There are many reasons why someone would choose to do a book report over the title 1776 by David McCullough. Some of the reason include the fact that he is a renowned American author, narrator, historian, and lecturer. He is also a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States ' highest civilian award. He has also had two Pulitzer Prize-winning books, Truman and John Adams adapted by HBO (Home Box Office) into a television film and a mini-series. However, the reason why I choose to do my book report over his title 1776 was because of one particular event that David McCullough analyzed better than any historian in my opinion, the American Revolution. The …show more content…
However, the Americans argued against the constitutionality of the act because its purpose was to raise revenue and not regulate trade, so the colonists organized boycotts of British goods. One of the boycotts involved the circulation of a letter to other colonies urging them to coordinate a resistance. However, the government quickly dissolved this assembly to organize a resistance by reactivating a statute which permitted subjects outside the realm to face trials in England for treason. This caused an outrage and on March 5, 1770 a large mob gathered around a group of British soldiers. The mob grew more and more threatening, throwing snowballs, rocks and debris at the soldiers. One soldier was even clubbed and fell. As a result, the soldiers fired into the crowd killing five civilians, giving the event the name the Boston Massacre. As a result of this event, Parliament withdrew all taxes except the tax on tea, giving up its efforts to raise revenue. This temporarily resolved the crisis and the boycott of British goods largely ceased. However, this resolve was only temporary because in June of 1772 American patriots burned a British warship that had been vigorously enforcing unpopular trade regulations. These events eventually forced the thirteen colonies to create the Committee of
1776 by David McCullough is a non-fiction historical book that historically accounts an in depth view of The American Revolution. The book starts from late 1775 and spans to the end of 1776. The book includes the Battle of New York, the Battle of Brooklyn, the Battle of Boston, the Battle of Fort Washington, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the ending Battle of Trenton in 1776. David McCullough adds a sense of emotion and color to this book where it 's more than a history book that lists facts. Not only does he add a sense of enjoyment to read, 1776 provides detailed accounts of the military life during the end of 1775 to the end of 1776 and detailed accounts of the battles. The author, David McCullough, is trying to make a point that 1776 is
In the novel 1776 by David McCullough, the author gives the reader an accurate description of the events around the year 1776. However, certain characters and events are portrayed through the opinion of the author which gives an interesting view and may change certain opinions on characters. McCullough starts off with the portrayal of King George when he learns of a rebellion. King George is portrayed as rather wise and we'll put together and the authors puts aside his later madness for the reader to see the kind of man he really was. McCullough’s portrayal of George Washington in my opinion was sort of the opposite of rags to riches. Washington starts off in a practically English lifestyle then later takes control of the American army and
In chapter eleven, The Age of Democratic Revolutions: The North Atlantic World “Turn Upside Down”, Wells discusses the American and French Revolutions. Both of these revolutions shook the world and turn the world around. After the Enlightenment, there were many revolutions across Europe; however, the American and French Revolution had more power in them to change the world. Because of the books, pamphlets, and sermons, the idea of rationalism moved from philosophes to many of other people. With these new ideas, the people started to believe in change which led to stress and upheaval. In America, the revolution was not like other revolutions. There was no reigns of terror, no mass deportations, or forced labor camps. However, the American
The soldiers were trialed for murdered but were found innocent. Afterwards, a group of men formed named The Sons of Liberty. The Sons of Liberty lead protest in Boston. A key event leading to the revolution was the Boston Tea Party. The Boston Tea Party was a protest lead by the Sons of Liberty. The group of men dumped the imported tea and further eroded the relations with Britain. After the Boston Tea Party, the colonist refused to drink British tea. As stated in Tom Gage’s Proclamation, “Whereas the rebels hereabout, Are stubborn still, and still hold out; Refusing yet to drink their tea, In spite of Parliament and me” Furthermore, the British were becoming annoyed by the colonists actions. Therefore, the British passed the Intolerable Acts. The Intolerable Acts, as the name predicts, made the colonists furious. The British had passed the Intolerable Acts precisely to punish the Massachusetts colonist. The Acts consisted of the Massachusetts Bay closing, until tea was paid for, and a new Quartering Act, The new Quartering Act allowed British Troops to be stationed in private homes if necessary. Also, it gave power to the crown to elect all officials in
The American Revolution has too often been dominated by the narrative of the founding fathers and has since been remembered as a “glorified cause.” However, the American Revolution was not a unified war but a civil war with many internal disputes that wreaked havoc and chaos throughout America. In his book, The Unknown American Resvolution, Gary B. Nash attempts to unveil the chaos that the American Revolution really was through the eyes of the people not in power, including women, African American slaves, and Native Americans. In his book, Gary B. Nash emphasizes their significance in history to recount the tale of the American Revolution not through the eyes of the privileged elite but through the eyes of the people who sacrificed and struggled the most, but were left forgotten, in their endeavors to reinvent America.
1. The Purpose of the article, Some Reflections on the South in the American Revolution, is to look at the role of the southern colonies in the American Revolution. Don Higginbotham, the author of this academic essay, is trying to say that the focus of the American Revolution mostly has been on the northern colonies while the South has been overlooked. This article starts with ‘The subject of the south in the American Revolution was once freighted with emotion and controversy’ and ‘Were northemers and southemers of the Revolutionary era also very sensitive to sectional matters and to their respective contributions to the war's outcome?’, the brief of the article, which gives the main idea of what Don Higginbotham is trying to say and to prove
Throughout history, Americans have sought to spread the spirit of equality, which is believed to be the realization of true freedom. Before establishing this freedom, every American had only one question stuck in their head: What is freedom? Our country received it in the year of 1776 from the British through a series of difficulties and wars. African Americans defined it as an escape from slavery, while immigrants defined it as their acceptance into a new society. More yet, women of the women’s suffrage defined their freedom as their recognition into society and for their rights to be equal to that of every other man. These different perceptions of cultures/groups in America tied together to form an American view of freedom. Freedom is something that every American should be willing to do anything in order to maintain. We may have weapons of mass destruction, but when it comes to living in a peaceful, American lifestyle, our freedom is our greatest weapon.
The American Revolution (1775-1783) was a war between England and the colonies which were settled earlier by the English. There were many factors and events that led to the American Revolution. The Revolution was mainly an economic rebellion that was fueled by taxation without representation following the French and Indian War. The English Parliament was more often than not considered cruel and unfair by the colonists. With conflicts over trade, taxes and government representation, the colonies were at a starting line of a revolution that would later transform into the basis of the United States of America.
Revolutions are usually described as “radical” events. A “radical” event is defined as one that greatly changes the political, cultural, social, and/or economic nature of a society. I believe that the American Revolution was a radical event that dramatically changed our society. There were many impacts to the changes such as slavery, primogeniture, the Articles of Confederation, republican motherhood, and government. This was the time in life, that we as America gained our independence from Britain. The American Revolution is what shaped our world to become what it is today.
Three persons were killed immediately and two died later of their wounds; among the victims was Crispus Attucks, a man of black or native decent. Capt. Thomas Preston, the british officer in charge was arrested for manslaughter, along with eight of his men. The massacre was a street fight that signaled events leading to the Revolutionary War. It led directly to the Royal Governor evacuating the occupying army from the town of Boston.The presence of British troops in Boston had long been a sore point among Boston's radical colonist like Paul Revere wasted no time on the Massacre to highlight the British tyranny and stir up anti-British feelings among fellow colonists. To demonstrate the impartialness of colonial courts, two Patriot leaders, James Adams and Josiah Quincy. They defended Captain Preston and his men. The prosecution had very little evidence, and Preston and six soldiers were acquitted; two others were found guilty of manslaughter, had their hands branded and were released. Although many colonist criticized the verdicts, the removal of troops from Boston and the repeal of all but one of the contested import duties resulted in a lowering of tension in the years following the incident. Before the American Revolution started the Sons of Liberty, a Patriot group formed to fight against the Stamp Act advertised the "Boston Massacre"
The American Revolution marked the divorce of the British Empire and its one of the most valued colonies. Behind the independence that America had fought so hard for, there emerged a diverging society that was eager to embrace new doctrines. The ideals in the revolution that motivated the people to fight for freedom continued to influence American society well beyond the colonial period. For example, the ideas borrowed from John Locke about the natural rights of man was extended in an unsuccessful effort to include women and slaves. The creation of state governments and the search for a national government were the first steps that Americans took to experiment with their own system. Expansion, postwar depression as well as the new distribution of land were all evidence that pointed to the gradual maturing of the economic system. Although America was fast on its way to becoming a strong and powerful nation, the underlying issues brought about by the Revolution remained an important part in the social, political and economical developments that in some instances contradicted revolutionary principles in the period from 1775-1800.
When one explains his or her ingenious yet, enterprising interpretation, one views the nature of history from a single standpoint: motivation. In The American Revolution: A History, Gordon Wood, the author, explains the complexities and motivations of the people who partook in the American Revolution, and he shows the significance of numerous themes, that emerge during the American Revolution, such as democracy, discontent, tyranny, and independence. Wood’s interpretation, throughout his literary work, shows that the true nature of the American Revolution leads to the development of United State’s current government: a federal republic. Wood, the author, views the treatment of the American Revolution in the early twentieth century as scholastic yet, innovative and views the American Revolution’s true nature as
The film 1776 was set to cover the events surrounding the acknowledgement, for the newly form America which consisted of the thirteen colonies, the need for independence from Great Britain. It also addressed the occurrences leading up to the process of the creation, acceptance and signage of the Declaration of Independence. The main purpose of the film was centered around the delegates identifying the need for independence. This was a successful Broadway musical comedy that was adapted to film to explain the process of achieving independence. The issues the film raised was the need for independence from Great Britain, the was support efforts and anti-slavery clause which addressed the process to either acknowledge slaves as free men or
On March 5, 1770, an event occurred in Boston, which consisted of British troops shooting upon colonists. People refer to this as a massacre, but they only look at one side of the story. The Boston Massacre in 1770 was not really a massacre, but a mutual riot (Boston Massacre History Society). British soldiers went to America to keep the people of Boston in order. However, the soldier's presence there was not welcomed by the Bostonians and this made things worse (Boston Massacre History Society). The British had to fire their guns because the Bostonians were antagonizing the soldiers, which caused five people to die. The Bostonians made the soldiers feel threatened so in turn they acted in self-defense. The British soldiers and their Captain had to go through a trial, to prove they were not to blame for what had occurred.
David McCullough author of 1776 puts faces and feelings to the events of the Revolutionary war making this an exciting novel even when the ending is known. Acting as a companion to an earlier work of McCullough’s, John Adams, 1776 is a strictly military view of the era versus political. Although the reader may have to get accustomed to the vast amount of characters introduced McCullough makes sure that those you are supposed to remember you will. Every character introduced is described incredibly well and throughout the novel you begin to feel as if you know the character and are going through the battle with them, specifically General George Washington with whom the reader emphasizes constantly with throughout the war. With the great description of the characters and events we feel as if we are there and in doing this the author creates understanding, the reader by knowing all sides and characters’ personalities the feels they know why the Revolution happened the way it did.