John Adams Thesis

1. This article depicted the life of John Adams beginning with the implementation of the Stamp Act in 1765. The explicit thesis was the Stamp Act marked the beginning of the American revolution. The implicit thesis was John Adams was a key figure supporting the revolution of the colonies.

2.The validity of these claims can certainly be called into question. It could be argued that American ideas for revolution began before the Stamp Act because of the many preceding events.(79) After living in salutary neglect for so long, when Great Britain began to tax the colonies to help pay for debts from the French and Indian war colonists resisted Great Britain 's authority, exhibited by the Boston Massacre. The so called massacre of colonists in Boston heightened tensions between the colonies and Great Britain. The Navigation Acts of 1751, although not well implemented, show that Great Britain has ended its period of salutary neglect and are attempting to enforce the

The claim that John Adams was a key figure who supported the American revolution is questionable. John Adams was originally against the idea of a revolution against Great Britain. He defended the soldiers who supposedly fired upon innocent colonists of Boston. (83) His membership of the Sons of Liberty is not worthy of such approbation. The Sons of Liberty was a terrorist group instilling fear and threats of violence within their community. This secret and methodical organization was mostly made up of the middle class such as printers, who used use their job to spread propaganda in local newspapers. John Adams most likely believed that the group posed a threat to, moving his family between Braintree and Boston. The Sons of Liberty however, were not very effective. It was The Stamp Act Congress who lead a successful boycott against Great Britain.The inconsistency between his beliefs and his association with such a disreputable group prove that he was not the key figure that David McCullough depicted him to