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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 convenience is just becoming fashionable at the time of the Convention?

2. What is the outcome of the vote over the New Jersey plan?

3. In 1787, which American City still shows the effects of the Revolutionary War?

4. Which delegate is Washington's neighbor on the Potomac?

5. In Chapter Eight, what startling statement is attributed to Franklin?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kind of reception does John Adams receive in England?

2. What is the difference between the European view of the forest and the American view of the forest?

3. Why are some people uncomfortable with Benjamin Franklin's ideas about government?

4. Why is there an argument over the issue of a single executive?

5. What arguments do James Madison present in his rebuttal of the New Jersey plan?

6. Why are Patrick Henry and Sam Adams absent from the Convention?

7. Why is Washington concerned about the Society of the Cincinnati meeting in Philadelphia at the same time as the Convention?

8. What does James Wilson mean by his statement that Federal liberty is to states what civil liberty is to individuals?

9. In Chapter Five, which Resolves are postponed for later discussion?

10. What does General Washington write about in his letters to people back home in Virginia?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Although the land known as the Western Territories is untamed frontier, the area is a frequent topic of discussion during the Convention proceedings. Write a well-crafted essay that identifies the concerns and issues surrounding the Western Territories, as well as the ways delegates deal with those concerns and issues.

Essay Topic 2

Although the Constitution is eventually ratified by all of the states, there is opposition in each state. Write an essay that presents and explains the reasons for opposition to the Constitution presented by the delegates in each of the state conventions. Analyze the validity of their reasoning, placing your analysis in historical context. How do the supporters of the Constitution address these concerns?

Essay Topic 3

What does it mean to be an American in 1787? The delegates to the Convention address this question in various ways. Using the final Constitution as your guide, with supplementing evidence drawn from other chapters in Bowen's book, write a well-crafted essay that describes the delegates' understanding and perception of who is an American and what it means to be an American.

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