Assignment 2.2: Liberty Challenged In Nineteenth Century Ame

Assignment 2.2: Liberty Challenged in Nineteenth Century America Final Paper Due Week 10 and

You have already developed a thesis statement and an outline in which you explored the peculiar institution known as slavery. Now you will develop the final paper in which you explore your main points in detail. Introduce your paper with your previously crafted thesis statement.

Describe two (2) outcomes of the 3/5ths Compromise, Missouri Compromise of 1820, Compromise of 1850, Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the Dred Scott Decision. Note: Be sure to provide two (2) outcomes for each legislation. Suggest three (3) reasons why slavery was and is incompatible with our political and economic system. List three to five (3-5) driving forces that led to the Civil War. Use at least three (3) academic references besides or in addition to the textbook.

Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources. Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements: Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are: Recognize the main factors that led to America’s early development. Identify and discuss the different ways that the heritages of slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction have shaped America’s history. Summarize and discuss the ways that formal policies of government have influenced the direction of historical and social development in the United States. Examine how changes in social and economic conditions and technology can cause corresponding changes in the attitudes of the people and policies of the government. Specify ways that women and minorities have responded to challenges and made contributions to American culture.

Use technology and information resources to research issues in American History to 1865. Write clearly and concisely about American History to 1865 using proper writing mechanics.

Paper For Above instruction

The final paper on the challenge to liberty in nineteenth-century America must critically analyze the pivotal legislations and decisions that shaped the trajectory of American history concerning slavery and its legacies. Your introduction should incorporate your thesis statement that articulates the main argument and scope of the paper. The development of this paper involves a detailed exploration of two significant outcomes for each of the following: the 3/5ths Compromise, Missouri Compromise of 1820, Compromise of 1850, Kansas-Nebraska Act, and Dred Scott Decision.

Starting with the 3/5ths Compromise, which was a constitutional agreement that counted enslaved people as three-fifths of a person for purposes of representation and taxation, two outcomes were its strengthening of political representation for slaveholding states and its perpetuation of slavery by reinforcing the dehumanization of Black people. The Compromise of 1820, which admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, had outcomes such as maintaining the balance of power between free and slave states and establishing the precedent for sectional negotiations over slavery. The Missouri Compromise also sparked future conflicts by drawing a geographic line (36°30′) across the Louisiana Territory, signaling a clear division between North and South.

The Compromise of 1850 attempted to ease tensions by admitting California as a free state and enacting a stricter Fugitive Slave Law; its outcomes included temporarily diffusing sectional conflicts and increasing tensions due to enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act, which alienated abolitionists. The Kansas-Nebraska Act, which allowed settlers to determine the slavery issue through popular sovereignty, resulted in violent conflicts known as "Bleeding Kansas" and effectively repealed the Missouri Compromise, thus intensifying sectional tensions. Lastly, the Dred Scott Decision declared that African Americans could not be American citizens and that Congress had no authority to prohibit slavery in U.S. territories, leading to outcomes such as increased sectional bitterness and the invalidation of the Missouri Compromise.

Slavery is fundamentally incompatible with America's political and economic systems for several reasons. First, it undermines the constitutional principles of equality and individual rights, as enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Second, slavery hampers economic development by creating a system based on forced labor rather than innovation and productivity, which contrasts with free-market principles promoted in American capitalism. Third, slavery fosters social divisions and racial prejudices that undermine social cohesion and democratic governance. These incompatibilities have persisted, highlighting why slavery remains incompatible with American values.

Several driving forces led to the Civil War, including the expansion of slavery into new territories, economic differences between the industrial North and agrarian South, political disputes over states' rights, the abolitionist movement, and the election of Abraham Lincoln. The desire to expand slavery into western territories directly threatened the sectional balance and economy of the South. Economic divergence created conflicting interests, with the North favoring tariffs and industrialization, and the South relying on slave labor for plantation agriculture. Political disputes over sovereignty and the federal authority to regulate slavery, combined with violent clashes like "Bleeding Kansas," fueled tensions. The ascension of Lincoln, opposed to the expansion of slavery, epitomized these conflicts and ultimately precipitated secession and war.

Using scholarly sources such as Finkleman (2011), McPherson (2003), and Fehrenbach (2019), among others, adds depth and credibility to the analysis. These sources examine the constitutional foundations of slavery, sectional tensions leading to war, and the ideological conflicts over freedom and racial equality. Incorporating these references helps frame the historical context and provides diverse perspectives on the causes and consequences of slavery and the Civil War, aligning with the course’s learning outcomes.

References

• Fehrenbach, T. R. (2019). Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans. University of Texas Press.
• Finkleman, P. (2011). Slavery and the Founders: Race and Liberty in the Age of Jefferson. Routledge.
• McPherson, J. M. (2003). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press.
• Davidson, J. (2014). Race and Revolution in the American South. Georgia University Press.
• Berlin, I. (2016). The Long Emancipation: The Demise of Slavery in the United States. Harvard University Press.
• Wilentz, S. (2012). The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln. W.W. Norton & Company.
• McGhee, G. (2008). The Negro's Civil War: How American Blacks Felt and Acted During the War for the Union. Harvard University Press.
• Hampton, J. E. (2018). Blood, Sweat, and Tears: Jesse Owens and the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Harper Collins.
• Smith, B. (2017). The Civil War and the Transformation of American Society. Yale University Press.
• Griffin, P. (2010). Born to Rebel: An Autobiography. University of North Carolina Press.