Deck 8: Crisis and Constitution 1776-1789

Question 1

The chapter introduction discusses the dilemma of citizens identifying with state and nation after the Revolution to make the point that

A) immediately after the Revolution, no one had a sense of identity or loyalty toward the nation, so it was predictable that the new United States would be politically decentralized.
B) because of the Revolution, most felt a sense of identity and loyalty with the united cause, but political jealousies prevented a strong governmental structure until the crises of the 1780s forced the politicians to act.
C) Americans created one kind of united government with the Declaration of Independence; needing a better union, they overwhelmingly supported the new Constitution.
D) Americans had to experiment to find a way to create a united republic that confronted the realities of separate identities and inequalities.

Answer 1

Americans had to experiment to find a way to create a united republic that confronted the realities of separate identities and inequalities.

Question 2

The Constitution represented the triumph of compromise, and Americans who accepted the Constitution had to change many of their basic beliefs about government. These included all of the following EXCEPT

A) the assumption that republics were best suited to small geographic areas.
B) the preoccupation with severely limiting executive power.
C) the instinct to give ultimate loyalty and sovereignty to one's own state.
D) the ability of free citizens to govern themselves through disinterested representatives.

Answer 2

the ability of free citizens to govern themselves through disinterested representatives.

Question 3

When peace was restored in the 1780s, Americans were forced to face some unanswered questions raised by their revolution. Which of the following was NOT among their questions?

A) Could the individual states establish treaties and agreements with foreign countries, excluding the other states?
B) Would the lands in the West eventually become part of the United States, and how would this take place?
C) Would factions and self-interest groups pull the states apart and make union impossible?
D) What tax system would be installed by the newly elected government?

Answer 3

What tax system would be installed by the newly elected government?

Question 4

Following the revolution, while most states did not alter the basic structure of their governments, they did alter the balance of power among the different branches of government. Which of the following did they NOT do?

A) severely restricted the power of the governor or abolished the office completely
B) significantly strengthened the powers of the state legislatures
C) insisted on written state constitutions
D) abolished the state legislative assemblies

Question 5

What is the best description of the United States of America under the Articles of Confederation?

A) an integrated republic with a decentralized structure of national government
B) thirteen independent state republics loosely joined together under a virtually powerless representative body
C) a political system functioning like a corporate conglomerate with thirteen wholly-owned subsidiary companies
D) thirteen independent nations affiliated in a defensive alliance, like today's NATO

Question 6

The Northwest Ordinance, which established a basis for territorial government for lands between the Ohio River and the Great Lakes, included all of the following provisions EXCEPT

A) freedom of religion.
B) protection of civil and political rights for Indians.
C) encouragement of education.
D) the eventual creation of three to five new states.

Question 7

The state of New Jersey created legislation in 1807 to close what loophole?

A) "aristocracy of merit"
B) the three-fifths compromise
C) landowning women's suffrage
D) "democratic excess"

Question 8

"Seduction literature"sent the unmistakable message that young women must preserve their

A) wholesome nature.
B) self-control.
C) independence from the passions and impulsiveness of men.
D) sexual purity.

Question 9

What was the most important result of the uprising of western Massachusetts debtor farmers led by Daniel Shays?

A) It supported the belief that the people should take the law into their own hands.
B) It proved that the country's revolutionary spirit was still alive.
C) It gave crucial momentum to the growing movement to strengthen the national government.
D) It prompted the Massachusetts legislature to ratify the Constitution.

Question 10

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention, though from twelve different states, had two important things in common. These were that

A) they were men with a great deal of political experience, and they all favored weakening the central government.
B) they were all relatively inexperienced politically, and they favored establishing a constitutional monarchy.
C) they were all former loyalists, and they all favored establishing strong ties with Great Britain.
D) they were all men of considerable political experience, and they all recognized the need for a stronger national union.

Question 11

How did James Madison imagine that a federal republic with a strong central government might work, especially one that governed such a vast land area as that of the United States?

A) He simply believed that a strong central government would lead to tyranny and was therefore against it.
B) He believed that a strong central government would have to be opposed by a well-organized opposition party.
C) He believed that various interests and factions would cancel each other out in a large republic, and that virtuous national leaders would govern on behalf of all the people.
D) He believed that he would be forced to run for president in order to save the union.

Question 12

In the debates over ratification, a major fear of the Anti-Federalists was that

A) the most powerful groups in society would dominate and eventually rule in a corrupt and arbitrary fashion.
B) the common people would have too much control over the government.
C) elected officials would be too narrowly and directly concerned with the interests of their own constituents, rather than those of the nation as a whole.
D) poorer groups would be favored over the more substantial citizens in society.

Question 13

In the new republic, the new image of women as the upholders of private virtue was known as "________ "and inspired many educational reformers in the revolutionary generation.

Question 14

The rejected Jay-Gardoqui Treaty and a rebellion in Massachusetts led by Daniel ________ were the two crisis events that gave momentum to calls for strengthening the central government.

Question 15

Discuss the ways in which the frontier influenced national politics during the Confederation period.

Question 16

Describe the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, and discuss the reasons why Americans created a weak national government.

Question 17

In what ways was the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 a failure? In what ways was it a success?

Question 18

Describe the impact of the Revolution on the lives of African Americans.

Question 19

Why did the more democratic West clash with the East in political battles in state legislatures?

Question 20

How did the Jay-Gardoqui Treaty and Shays's Rebellion contribute to the convening of the Constitutional Convention?

Question 21

Compare the New Jersey and the Virginia plans at the Constitutional Convention. What caused each state to favor the plan it proposed?

Question 22

Describe the new state constitutions, and discuss the ways in which they reflected the fears and concerns among Americans that had been fostered by the controversy with Britain.

Question 23

The historian Frederick Jackson Turner argued that the American frontier was a "safety valve"that, by siphoning off surplus population from settled areas and providing families with land and employment, reduced social and political conflict. Does the history of the West during the Confederation period confirm or disconfirm Turner's "frontier thesis"?

Question 24

To what extent did the American Revolution effect a fundamental change in American society? How far had Americans gone by 1790 in fulfilling the ideal of equality? What limited the pursuit of full equality in the new nation?

Question 25

What concepts of equality directed the actions of revolutionary leaders? Why did they stop short of extending equality to a full range of all Americans? What goals of equality did they pursue?

Question 26

Consider this statement: "The Revolution gave rise to a new sense of social identity and a new set of ambitions among several groups of men who had once accepted a humbler status."Explain how that happened, and relate your discussion to the following groups: westerners, urban artisans, and women.

Question 27

Did the Constitution advance or set back the principles of the Revolution? Defend your answer by showing clearly the changes in political philosophy that the Constitution demonstrated.

Question 28

Compare and contrast the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution. What were the strengths and weaknesses in each document? What were the similarities/differences of each document? Why did the change occur?

Question 29

Why is the Bill of Rights so important to the ideals of democracy?

Question 30

What was the influence of the Ordinance of 1785 upon the nation in the years that followed?