What caused the American Revolution?

As we have seen in this unit, the origins of the American Revolution were complicated. While the Declaration of Independence has long been viewed as the beginning of the Revolution, in reality, the storm had been brewing for decades by the time Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
In this essay, you will be analyzing and evaluating the causes of the American Revolution using both primary and secondary sources.
In the process, you will be practicing one of the key skills in the historical thinking: evidence-based argumentation. Learning to make a clear argument that is supported by specific evidence is essential to the kind of critical thinking that your time in college should help you develop.
Task
Please ensure you read the following from the content of this unit:
Five Assigned Primary Source Readings:
Ideas and Theories For and Against American Independence
Primary Source: The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved
Primary Source: Soame Jenyns and Samuel Johnson
Events Contributing to the Rise of an Independence Movement in the Colonies
see images below
“Bostonian’s Paying the Excise Man, or Tarring and Feathering. Philip Dawe, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.”

“Boston Massacre as portrayed by Paul Revere. Not entirely an accurate depiction of the event that transpired. Engrav’d Printed & Sold by Paul Revere Boston. The print was copied by Revere from a design by Henry Pelham for an engraving eventually published under the title “The Fruits of Arbitrary Power, or the Bloody Massacre,” of which only two impressions could be located by Brigham. Revere’s print appeared on or about March 28, 1770., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.”

“This is the place to affix the stamp. Bradford, William, 1719-1791, publisher. Illus. in: The Pennsylvania Journal and Weekly Advertiser, 1765 October 24. From the Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2004672606/”
Directions
In an essay of at least 5 paragraphs and a minimum of 1000 words, answer the following question:
What caused the American Revolution?
Your thesis will answer this question by naming (1) key factor and will explain how that factor contributed to the outbreak of the American Revolution.
You will also have a roadmap statement that lists (3) relevant support points to the factor you named in your thesis. In your essay, your roadmap will immediately follow your thesis. Your thesis should be toward the end of your introduction.
Your three supporting points from your roadmap should be the subjects of the (3) main sections of your essay and of your topic sentences.
Use at least 3 of the primary sources listed above. Feel free to use other sources from the unit. Do not use internet sources. Your essay must be organized with a thesis statement and three support points. See resources in the Essay Module.
Expectations and Criteria for Success
General Instructions (see the checklist for more requirements):
1. Do not plagiarize. All phrases taken word-for-word from a document must be surrounded with quotation marks and followed by an in-text citation. In addition, you must include that source on your Works Cited page. If you paraphrase anything, you should follow that section with an in-text citation. Do not change every third or fourth word of someone elses writing in order to complete this assignment.
2. Use at least (3) primary sources provided in the unit. Remember, primary sources are sources created at the time of the event or by someone who experienced the event. The use of these sources must followed by an in-text citation and be included in your works cited.
3. Do not use internet sources. If you need to do outside research, you may use library books or academic articles found through Galileo. These sources must be listed on the Works Cited, and you must include in-text citations after the information you’ve taken from the source.
4. Include a Works Cited Page. Cite all quotes and references to specific ideas and data. Citations on your Works Cited page MUST be in proper form that conforms with the citation standard you pick. You may use any FORMAL citation method. For help citing work and creating a work cited page, consult a librarian or visit: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/
5. You must include at least (9) concrete and specific examples (the names of people, places, events or ideas). This is the bare minimum number of specific examples and may earn you a C at best. You can take these examples from the textbook or other sources on the course website.
6. Papers with less than 1000 words will be penalized. Your Work Cited page does not count towards the 1000 required words.
7. Citations should be formatted according to the MLA guidelines (if you want to use APA or Chicago, check with me first), including both in-text and your Works Cited page. Guidelines for MLA can be found using the Purdue Owl or you can reference the Citation Help.pdf from the Start Here Module of the course.
8. Essays should be typed in 12-point font with a simple, clean font such as Times New Roman or Arial. Use 1″ inch margins on all sides and double-space the text. Your essay should be a minimum of 1000 words.
9. Successful essays should be carefully organized, with strong thesis statements and specific evidentiary support. Your introduction should include a clear statement of what you will argue in the essay (thesis statements are never questions). The body of the essay will include at least three paragraphs (though you can write more with this assignment. Conclude by discussing the key conclusion you reached and why (remember not to use the first person in formal academic essays).
10. Be sure to revise and edit carefully. Click here to review the General Essay Guidelines included in your syllabus. In addition, make sure to download and use the essay checklist before submitting your essay.
IMPORTANT: You must follow the essay/outline format sheet and other materials available in the Essay Module. Please see these resources so you structure your essay correctly. You will lose points if your essay structure deviates from the one outlined in the Essay Module.
Essay Outline / Format
The following is a general guideline for how you should outline and structure your essay. Please
use this as a guide for writing your essay. You do not need to follow this guide 100%, as essay
writing is an art.
1. INTRODUCTION
Include an introductory paragraph (length: 6-8 sentences).
This should include:
A. A topic sentence. This sentence will give the reader a specific idea of the
subject/topic of the essay. Set the scene and give specifics.
B. 3-4 more sentences setting the context. For example, if you are writing about the
American Revolution, include several sentences talking about the events leading
up to it.
C. Thesis statement. Your thesis should be clear, concise, fully address the prompt,
and be specific. It should have a clear (and specific) argument and have a why or
how component. Avoid an a, b, and c formula in your thesis.
D. A roadmap sentence that outlines how you will argue your thesis statement. This
sentence may follow an a, b, and c formula. All elements (a, b, and c) should
support and be directly relevant to your thesis.
Your three support points should explicitly support your thesis and be the subject
of your main support paragraphs. In addition, your support paragraphs should
come in the same order as the support points are listed in your roadmap.
2. SUPPORT PARAGRAPHS
Include at least (3) body paragraphs (length: 8-12 sentences for each paragraph).
Your body paragraphs will reflect your topic sentences. The subjects of your body paragraph
should be in the same order as the support presented in your roadmap sentence.
*Note on length: In general, a support paragraph in an essay like this one should be
between 1/2 page and 3/4 of a page long. Paragraphs longer than this generally tend to lose
focus and may not reflect the topic sentence. Feel free to divide 1 support point from your
roadmap up into multiple paragraphs. Each will reflect the roadmap and have its own
topic sentence, but they will also be more focused than if you had a 1 page or longer
paragraph.
Each body paragraph should include:
A. A topic sentence. Your topic sentence should give the reader a specific sense of
what the body paragraph is about. Topic sentence should also be relatable back to
thesis. In other words, it should be obvious or explicitly stated how the topic
sentence (and body paragraph) supports the thesis statement. Be direct and
concise.
B. Provide a concrete and specific example. Use an example to support your thesis.
C. Interpret example. Analyze here. Find something insightful to say.
D. Explain relevance of example to overall argument. Explicitly tie back to thesis if
need be.
E. Use another example, if you want.
F. Interpret example. Analyze here. Find something insightful to say.
G. Explain relevance of example to overall argument. Explicitly tie back to thesis, if
need be.
H. Wrap up/Conclude paragraph (maybe two sentences). Craft a sentence to explain
relevance of your examples to your thesis. You should also transition to the next
paragraph, if possible.
3. CONCLUSION
Include a conclusion (length: 6 to 8 sentences).
This should include:
A. A restatement of thesis (in different words) 1 sentence.
B. Sum up your argument and main support points from roadmap. Tie everything
together (3 sentences or more)
C. End with a statement of why this topic, question, and your argument is important
(1-2 sentences)
Due Date
Jun 11, 2021 11:59 PM
Attachments
Library of Congress LCCN Permalink: Frequently Asked Questions
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab
Library of Congress LCCN Permalink: Frequently Asked Questions
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab
Library of Congress LCCN Permalink: Frequently Asked Questions
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab
Library of Congress LCCN Permalink: Frequently Asked Questions
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab
Library of Congress LCCN Permalink: Frequently Asked Questions
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab
This is the place to affix the stamp
OWL // Purdue Writing Lab

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