U.S. History Midterm Prompt/Exam
U.S. History Midterm Prompt/Exam
Your midterm exam consists of three parts. The first part of the exam asks you to identify the significance of a number of concepts, people, or events in the American Revolution (1763-1783). 2-4 sentences are required to flesh out the significance. 7 terms from the below list will be included on the test. You will choose 4 out of the listed 7 terms to answer. Remember to choose which ones you are most knowledgeable about! The total points for this section will be 40 pts (10 points each). The second part of the exam will ask you to respond to short answer questions resolving around significant issues in the American Revolution. 4-6 sentences are required to expound clear details and the significance of the noted issue in the march toward revolution. You will receive two questions on the experiences of Native Americans, black Americans, and women in the American Revolution. The total points for this section is 40 pts (20 points each). The third part of the exam asks you to read a portion of a primary source (provided below), analyze/interpret it, and explain how this source illuminates or speaks to the state of mind of the American colonists or the British during the American Revolution. It should take you 5-7 sentences to explain the context, the intended audience, the possible author, and to interpret the significance of the document. The total points for this section will be 20 pts. Remember! Always ask yourself when answering all parts of the midterm, “why is this important?” “How is it contributing to the bigger picture of the American Revolution?” The total points for the midterm is 100 pts, so it is a substantial part of your grade. My advice for you is to take the study guide, go through your notes and your reading assignments, write out all possible answers, and study from that. Do not allow this midterm to catch you unawares. You have the tools for success, so utilize them. Also, feel free to talk to me before the midterm if you are in any way unclear or if you have holes in your notes. “ Where there is a will, there is an A.” The midterm exam is due on November 16th @ 11 p.m. The midterm will cover part of Unit II and mostly Unit III: Revolutionary America: “Tyranny of All Kinds is to be Abhorred,” “They have Betrayed the Liberties of the People;” “It is Their Right, it is Their Duty, to Throw off such Government;” “These are the Times that Try Men’s Souls;” and “I Bled in Battle, That You Might Be Independent.” I. Part One: Briefly identify 4 of the following. What is the significance of the below issues, people, or events in the course of the American Revolution? 40 pts (10 pts each). 2-4 sentences are required to flesh out the significance or importance of the event, person, or issue in the bigger picture of the American Revolution. Choose the 4 you are most knowledgeable about. (1) The English Bill of Rights (1689) (2) Thomas Paine (3) The Sons of Liberty (4) The Boston Massacre (1770) (5) Abigail Adams (6) The Olive Branch Petition (1775) (7) Joseph Brant II. Part Two: Give clear details and the significance for the following two questions on the issue of Native Americans, black Americans, and women during the American Revolution and Early American Republic. 40 pts (20 pts each). 4-6 are required to expound clear details and the significance in the march toward revolution. You must answer both questions. (1) Briefly describe the experiences/contributions of Native Americans, slaves or black Americans, and women during the War for American Independence. (2) How did the transition to an American republic (i.e. after the war) improve or diminish the position of Native Americans, slaves or black Americans, and women? III. Part Three: Read and analyze/interpret the below primary source document and explain how it illuminates the nature of female protest during the American Revolution. What are women’s grievances? What types of changes do women expect after the Revolution? What does the document tell us about the tactics or rhetoric women adopted in their resistance? Do not forget to note the context (where it falls in the chronology of the American Revolution), the author, and the intended audience. What is the significance of the document? 20 pts. The Case Against Parliamentary Authority In Internal Colonial Matters: Richard Bland, “An Enquiry Into The Rights Of The British Colonists” (1776): “I have observed before, that when subjects are deprived of their civil rights, or are dissatisfied with the place they hold in the community, they have a natural right to quit the society of which they are members, and to retire into another country. Now when men exercise this right, and withdraw themselves from their country, they recover their natural freedom and independence; the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the state they have quitted, ceases; and if they unite, and by common consent take possession of a new country, and form themselves into a political society, they become a sovereign state, independent of the state from which they separated…..I have proven irrefragably, that the colonies are not represented in parliament, and…that no new law can bind them, that is made without the concurrence of their representatives; and if so, then every act of parliament that imposes internal taxes upon the colonies, is an act of power, and not of right…Great is the power of parliament, but, great as it is, it cannot, constitutionally, deprive the people of their natural rights; nor, in virtue of the same principle, can it deprive them of their civil rights, which are founded in compact, without their consent……’every colony, whilst used in a proper manner, ought to pay honour and regard to its mother state; but, when treated with injury and violence, is become an alien. They were not sent out to be slaves, but to be equals of those that remain behind….” [ Your exam must be submitted in one of the following allowed formats: .doc or .pdf
