Seeking the Main point 117The ideals of the Revolution forced Americans to confront the legacies
of oppression that remained in the former colonies. Women and African
Americans, whose subjugation was taken for granted, drew on the language of
the Revolution to demand recognition of their natural rights—exposing some of
the shortcomings of the Revolution and establishing the parameters of struggles
to come.Seeking the Main Point
As you read the documents that follow, keep these broad questions in mind.
These questions will help you understand the relationship between the doc-
uments in this chapter and the historical changes that they represent. As you
reflect on these questions, determine which themes and which documents best
address them.•
How did European ideas shape American debates about the future of the
new republic?•
In what ways did economic concerns shape American debates about the
future of the new republic?•
How did debates over the new Constitution shape political debates after its
ratification?•
In what ways did the American Revolution mirror similar revolutions in
Europe and in the Western Hemisphere?•
Individuals or groups often use their public and private writings and
speeches to present their purposes. In what ways do the writings of women
and African Americans, who were marginalized in the eighteenth century,
present similar purposes during and after the Revolution?116 Chapter 5 | a republiC enviSioned and reviSed | period three 175 4 –18 0 0
06_STA_2012_ch5_115-144.indd 117 11/03/15 3:19 PM