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Stephen Ambrose's Contributions Of Our Founding Fathers

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Stephen Ambrose’s writings of our Founding Founder’s contributions to our country are fascinating. Not only did Ambrose discuss what made our past Presidents great, but he also discussed their shortcomings—professionally and personally. Most people have a preconceived idea of the contributions our Founding Fathers, which is mostly positive. What they do not realize is that like the men that came before them (Christopher Columbus), they were less than perfect. Moreover, one could draw the theory that some of our founding fathers were bigoted, racist's men. When in reality, during the early-mid part of their lifetime, their beliefs and actions-such as owning slaves-were not looked down upon, but merely an accepted practice during that time. While it has been widely recognized that President Jefferson owned slaves, Ambrose's attention to President Jefferson's personal life was fascinating. For example, while most Americans know that President Jefferson bore a child with one of his slaves, what they did not know is that he spent most of his life in debt, despite being well educated (Ambrose 2). Also, despite knowing/believing that owning slaves and profiting from …show more content…

Ambrose notes that while President Washington is often credited with be being a successful general, his army lost more battles than they won (Ambrose 9). Despite this and the fact that President Washington was not as educated as President Jefferson, he was true leader. There is no better example than President Washington and his men crossing the Delaware River in 1776 or overcoming freezing, harsh conditions the next winter at Valley Forge, winning the Revolutionary War (Ambrose 10). Despite the adverse climate conditions, President Washington was able to motivate and lead an army of under supplied, minimally trained men to victory against the powerful British army. The prize:

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Benjamin Banneker, the son of former slaves, wrote to Thomas Jefferson in 1791 to argue against slavery and that the freedom and tranquility we enjoy is a blessing from heaven. The author uses quotes, diction and rhetorical questions to develop and support his claims. Banneker’s purpose is to get Thomas Jefferson to consider the morals of slavery. The intended audience is Thomas Jefferson and any other government official who reads this letter. To begin, Banneker uses an intricate choice of words to express how unhappy he is with slavery and those who allow it.

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748 Words | 3 Pages

In Samuel Adams: A Life, author Ira Stoll begins Adams’s biography with a prelude explaining the purpose of his book: to describe Samuel Adams, tell why history has largely forgotten him, and serve as a reminder for why we should remember him. On the whole, Stoll is true to his promise; he writes of Adams’s life, pulling accounts from Adams’s contemporaries as well as using excerpts of Adams’s personal correspondence and his numerous newspaper publications. Stoll’s research is evident in that he includes the opinions and research of other historians and Samuel Adams biographers. Stoll’s biography follows Samuel Adams from childhood to death, and thus essentially tells of the origins and formation of the United States. The biography is compelling,

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This was one of Washington’s first great achievements. Even though they were low on ammunition and gunpowder, they strategized well and defeated the British. However, Washington made mistakes as well. The military had to retreat while in New York after an embarrassing defeat, which was Washington’s first

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Oakes’ masterful command of the broad literature of slavery, race, and the Civil War era allows him to trace the parallel journeys of two iconic American leaders. Oakes tells an absorbing and didactic story, shifting between accounts of Lincoln and Douglas and ending with their meetings in the White House. By portraying Douglas as a character of equal significance as Lincoln, Oakes not only provides insight into Douglas’s life but also enriches the study of Lincoln. The convergence of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas during the nation’s greatest crisis reveals “what can happen when progressive reformers and savvy politicians make common cause”

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Many people believe that Thomas Jefferson is a powerful individual who helped form our country, and was a great leader through his presidential career. He made the best out of difficult situations, when he knew the complete situation had to remain unsolved, and he also wrote the Declaration of Independence for the help of our country. On the other hand, it can also be debated that Thomas Jefferson is a hypocritic man that nearly destroyed our military,

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However, he was a slave owner at the same time. Throughout his life time, he owned hundreds of African American slaves. Even after the death of his wife, Jefferson had a long-term relationship with one of his slave’s, Sally Hemings. On the other hand, as a young politician, he argued for the prohibition of slavery in new American territories, but yet he never freed his own slaves. How could a man responsible for writing the sacred words, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal" have been a slave owner?

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250 Words | 1 Pages

In The Founding Fathers Reconsidered, R. B. Bernstein is seeking to remove the Founding Fathers from their elevated status without knocking them off so that we may look eye-to-eye with them rather than looking up at them. We often only recognize them for their achievements and praise them for what they have done. We do not take the time to make counter accusations against them and not only see their successes but also their failures. Bernstein is not trying to take away their achievements and label them as bad people, rather he is just trying to get a clearer picture regarding what they did. Bernstein takes the time to look at how we see them today and the words and meanings we use when talking about them.

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Luis Sevilla For: Dr. Stephens History 1301 42T 12 October 2015 Review #2 Does Thomas Jefferson come across as a great man, or a petty one? That is all based on opinion. From the little that is taught about Thomas Jefferson he comes across as a great man. Jefferson is not only known as a founding father he is also a big symbol in American History

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Soldiers that would endure the hardships and fight for the independence of themselves and their families were vital to America prevailing over the British. Washington had fought with the British in the French and Indian War. He knew the landscape and the tactics of the British Army. This proved important to the success of the

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From building libraries, to handling the Civil War with intelligence, and tying the nation back together and building schools, George Washington had started it all. He was one of our great Founding Fathers of the Constitution, and without a start, there would be nothing. In the same manner, Washington did fought to keep our country from invasion. He was not the type of president to have power over his head and demand unreasonable things. Even after the war, he was one to lead the country back to peace and keep the nation safe and away from

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Thomas Jefferson as a man of contradictions Thomas Jefferson was a person who shared many interests and had a huge knowledge in many spheres of life. He was a writer, a musician, a lover, a pathfinder in archeology, a reluctant politician, an architect who designed his own house, and many more. No wonder that he was widely admired in the past and still is now, in the present times. He is the one who could find appropriate words and write America’s most important and known document “The Declaration of Independence”.

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The founding father, Thomas Jefferson, is known for his intellect and historical impact. Credited as the lead author of the Declaration of Independence and an opposer of slavery, his views on the black race originally came as a shock to me. In “Thomas Jefferson on the African Race,” Jefferson states that in order to compare the races they must be tested in America by the white standard. In doing this, Jefferson cements whiteness as default and perpetuates an ideology that has not been overturned to this day. Thomas Jefferson claims that it would be “unfair” to examine black people in Africa and that they must be tested in America for the results to have any significance.

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he uses bold words and biting criticism to call attention to the gross injustices and hypocrisy of slavery in the United States. In the opening remarks of his speech, Douglas provides heart-wrenching descriptions to pull his audience into the lives of their fellow

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828 Words | 4 Pages

In multiple letters and notes he wrote he expressed his guilt for the slaves and once the slaves paid off their debt and Jefferson’s he hoped to free them. Jefferson and his slaves remained in debt until the day he died. Jefferson believed that slavery not only deprived blacks of their liberty but had an “unhappy” influence on the masters and their children (Takaki 63). If a master is constantly punishing a slave and cannot restrain, the child’s master will imitate and master it, resulting in a nonstop cycle of slavery.

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981 Words | 4 Pages

“The Constitution and Slavery” pointed this out by stating that “Yet at the time these words were written, more than 500,000 black Americans were slaves. Jefferson himself owned more than 100.” This shows that even though Jefferson insisted on the idea of “all men are created equal,” some can say that he is a hypocrite. “How could somebody make such a statement while they are doing the same devilish act?” must have gone through the minds of those questioning Jefferson’s sincerity. Indeed, he did commit those acts.

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