Andy'sUSHistory

     The western frontier was a place where hard work was necessary and harsh conditions could be dangerous to people.  The person in this narrative, Jean Slauson , lived in early Portland Oregon.  She describes the large amount of snow in the winter.  In the cold, she describes a necessity for fire in her household, stating that because their firewood had been wasted, they went without light in the house for several days.  Because of the cold weather, the family farm animals would spend particularly harsh nights with the family.  There are accounts of women being oppressed, particularly in church.  The author's aunt was told about "women keeping quiet in the temple of the Lord."  The women prayed for the day they would receive political equality.  It is repeatedly stated that women played no part in politics.  Politics actually played an important role in the lives of the community and was discussed often between residents o...

     This article, "Letters of Western Expansion" by Kathryn Burke, states that the only way for communities to communicate over long distances were through letters.  These letters reveal the gravity of the decision to leave home to travel to the West.  One settler, Anna Briggs, traveling to the West to start a new life, says she uses letters to " keep up a kind of acquaintance and not feel like a stranger in my own dear native land, if ever I should visit it again.”  The phrase implying that she might not return home was due to the to travel technology in the 19th century.  Another popular group of settlers were the missionaries, who would teach native Americans about their religion.  Some missionaries experienced retaliation and were killed, even after living with them for years, due to the spread of diseases that the missionaries and white people had given them.  However, there was another form of expansion in the country, employment expa...

   The newspaper in Sacramento is similar to what a person would see in their local news broadcast.  This daily paper consists of a bunch of interesting stories about the normal people in town.  It also consists of stories of crimes or outlaws in the town, telling people to lookout for these people causing damage to the community.  There is even specific details about the legal process and court system putting a single convict to jail, and the lawyers involved in the case.  However, these are not the main place on the paper where one's focus would be drawn towards.  The largest items in the newspaper are definitely the adds, especially those about miracle tonics and elixirs.  This goes to show the demand in the West for cures to diseases and illnesses, because of an abundance of them.  There is also an entire section dedicated to the times and locations of various religious services.  This illustrates the importance of the role that rel...

To most people, historical movies should play no role in education.  However, historical movies should play a much larger role in education.  The perfect example of an educational movie is 12 Years a Slave .  This movie portrays nearly all aspects of slavery, including the most brutal acts that could be committed by a human.  The movie does not give an entertaining tone, like most would expect from a hollywood movie, but a gruesome and tense feeling, as if any character could be killed at any time.  The reason why 12 Years a Slave is an educational movie is not that it portrays the business of slaves like a documentary, but that it depicts the emotions and experiences the average slave would have, in all their brutality.  This can be seen through film reviews, crew and cast involved in the movie, and the actual experiences of real slaves that have been documented. Chiwetel Ejiofor staring down camera Film critics have seen the power and t...

Master and Slave Relationships      Master and slave relationships can vary from a kind master to a brutal master.  For example, an unnamed run away slave said that he would be punished for not smiling or joking like the other slaves would because he looked like he was plotting something.  However, there were slave owners like William Ford, who was kind and felt pity for slaves, but felt that he could do nothing because of the world that he lived in.  Now, from a slaves point of view, all slave owners were bad except in a few rare cases.  However, some slaves judged there slaves from either their experiences of other masters, or witnessing the cruelty or kindness of other slave owners from a far.  Slaves were never allowed to show their hatred for their master, because they would be brutally punished if they did so.  Relationships between slaves were almost always for survival, such as if a slave were to talk about freedom, other slaves...

   In US history, I have learned to find and read historical documents with great understanding of the material.  I have learned that history is not only the restatement of events that have happened in the past, but understanding why those events occurred.  With this concept in mind, I have learned how to relate everything that we have learned so far, to the new material that we are learning at this moment.  In the future, I hope to develop these skills much farther to be able to make strong connections between events in history much faster.  With skills such as paraphrasing, quoting, and summarizing, I will be will now be able to articulate my finding much clearer, making me more successful in this class.

   I have learned about the difference between a paraphrase and a summary.  I learned that a paraphrase is restating something in your own words, while a summary is just getting the main points, or a shorter version of something.  I learned that paraphrasing is okay as long as you cite the source that is being paraphrased.  I also learned that quotations are used as evidence to support a claim that is being made.  It is also to specify that this specific person said these exact words. This is what I learned today: - Only use a direct quote when it adds power and style to my writing. - Always make it clear, from context, that I understand the full meaning of the quote. - Whether I quote or paraphrase, I must always be transparent about the source and how I'm using it. - If I use another author's exact words or phrases, to any extent, I have to use quotation marks and give credit. - If I use another author's presentation of facts or ideas, but put their id...