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AMERICAN SPIRIT CHAPTERS 18-19
David Wilmot Appeals for Free Soil (1847) – pg. 400 1. Can Wilmot be classified as an abolitionist? Explain using evidence from the reading.
Southerners Threaten Secession (1849) – pg. 402 2. Why does Robert Toombs argue that California and New Mexico be open to slavery? 3. What does Toombs propose the South do if slavery is outlawed in the new territories or D.C.?
John Calhoun Demands Southern Rights (1850) – pg. 403 4. Why did Calhoun argue that Northern cries for Union could not be trusted? Why? 5. Who does Calhoun believe must save the Union? Why? 6. Does his argument make sense to you? Explain.
Daniel Webster Urges Concessions (1850) – pg. 405 7. Why is Webster worried about the prospect of “peaceable secession”? 8. What specific problems does Webster believe that secession will create?
The South Threatens Retaliation (1855) – pg. 410 9. What do Southerners say they will do if Northerners enforce “personal liberty laws”? Do you think that would work? 10. How do Southerners lay the foundation for secession based on “personal liberty laws”?
Stephen Douglas’s Popular-Sovereignty Plea (1854) – pg. 411 11. Why does Douglas believe popular sovereignty will save the Union? 12. What political, legal, and historical justifications does Douglas list for a shift away from the Missouri Compromise and toward popular sovereignty?
Salmon Chase Upholds Free Soil (1854) - pg. 412 13. How does Chase attack popular sovereignty?
Northwestern Support For Douglas (1854) - pg. 413 14. Why did northwesterners support the Kansas-Nebraska Act? Do you agree?
The South Is Lukewarm (1854) - pg. 413 15. What concerns about the Kansas-Nebraska Act are expressed? Do they seem reasonable? 16. Hopefully you see that the nation was greatly divided over the Kansas-Nebraska Act and, frankly, nobody seemed really happy with the compromise. Why do you suppose it was passed? Tom Defies Simon Legree (1852) - pg. 427 17. Did you find this passage uplifting or offensive? Or…maybe both…? Explain.
The South Scorns Mrs. Stowe (1852) - pg. 429 18. The southern response to Uncle Tom's Cabin ranges from apologetic to seething in its criticisms. Why might this be so?
The Pro-Southern Court Speaks (1857) - pg. 435 19. What power did the Taney Court rule that Congress was given over slavery? 20. Why was the Missouri Compromise declared unconstitutional? 21. What was determined about Dred Scott's status as a citizen?
A Virginia Newspaper Gloats (1857) - pg. 436 22. As a result of the Dred Scott Decision, what rights/freedoms should be rescinded from blacks?
The North Breathes Defiance (1857) - pg. 437 23. To what does the article refer when discussing the Cherokee and Jackson? 24. Do you think, as Southerners argued, this represents a Northern call for secession? Explain.
Stephen Douglas Opposes Black Citizenship (1858) - pg. 438 25. Do you find Douglas' argument against black citizenship and equality hypocritical given his statement that blacks are not inferior? Explain how he justifies his argument.
Abraham Lincoln Denies Black Equality (1858) - pg. 439 26. Does Lincoln indicate that he plans to eliminate slavery or has the power to do so? 27. What level of equality does Lincoln believe exists between blacks and whites? 28. Does Lincoln believe that whites and blacks can and/or should coexist?
Fire-Eaters Urge Secession (1860) - pg. 444 29. The Fire-Eaters list five(ish) northern actions, ideas, and mentalities by which they have attacked the South. They use these to justify secession. What are these five(ish) things?
The North Resents Threats (1860) - pg. 445 30. What is the primary assertion of the article? Do you think it accurately reflects the situation in the U.S. in 1860?