NSC 68: America’s Cold War Blueprint
Why did the United States believe it had a responsibility to engage the Soviet Union in a cold war, and why was that war a global conflict?
The Marshall Plan Speech: Rhetoric and Diplomacy
What challenges, both rhetorical and diplomatic, did Secretary of State George Marshall face when, on June 5, 1947, he delivered his speech, calling for a massive aid program to restore the economies of Europe that had been ravaged by World War II?
Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase
Why did President Thomas Jefferson negotiate the Louisiana Purchase?
America and the Six Nations: Native Americans after the Revolution
Through his 1790 speech, how does Seneca Chief Cornplanter reflect the shifting political landscape Native Americans faced following the American Revolution?
America, the Creeks, and Other Southeastern Tribes
What challenges faced the United States in 1789 as it sought to negotiate with the Creeks and other Native American nations of the Southeast?
Citizen Leadership in the Young Republic
What qualities of citizen leadership did John Adams consider essential to sustain and nurture the new republic?
Abigail Adams and “Remember the Ladies”
How does Abigail Adams’s famous appeal to “Remember the Ladies” reflect the status of women in eighteenth-century America?
Lexington and Concord: Tipping Point of the Revolution
How did the Battles of Lexington and Concord change the character of American resistance to British rule?
Patrick Henry and “Give Me Liberty!”
What arguments, appeals, and rhetorical strategies did Patrick Henry use in 1775 to persuade reluctant members of the Second Virginia Convention to develop a military response to British aggression?
The American Revolution as Civil War
How did the American Revolution manifest itself as a civil war, turning neighbors into enemies?
The Columbian Exchange
In what ways did the arrival of Europeans to America bring about unforeseen and unintended consequences for the people and environments of both the New World and the Old?