Passage #1 - Excerpt from a textbook in Great Britain
In the seventeenth century a number of people, mainly from Britain, sailed across the Atlantic, and settled in America. By the middle of the eighteenth century, these settlements were organized into the thirteen colonies. The total population in 1776 was 2.5 million.
The colonies flourished. The northern colonies developed shipbuilding and trading; the middle colonies , farming and the southern colonies, tobacco and rice plantations. The American colonists were also very proud of the way they arranged their government and laws. They were meant to be ruled by Britain. But the journey across the atlantic took so long that the colonies had to be allowed to run most of their own affairs. Each colony had its own assembly (or parliament). And in many towns decisions were made by gathering all of the citizens together.
The American War for Independence had started. It was also to become, for the colonists, the American Revolution.
The war started as a struggle by the Americans for fairer treatment from the British Government. On their side, the British Government of King George III and his ministers thought that the Americans were being unreasonable. Some Americans soon came to believe that there could never be agreement - the colonies had to break free from British control.
THE FIGHTING
The war lasted for six years from 1775 to 1781 and became quite complicated, involving other countries as well as Britain and the American Colonies.
The man appointed to be commander of the American army was George Washington. But first he had to form an army, which would be far from easy:
1. the colonies did not have uniforms, weapons or money;
2. the motley bands of men who joined him did not have proper military training;
3. the men had great distances to travel to join the army: the colonies covered 800,000 square miles (sixteen times the size of England).
WAS IT REALLY A REVOLUTION?
The Americans had won independence from Britain. But were the changes enough to call them a "revolution"? For example, there were still many poor people in America and there were still slaves, especially on the southern plantations. But even so, the separation from Britain was used as an opportunity to introduce many reforms (changes).
1. What is the meaning of the word motley used in "The Fighting" section? (Subpoint #2)
2. What is the overall tone in the passage about the colonists and the revolution?
3. Pick at least two phrases from the reading that contribute to the tone of the passage?
Passage #2 - Expert from a textbook from France
The American Revolution
The influence of the "Lumieres" was felt far and wide. A simple revolt by the British colonies of North America against the taxes imposed by the homeland became a veritable political revolution. These same colonies not only obtained Independence from England, they also provided the first written constitution the world has seen.
THE REVOLT
Aside from Canada, Great Britain possessed the thirteen colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Beginning in 1763 there arose a conflict which saw the colonists oppose the British government for having raised their taxes without consulting them. Since they did not participate in the parliamentary elections in London they refused these scandalous measures and put the problem in political institutional terms: "no taxation without representation." The situation deteriorated in 1773 when the Crown forced them to buy tea from the Indian Tea Company. On December 16, in the Boston Harbour a group of youth dressed as Indians climbed aboard three vessels and threw cargo into the sea; the so-called Boston Tea Party. The British Authorities reacted quickly: closing the port, raising taxes, and sending troops. The general rebellion of the colonists had begun.
THE WAR
Volunteers from amongst the colonies came together to form militias. Each colony called its own "governing body" (convention) from which certain representatives met together in Philadelphia at the Constitutional Congress beginning in 1774. The first skirmishes took place in 1775 the year George Washington was names Chief General by Congress. July 4, 1776, Congress voted the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America.
The war took on an international dimension when European volunteers like the Marquis de Lafayette poured in to aid the rebels in this the first war for freedom. In 1778, Louis XVI decided to act on behalf of the Americans. The Franco-American Victory at Yorktown in 1781 was decisive. In 1783, the British recognizes the independence of the United States.
The American winds of change blew through Europe and inspired those who were excited about changing the established order: the American example had an international impact.
4. What is the tone of passage #2 about American Independence?
5. Pick at least two phrases from the reading that contribute to the tone of the passage?
WRAP UP
6. Write 1-2 Paragraphs that could be an excerpt from an American Textbook. Use as many vocabulary words as possible. Make sure you convey the tone that would be used in an American Textbook.