3-paragraph Essay (min: 300 words) due Sunday, February 5::

In this Unit we are looking at the early decades of political, social, and cultural formation of the United States. In these years, citizens of the evolving country made critical decisions about the shape, purpose, and function of government that continue to influence our lives today. They also established both social institutions and norms that have defined the identity and practice of Americans throughout the centuries. As Professor Foner points out in each chapter, critical (and enduring) fault lines emerged early on in our nation’s history when it came to understanding the meaning, social construction, and boundaries of freedom. These fault lines were primarily focused on the social categories of race, gender, and class.

I would like us to explore these “fault lines” in our Unit 1 discussion. Specifically, I want us to discuss how the meaning, social construction, and boundaries of freedom varied from person to person depending on their race, gender, and/or class.

To accomplish this, please choose one of the following “historical actors” from this time period.

A Native American living in the American southwest in the 17th century
A (white, male) leader of a New England town in the 17th century
A white woman living in a New England town in the 17th century
A German shoemaker (male) living in Philadelphia in the 18th century
An English merchant (male) living in Philadelphia in the 18th century
An African American slave living (male or female) in Virginia in the 18th century
A Native American leader (male) living in the Great Lakes region in the 18th century
A “revolutionary” leader (white, male) living in the colonies in 1776
A “loyalist” (white, male) living in the colonies in 1776
An African American slave (male or female) living in Massachusetts at the time of the Revolution
A white woman living in the colonies in the 18th century
An anti-federalist (white, male) living in the United States in the late 1770s
A white woman living in the United States in the 1780s and 90s
A poor white woman (a “Mill Girl”) working in a factory in the early 19th century
A religious intellectual (white, male) in the early 19th century
After making your choice, review the information found in the assigned chapters as well as the “Voices of Freedom” that relate to your historical actor. Utilizing that historical information found in the assigned chapters from the textbook as well as a “Voice of Freedom” section that relates to the actor you have chosen, discuss how this person would have interpreted the meaning, social conditions, and boundaries of freedom. Specifically think about and then seek to answer the following questions in your essay (note that not all questions apply to each of the actors listed above – think about and answer the ones that directly apply to your actor):

How would your historical person have defined the meaning of freedom?
On a day to day basis, what did “freedom” mean and/or not mean to your historical person?
What privileges (social, cultural, institutional) existed in your historical person’s life that enabled her/him to live out her/his conception of freedom?
What challenges (social, cultural, institutional) existed in your historical person’s life that prevented her/him from living out her/his conception of freedom?
What threats to freedom were perceived by your historical person? How did your historical person seek to alleviate those threats?
What did your historical person think were the “ideal conditions” for freedom? What actions would you’re your historical person have taken to create an environment of “ideal conditions” for freedom?
Who did your historical person think was “beyond the boundaries” of freedom? Why?
Did your historical person struggle to create freedom for others? If so, how?
Did your historical person deny freedom to others? If so, how? How did this person justify the denial of freedom to others?
Once you have reviewed the textual information and identified at least one Voice of Freedom that speaks to your historical person’s perspective and experience and after you have thought through the questions listed above, construct a 3-paragraph essay (min: 300 words) in which you explain the meaning, social conditions, and boundaries of freedom in the life of your historical person.

NOTE: your essay should not be a list of answers to the questions listed above, but instead should be an academic essay constructed in a fluid way to address the fundamental issues raised in those questions. A clear thesis statement should be found in your Introductory paragraph, your Body paragraph should clearly expand the thesis statement and defend it using historical information from the textbook and Voice of Freedom except, and your conclusion should identify clearly what can be learned from your essay about the meaning, social conditions, and boundaries of freedom in the US during the time period being studied.