Reference no: EM133490562

Question

1. How did slavery shape America during the period 1820-1865? What role did the South's "peculiar institution" play in the growth of the country, the crises of the 1850s, the South's secession, and the North's eventual victory in the Civil War? How did enslaved African-Americans (as individuals and as a community) forge meaningful lives and a unique culture before, during, and after the Civil War?

2. In 1865, the United States defeated the Confederate States of America and faced profound social, economic, and political challenges in trying to rebuild a united country rooted in the ideals of liberty, equality, and justice. The Reconstruction period (1865-1877) can be seen as the final battle of the Civil War. How successful were the various Reconstruction laws and programs? How were the lives and liberties of some 4 million newly-emancipated African-Americans assured and/or denied during this time? In what ways was Reconstruction resisted, and with what results? In the end, how successful was Reconstruction as the last battle of the Civil War?