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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What state was Jefferson from?

2. How many words did the Report on the Public Credit contain?

3. How many colonies were present at the birth of the new nation of the United States?

4. In its most simple terms, how did the Constitutional Convention formulate its documents?

5. How old was James Madison at the time of this dinner meeting?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why do you think Jefferson was the ideal moderator for this discussion?

2. How does the author differ from Lincoln's statement that America was founded on a proposition written by Jefferson in 1776?

3. Why do historians refer to this time in the course of American history as The Age of Passion?

4. What is different about the generation of leaders and their methods of communicating and the present day methods?

5. Why do you think such prominent men chose a duel to resolve their differences? Did it work?

6. Why was it so important that Hamilton and Madison meet away from the public eye?

7. What roles did the seconds (Pendleton and Van Ness) have in the days before the duel? Describe how each one played out these roles, and how they handled their roles after the duel.

8. Why did the duel between Burr and Hamilton effectively put a stop to dueling being accepted as a proper form of resolving arguments in the American Republic?

9. Why was Virginia so important to the decisions of this time?

10. Describe what is known about the duel between Burr and Hamilton

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why do you believe public opinion changed so radically regarding duels after the death of Alexander Hamilton? Do you think the American Republic was ashamed to be caught dealing with their problems in the same manner as the Europeans they had rebelled against?

Essay Topic 2

Compare John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Include their family background, their economic state, their vision of democracy and work habits. Which was the stronger politician, and which was the stronger statesman, in your opinion? What made them a great team?

Essay Topic 3

Why do you think the Constitutional Convention avoided the subject of slavery while forming the new republic? List the advantages and disadvantages of deferring this vital issue to a future generation. What were some of the results of this avoidance? How do you feel US history would have been changed if this issue had been resolved 1) to allow and encourage slavery and 2) to outlaw slavery?

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This section contains 798 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample