John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave...

Thus begins one of the most influential songs of the 19th-century, sung by Union soldiers marching off to war as "foot-soldiers of the Almighty."

But just who was John Brown?

This week, you'll find out.

Upcoming Assignments

1.) Watch Monterey Institute, Unit 4, Chapter 11, Lesson 34 - "The Approaching War"

a.) "Consider This - John Brown": How did Julia Ward Howe's song with the apocalyptic message influence religious thinking in the North and the South during the Civil War era?

b.) "The United States had been rapidly expanding westward since the Louisiana Purchase. How did American expansion influence a growing sectional crisis after 1820? Did the war with Mexico put the U.S. on an inevitable road toward the Civil War?"

-These two items are due on Wed., 11/30, at the beginning of class.

2.) John Brown - Historical Marker (Due Mon., 12/5)

-John Brown is one of the most polarizing figures in American History...but how should he be remembered? You have been hired by the West Virginia Historical Society to design a historical marker to designate Harpers Ferry as a National Historic Site. Does it show John Brown as a hero and a martyr for the abolitionist cause, or as a deranged lunatic that plunged the nation into a four-year bloody civil war?

Details to be discussed in class.


3.) Zinn, Ch. 9 - on my website. Give yourself enough time...it's very involved.

Due on Mon., 12/5


4.) Ch. 18-19 Study Guides - on my website.

Due Tues., 12/6

Manifest Destiny, and what to do with all this new land...

This is what Mexico USED to look like, before the Mexican-American War in the 1840s. This war was just one episode, albeit a major one, in America's development into a country that stretched "from sea to shining sea."


This week, we'll take a look at America's growing pains in the 1800s. From an infant nation hugging the eastern seaboard of North America to a voracious teenage country hungry for even more territory, the United States grew exponentially in the mid-19th century. Here's what you'll need to turn in this week:

1.) Watch all Monterey Institute Unit 4, Chapter 11, Lessons 32-33 presentations.

2.) Complete all "Consider This" short-response questions for the above-mentioned Lessons. (Due Thursday, 11/17)

a.) Lesson 32 - John O'Sullivan Editorial
b.) Lesson 32 - The Mexican-American War
c.) Lesson 32 - Walter Colton Diary
d.) Lesson 33 - Henry "Box' Brown
e.) Lesson 33 - THe Ostend Manifesto

3.) Answer the following free-response question as a comment on this blog (this question appeared on the 2000 APUSH exam) by Friday, 11/18:

"Assess the moral arguments and political actions of those OPPOSED to the spread of slavery in the context of TWO of the following:

*Missouri Compromise of 1820
*Mexican-American War
*Compromise of 1850
*Kansas-Nebraska Act"

4.) "American Pageant" Ch. 17 Guidebook - Due Wed., 11/16

5.) Zinn, "A People's History of the U.S." Chapter 8 Questions - Due Wed., 11/16

6.) Read Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" (on my webpage); this was Thoreau's treatise on an American citizen's obligation to protest his government's wrongful actions, and an explanation on his willingness to be imprisoned because of his refual to pay a tax in support of the Mexican-American War. As you read it, answer the following questions with well-thought-out responses (Due Fri., 11/18):

a.) Thoreau believes that people should not participate in injustice but that they do not have to actively promote a more just world. What is the difference between these two concepts, and why does Thoreau make this moral distinction?

b.) Is Thoreau's conception of civil disobedience compatible with democratic government? Why or why not?

c.) What is Thoreau's opinion on wealth and consumption? Why does he say that the rich are less likely to practice civil disobedience?

d.) What might Thoreau think about the role of government in today's society (in particular, what might he think about the modern welfare state?)?

e.) Is compromise on moral issues a necessary part of living with other people?

f.) How does Thoreau justify the moral need for civil disobedience? What principles does he rely on in his justification?

g.) Would you describe Thoreau as optimistic or pessimistic about people's ability to improve the world? Explain.


*Though I will not require it over the Thanksgiving break, you may wish to take a "preview" look at the upcoming chapters in "American Pageant" and Monterey Institute's website if you wish to be successful on the next exam. The "American Pageant" guidebooks for Chapters 18-21 are already on my website, and you KNOW what will be required from the Monterey Institute website for the next few chapters. We will move VERY fast after Thanksgiving in order to be through the Civil War by the winter holidays. The workload won't lessen, though...