You are to argue the theisis that American movement westward between 1815 and 1860 had a profound impact on the development of slavery in American society and thus the advent of the Civil War.
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American Westward Movement: The Cause of Civil War
Introduction
The whole concept of the American movement westward was built on the foundations of the American population who reincarnated generational tradition and shipped it across the Mississippi in a past before its very creation of Civil War. We must, therefore, realize that it was naturally heritage enculturated by previous generations and upbringing. This generation grew with its interpretations after the American Independence. Acts depicting what is expected from society and which is sustained for future generations is often an intriguing lesson, and one is passionate to continue its legacy (Cateau 44). This westward movement thus was a damned concept that would transgress the very future of young citizens. The daunting reality of a new life and a new nation was to be faced together. The introduction of markets brought with it slavery in its entirety (Cateau 45). It was also a time of technological and economic innovation.
Northern entrepreneurs took the national economy by storm with various new ideas at the period following the industrial revolutions of the previous century in Europe. The progressive growth of production improved farming and had an amazing effect on the American people and is often quoted by various historians as the market revolution. Accordingly, the paper herein will argue that the American movement westward between 1815 and 1860 had a profound impact on the development of slavery in American society and thus the advent of the Civil War.
Wait! You are to argue the theisis that American movement westward between 1815 and 1860 had a profound impact on the development of slavery in American society and thus the advent of the Civil War. paper is just an example!
The market revolution
Eli Whitney was the pioneer innovator in the revolution with his invention of the cotton gin in the late 1700s.In the past years (Fields 23), there was a deficiency in cotton in America and this not taking into account that it was a land blessed with secure transport networks and the capacity to build textile factories. Cotton also proved very expensive to grow because especially farmers in the south, so they opted to concentrate instead on tobacco and rice considering the intensity in labor required. It took one slave an entire day to separate just half a kilogram of cotton seeds from the fibers.
This new invention meant that the harvesting of cottonseeds and fibers could now be automatically, and this allowed a single worker (slave) to produce up to fifty times his usual amount of kilograms a day (Fields 27). A few years down the line, cotton was the principal produce of the South and Northern states used it in the production of cotton cloths for sale.
Development and impact of slavery
The cotton planters now turned their focus to a larger swoop which meant the severe boosting of slave purchase for labor that would be able to produce more results and gain an advantage on the newly acquired demand. This opened the door for an increase in slaves being shipped from the West Indies and Africa for reinforcement before the slave trade was officially abolished (Stewart 334). The increase in manual labor output was evident. Small farms and vast plots all had hundreds of slaves in service, who worked to obtain their masters’ targets.
The production of cotton grew as an industry across the Mississippi and as a result, the wealthy northerners obliged themselves to invest their money in the south and build factories and finance potential development. Southern farmers would supply the cotton whereas their buyers would turn it into cloth. The completed product would then be exported or used locally. The manufacturing and trade sector, therefore, created a richer class of merchants and created jobs for maintenance of machinery and overall duties performed in the process (Sterwart 334).
Previously in 1787, the northwest legislations banned slave trade stopping its use within its territories and relegated it to a taboo of the South. Foreign slave trade formally collapsed in 1808 but, unfortunately, this had no impact. The smuggling of slaves was already rampant and in any case, the multiplication of this race was naturally inevitable. Americas slave population indefinitely rose as a result of this. Tobacco growing areas had the most slave labor in the 1820s that lifted the industry at large. By the late 1850s it had expanded to more Southern states at a very rapid rate (Fields 25). I tend to agree that in the event of a stop to the slave trade, the South would have been critically unable to meet global demand for its prime produce, although I must also say that this trend fanned the fire that was the impending civil war.
The movement as a cause of civil war
The moment of reckoning as recorded in American history was the Civil War. Tensions arose through simmering disagreements on boundary issues, and this reached its critical stage in 1860–1861 (Cook 47). This was the period that saw a secession by eleven states to form their government under the Confederate States of America banner. This was treated as treason and the resulting political climax resulted in war in Mid-1861.
America was never in turmoil as we learned from years of the movement. We learn that this period of its history which saw America gain entrance into the markets and gather fast-paced economic pace is the root reason for disagreement. Misunderstandings concerning financial issues such as tax tariffs, A central bank, and state-controlled public proved massively destructive although it outlined no serious threats to the functions and principles governing the country. Despite frequent friction between different ethnicities and classes, Americans were very familiar and similar to each other. In addition to this, questions concerning business and existence of slave trade set the stage for the war and treason.
Historians of past and present have often discussed the similarities and differences of both parts of the sphere. The North portrayed as a hub lacking good soil and free labor on this hand, and on the contrary, the toiling and fertile South where most capitals were invested in land and slaves. Historians of different opinion state that their similarities outweighed their differences. However, at a time during the 1850s, most people had been cultured to believe that differences existed dating back to Memorial ages and had bred a severe distrust on issues of slave trade presently and in the future (Dillon 76).
Southern Slaves were the unfortunate bearers of the burden of the massive workforce. They also due to their weak human rights and need fundamental fundamentals let themselves be overrun and dictated to by the Confederacy. Most of the white youth were recruited as watchdogs for the enslaved black man. This seemingly diverse population suffered the most by losing over four million of their population to slavery during the war in 1861.Their freedom was achieved with the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery being ratified at the tail end of 1865 (Hess 68). This, however, did not mean an immediate redemption and end to racial discrimination with regards to human rights.
Conclusion
The rise of the market revolution was detrimental to American society. The damage was overwhelming. Industrial growth and technological advancement spearheaded by the cotton gin invention by Elis Whitney was the mother of all problems despite its subsequent breakthrough. It brought about human rights violations in a state that was on the verge of permanently eradicating this vice. It brought to power the urge to mistreat fellow mankind and set a stage for rebellion. The result and detrimental cost of battle were great. American soldiers hadn’t been a widely massacred sin the days of colonial struggle and the famous Vietnam War. This calamity heavily impacted the seceded states with destruction and collapse. Wealth was lost in its maximums taking into account those who were killed in battle or permanently disabled. I must say, however, that the North emerged victorious withholding all factors constant. This revelation paralyzed fairness and set various unequal standards moving forward.
Work Cited.
Cateau, Heather. Capitalism and Slavery Fifty Years Later Eric Eustace Williams– a Reassessment of the Man and His Work. New York: Peter Lang, 2000. Print.
Cook, J. H. The Battle of Pea Ridge. Place of Publication Not Identified: [publisher Not Identified], 1889. Print.
Dillon, Merton L., and Michael F. Holt. “The Political Crisis of the 1850s.” The Journal of American History (1978): 156. Print.
Fields, Barbara Jeanne. Slavery and Freedom on the Middle Ground: Maryland during the Nineteenth Century. New Haven: Yale UP, 1985. Print.
Hess, Earl J. Wilson’s Creek, Pea Ridge, and Prairie Grove a Battlefield Guide, with a Section on Wire Road. Lincoln: U of Nebraska, 2006. Print.
Stewart, James Brewer, and Eric Foner. “Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men.” The Journal of Negro History (2010): 334. Print.
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