Michael Joseph Mulvey

Introduction: In this course we ask a number of questions. How and why did a relatively small group living on the edge of the Eurasian landmass gain control of the major sea-lanes of the world and establish political and economic hegemony on distant continents? How has our attitude towards European exploration changed over the past 500 years? Do we remember and commemorate European expansion into the Americas? How has the presentation of European exploration changed over the course of your education? What does it mean to “other” other human beings? Is there a difference between exploration and colonization of the New World? What is the difference between imperialism and colonialism? What motivated British colonialism in North America? How did British colonists see themselves? How did they see the land? How did they promote the colonization of the New World? How did they take possession of the land? How does the early English colonization contribute to the development of an “American Identity” and the idea of “American Exceptionalism”? How have contemporary Americans used (misused?) these ideas? Why are these ideas still powerful? How important is the concept of the city as a community to Americans? What kind of “freedom” did people seek? Do we share a common vision for our city on the hill or do we have a multiplicity of cities that project different visions of the good life? How does slavery become associated with skin color? How did slavery cause Euro-Americans to conflate skin color with concepts of race? What influence does slavery have on the development of racism? What influence does racism have on the development of slavery? Why does slavery become so important in the New World? How do those involved in the slave trade and those involved in slavery justify slavery? What challenges did African peoples confront maintaining their languages and traditions in the Americas? How and why did American Revolutionaries successfully defeat the British? Why did some Americans oppose the Revolution? How do the experiences of those involved in the Revolution inform our understanding of the Revolutionary War? How revolutionary was the American Revolution? What does the American Revolution mean today? What was an American? What differentiated Americans from other people? What differentiated Americans from the British and other English speaking North Americans? What differentiates Americans from other people today? Who counted as “American”? What mattered more—local, regional, religious, racial, or national identity? What matters today? What issues did a new nation face in shaping the institutions of a new society?