A People’s History of the United States is a 1980 non-fiction book by American historian and political scientist Howard Zinn. In the book‚ Zinn seeks to present American history through the eyes of the common people rather than political and economic elites. A People’s History has been assigned as reading in many high schools and colleges across the United States.[1] It has also resulted in a change in the focus of historical work‚ which now includes stories that previously were ignored.[2] The book
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What is Gordon S. Wood’s argument and what is Howard Zinn’s argument on the nature of the American War for Independence and what evidence do the two historians present to support their interpretations? Who do you think presents the better case? Howard Zinn Howard Zinn’s argument on the nature of the American War for Independence was the war for independence was not a social revolution. Instead‚ he argues the colonial elite used the war for their own personal gain in power and status. The wealthy
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1. In a nutshell‚ Professor Howard Zinn’s purpose for writing “A People’s History of the United States” was to offer a history of the United States (from the first settlers all the way to the mid1970’s at the time of publishing) that did not outright lie or “sugar coat” our country’s past. Furthermore‚ Zenn seeks to avoid manipulating our history as a means to calm the reader‚ albeit causing controversy when his book first debuted. Additionally‚ in the word’s of the author himself‚ “If history is to be creative
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Howard Zinn challenges the American identity by suggesting that America is just as bad as Great Britain in that the countries are both incredibly elitist. Going back to the founding fathers‚ the U.S. has an uneven distribution of wealth‚ and the founding fathers wanted to oppress the lower class. Once the lower class realized this‚ riots were held against the elites. Zinn argues that the American Revolution merely shifted the elite tyranny from one leader to another. The founding fathers that are
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contact is the side of the story from the victims. H. These atrocities are absent in many texts because historians try to preserve morality and not let out all the immoral things that happened in America’s history. Zinn compares it to radioactive wastes being buried in containers. I. Zinn means that historians
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southern states in return for the admission of the Mexican war territories (California‚ especially) into the Union as non-slave states. The Act made it easy for slaveowners to recapture ex-slaves or simply to pick up blacks they claimed had run away” (Zinn‚ A People’s History of the United States). This clearly portrays the government’s concern with national unity and power over slave emancipation. These actions also support Zinn’s assertion that "Such a government would never accept an end to slavery
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Zinn Chapter summaries CH 15 In chapter 15 it talks about the end of World War I temporarily brought prosperity to the United States. With its influence growing in the world‚ the mixture of big business and government was increasingly looking to expand American power overseas. There was still dissatisfaction at home with the pace of reforms. The AFL and the IWW staged a general strike in Seattle in 1919 that resulted in 100‚000 workers walking off the job. This strike was put down by violence despite
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Summary of Howard Zinn’s “Violence and Human Nature” In Howard Zinn’s article “Violence and Human Nature” Zinn investigates the belief that violence is an innate trait of human beings. In the end he comes to a conclusion that not all humans are born with a drive to be violent‚ but instead mainly influenced by that person’s natural surroundings and environments. In section one of Zinn’s article‚ he explains three events in which he has experienced which have ultimately shaped his perception of
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AP U.S. History Summer Work Zinn Study Questions Zinn Chapter 1: pp.1-11 Columbus‚ The Indian‚ and Human Progress 1. Zinn’s main purpose for writing A People’s History of the United States is to show history from the viewpoint of others. 2. This is Zinn’s thesis for pages 1-11: These traits did not stand out in the Europe of the Renaissance‚ dominated as it was by religion of popes‚ the government of kings‚ and the frenzy for money that marked Western Civilization and its first messenger
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Howard Zinn A People’s History of the United States Chapter Four Summary Chapter four of A People’s History of the United States‚ by Howard Zinn is about how Britain’s aggressiveness in government allows their tightening on the colonies. Because of their need for raw materials to balance their economy‚ their control over the colonies becomes stronger in order to obtain these raw materials. The colonists perform a series of rebellions in order to overthrow this British rule. To lead these
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