Paper #2: The Origins of American Exceptionalism
J. Hector St. John Crèvecoeur, "What Is an American?" (1782)
(3pp.)
Benjamin Franklin, “Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, etc.” (1751).
(5 pp.)
Jeremiah Dummer, "A Defence of the New-England Charters" (1715)
(20pp.)
Read your textbook for relevant facts about how colonials thought of their new life as somehow very different and special in comparison with life in Europe. Then, carefully read the documents listed above. Write an essay analyzing how early American settlers saw their economic and political institutions as inherently superior to those of other countries. What are the sources of this superiority? In what ways do these attitudes foreshadow the coming of the American Revolution? In what ways do they seem to run contrary to the ideas of American independence?
You must cite your sources, and list them at the end of your paper as a List of Works Cited. Please do not “borrow” material from the web without providing proper citations and enclosing direct quotations in quotation marks. Otherwise, it will be considered plagiarism, and the penalties will be severe. Typed, double-spaced, formatted according to MLA style, 600-800 words, to be submitted to Turnitin.com. (For aid on formatting, see the Purdue Owl Website.)
Note: before sending the assignment, you must rename the file in the following format: LastnameFirstname-papernumber.doc. Example: JacksonChristopher-paper2.doc. If the file is not properly named, it will not be accepted.