Module 2: Are We to be a Nation?
Essential Question: How did the Revolutionaries forge a New American?
- The Road to Revolution (“A Wise and Salutary Neglect”)
- Declaring Independence (“Our Lives, Our Fortunes, and Our Sacred Honor”)
- War and Peace
- We, the People (“A Republic, If You Can Keep It” )
Previously, the colonists saw themselves as British first and their colony second. There were differences between Rhode Islanders, Marylanders, and Virginians. But by the eve of the American War for Independence, Patrick Henry claimed that “‘the distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders, are no more’ and that they are, first and foremost, and unquestionably Americans” By the time The Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, an American national identity had already been formed.
But while the thirteen colonies ultimately united together to sign The Declaration of Independence, some historians argue that the unity was a façade. Regional differences between the New England and Southern states threatened to tear apart the Continental Congress in 1776 and continued in the Constitutional Convention of 1789. Many delegates such as John Dickinson of Pennsylvania wanted to remain part of the British empire and saw independence as treasonous.
To renounce the British meant ignoring what had been the major unifying force in the colonies: their shared heritage. They may be Bostonians or Jamestownians, but they were still British .
Even the Articles of Confederation, while establishing the first attempt at a national government actually created a union of states that gave the states more power than the nation. Some historians point out that the word “nation” (the basis for national identity) does not even appear in The Declaration of Independence, The Articles of Confederation or the Constitution, the documents which helped form the United States of America.
Another requirement for a nation to have a national identity is shared rights. The Declaration of Independence states, ‘we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ As Abigail Adams, wife of the Massachusetts delegate John Adams, was quick to ask, where are the women in that famous sentence?
Additionally, it was common knowledge that all men were not created equal during the 1700s. Native Americans men were thought of as savages while African men were considered property of their owners. The common man may have had more rights than he had in Great Britain, but the white men who owned property still made all of the important decisions.
There is also the question of a common culture for a nation. The new United States lacked a united culture. While the majority of colonists were British, there were also Scots, Scots-Irish, Germans, Irish, and French. These are vastly different cultures each with their own customs and beliefs. The last thing an Irishman or a Frenchman would like to hear is that his culture is similar to the English. As a result of the various ethnic groups, America lacked a common folklore and history. America lacked shared memories that could unite its citizens in a common goal.
In short the Colonial American identity is complex and arguably non-existent, But that is only the beginning as the nation is in its infancy still developing a new culture, nation, identity would take time.
But while the thirteen colonies ultimately united together to sign The Declaration of Independence, some historians argue that the unity was a façade. Regional differences between the New England and Southern states threatened to tear apart the Continental Congress in 1776 and continued in the Constitutional Convention of 1789. Many delegates such as John Dickinson of Pennsylvania wanted to remain part of the British empire and saw independence as treasonous.
To renounce the British meant ignoring what had been the major unifying force in the colonies: their shared heritage. They may be Bostonians or Jamestownians, but they were still British .
Even the Articles of Confederation, while establishing the first attempt at a national government actually created a union of states that gave the states more power than the nation. Some historians point out that the word “nation” (the basis for national identity) does not even appear in The Declaration of Independence, The Articles of Confederation or the Constitution, the documents which helped form the United States of America.
Another requirement for a nation to have a national identity is shared rights. The Declaration of Independence states, ‘we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’ As Abigail Adams, wife of the Massachusetts delegate John Adams, was quick to ask, where are the women in that famous sentence?
Additionally, it was common knowledge that all men were not created equal during the 1700s. Native Americans men were thought of as savages while African men were considered property of their owners. The common man may have had more rights than he had in Great Britain, but the white men who owned property still made all of the important decisions.
There is also the question of a common culture for a nation. The new United States lacked a united culture. While the majority of colonists were British, there were also Scots, Scots-Irish, Germans, Irish, and French. These are vastly different cultures each with their own customs and beliefs. The last thing an Irishman or a Frenchman would like to hear is that his culture is similar to the English. As a result of the various ethnic groups, America lacked a common folklore and history. America lacked shared memories that could unite its citizens in a common goal.
In short the Colonial American identity is complex and arguably non-existent, But that is only the beginning as the nation is in its infancy still developing a new culture, nation, identity would take time.