcher as well, most of his journal entries were about people he met and watched in public. You have to think about how it was back in his time though, with no TV or radios that WAS the entertainment. He mentions a man who dances silly and people who say radical things just to get laughs. He also mentions a man who is mean to his wife. Adams is so professional when it comes to his work. He really loves law, my second favorite journal entry is when he defends it against justice dyer's views on the subject.

Anna’s journal was a lot easier to read than Adams because her language is much more simple. In her earlier entries she mentions multiple times that her Aunt says things about how adults shouldn't listen to the ramblings of a child, etc. This really frustrates me because sometimes they have the best things to say. She is obviously a very smart young girl who mentions taking her lessons at school and at home. During this time girls studied regular lessons as well as womanly lessons like quilting and homemaking. My grandfather used to say women were bred to breed, it always made me laugh. she mentions quite a few sick people in her entries, which i imagine was frequent during her time. In her journal entries she also mentioned going to watch military trainings in the courtyard, watching hangings, and being present at funerals. I don't think i would like life during this time as a young girl, i would get into too much trouble.

"The Revolution Preserved Social Inequality"? Why or why not?

I think this question comes up a lot when people talk about the American Revolution because we always go on and on about the freedom that we earned and people start to ask, "Well who really was freed?" It certainly wasn't the slaves or the women. And even then there were still poor people working their butts off for some of the more rich families. So i would have to say yes and no, which seems to be the general consensus of the group. We were freed as a nation from the tyranny of Great Britain, but it took us a long time to overcome the tyranny we had put ourselves under regarding slaves, women, and social inequality. I think during this time religion had a lot to do with it. Some people could be upset with me saying this but in my opinion, plain and simple, old men used religion to control people during this time (and even still today). They twisted the context of the bible to say that slaves were inferior and women had no rights. I think this went on a long time before some people began to pull away from that thinking and that’s when we began to see a real change in the freedoms of women and slaves.