This debate-style reader is designed to introduce students to controversies in American history through readings that reflect a variety of viewpoints. Each issue is framed with an issue summary, an issue introduction, and a postscript. The Taking Sides readers feature annotated listings of selected World Wide Web sites. Taking Sides is supported by our student Web site, Dushkin Online (www.dushkin.com/online/).

Table of Contents:
PART 1. Colonial SocietyISSUE 1. Is America Exceptional?YES: Seymour Martin Lipset, from American Exceptionalism:A Double-Edged SwordNO: Ian Tyrrell, from "American Exceptionalism in an Age ofInternational History", American Historical ReviewProfessor of public policy Seymour Martin Lipset describesthe United States as an "outlier" because of its revolutionary originsand because statistically it is more religious, optimistic, patriotic,rights-oriented, and individualistic than other nations in the world.Professor of history Ian Tyrrell criticizes the national focus of theconcept of American exceptionalism and advocates the development of a"transnational" history.ISSUE 2. Was Columbus an Imperialist?YES: Kirkpatrick Sale, from The Conquest of Paradise:Christopher Columbus and the Columbian LegacyNO: Robert Royal, from 1492 and All That: PoliticalManipulations of HistoryKirkpatrick Sale, a contributing editor of TheNation, characterizes Christopher Columbus as an imperialist whowas determined to conquer both the land and the people he encounteredduring his first voyage to the Americas in 1492. Robert Royal, vicepresident for research at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, objectsto Columbus's modern-day critics and insists that Columbus should beadmired for his courage, his willingness to take a risk, and hissuccess in advancing knowledge about other parts of theworld.ISSUE 3. Were the English Colonists Guilty of Genocide?YES: David E. Stannard, from American Holocaust: Columbusand the Conquest of the New WorldNO: Steven T. Katz, from "The Pequot War Reconsidered",The New England QuarterlyDavid E. Stannard, a professor of American studies,insists that the colonists carried out a conscious militaristic policyto exterminate the Native Americans. Steven T. Katz, a professor ofNear Eastern studies, contends that the Pequot War was not an instanceof premeditated genocide carried out by New Englanders against theNative Americans.ISSUE 4. Was the Colonial Period a "Golden Age" for Women inAmerica?YES: Lois Green Carr and Lorena S. Walsh, from "The Planter'sWife: The Experience of White Women in Seventeenth-Century Maryland",William and Mary QuarterlyNO: Mary Beth Norton, from "The Myth of the Golden Age", in CarolRuth Berkin and Mary Beth Norton, eds., Women of America: AHistoryAdjunct professor of history Lois Green Carr and historianLorena S. Walsh identify several factors that coalesced to affordwomen in seventeenth-century Maryland a higher status with fewerrestraints on their social conduct than those experienced by women inEngland. Professor of American history Mary Beth Norton challenges the"golden age" theory, insisting that women in colonial America, whetherwhite, black, or Native American, typically occupied a domestic spherethat was lacking in status, physically debilitating over time, and abarrier to educational opportunity and political power.ISSUE 5. Were Socioeconomic Tensions Responsible for theWitchcraft Hysteria in Salem?YES: Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum, from Salem Possessed:The Social Origins of WitchcraftNO: Laurie Winn Carlson, from A Fever in SalemHistorians Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum argue thatthe Salem witchcraft hysteria of 1692 was prompted by economic andsocial tensions that occurred against the backdrop of an emergentcommercial capitalism, conflicts between ministers and theircongregations, and the loss of family lands, which divided theresidents of Salem Town and Salem Village. Author Laurie Winn Carlsoncontends that the witchcraft hysteria in Salem was the product ofpeople's responses to physical and neurological behaviors resultingfrom an unrecognized epidemic of encephalitis.PART 2. Revolution and the New NationISSUE 6. Was the Great Awakening a Key to the AmericanRevolution?YES: William G. McLoughlin, from "`Enthusiasm for Liberty':The Great Awakening as the Key to the Revolution", in Jack P. Greeneand William G. McLoughlin, Preachers and Politicians: Two Essayson the Origins of the American RevolutionNO: Jon Butler, from "Enthusiasm Described and Decried: TheGreat Awakening as Interpretative Fiction", Journal of AmericanHistoryProfessor of history William G. McLoughlin contends thatthe Great Awakening, by promoting religious revitalization,intercolonial unity, and democracy, paved the way for the AmericanRevolution. Professor of religious studies Jon Butler challenges thevalidity of the term Great Awakening and argues that a linkbetween the eighteenth-century colonial religious revivals and theAmerican Revolution was virtually nonexistent.ISSUE 7. Were the Founding Fathers Democratic Reformers?YES: John P. Roche, from "The Founding Fathers: A Reform Caucus inAction", American Political Science ReviewNO: Alfred F. Young, from "The Framers of the Constitution and the`Genius' of the People", Radical History ReviewPolitical scientist John P. Roche asserts that theFounding Fathers were not only revolutionaries but also superbdemocratic politicians who created a Constitution that supported theneeds of the nation and at the same time was acceptable to the people.Historian Alfred F. Young argues that the Founding Fathers were anelite group of college-educated lawyers, merchants, slaveholdingplanters, and "monied men" who strengthened the power of the centralgovernment yet, at the same time, were forced to make some democraticaccommodations in writing the Constitution in order to ensure itsacceptance in the democratically controlled ratifyingconventions.ISSUE 8. Was Thomas Jefferson Committed to Bringing an End toChattel Slavery?YES: Dumas Malone, from Jefferson and His Time, vol. 6: TheSage of MonticelloNO: William Cohen, from "Thomas Jefferson and the Problem ofSlavery", The Journal of American HistoryAmerican historian Dumas Malone (1892-1986) asserts that,although he did not live to see slavery abolished, Thomas Jeffersonsincerely deplored the slave system as unjust to its victims andinjurious to the masters. Malone maintains that Jefferson was one ofthe first Americans to propose a specific plan for emancipation.American historian William Cohen contends that libertarian views hadvirtually no impact on Jefferson's actions after 1784 and that hisbehavior as a slave owner differed little from that of Virginiaplanters who opposed his antislavery speculations and who werecommitted to protecting their chattel property.ISSUE 9. Was Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Policy Motivated byHumanitarian Impulses?YES: Robert V. Remini, from Andrew Jackson and the Course ofAmerican Freedom, 1822-1832, vol. 2NO: Anthony F. C. Wallace, from The Long, Bitter Trail: AndrewJackson and the IndiansHistorical biographer Robert V. Remini argues that AndrewJackson did not seek to destroy Native American life and culture. Heportrays Jackson as a national leader who sincerely believed that theIndian Removal Act of 1830 was the only way to protect NativeAmericans from annihilation at the hands of white settlers. Historianand anthropologist Anthony F. C. Wallace contends that Andrew Jacksonoversaw a harsh policy with regard to Native Americans. This policyresulted in the usurpation of land, attempts to destroy tribalculture, and the forcible removal of Native Americans from thesoutheastern United States to a designated territory west of theMississippi River.PART 3. Antebellum AmericaISSUE 10. Was Antebellum Reform Motivated Primarily byHumanitarian Goals?YES: Alice Felt Tyler, from Freedom's Ferment: Phases ofAmerican Social History to 1860NO: David J. Rothman, from The Discovery of the Asylum:Social Order and Disorder in the New RepublicProfessor of history Alice Felt Tyler argues that Americanreformers in the antebellum period were seeking only to perfect humaninstitutions. Professor of history David J. Rothman contends thatantebellum reformers established orphan asylums and reformatoriesprimarily to enforce strict discipline among those seeking refuge inthese institutions.ISSUE 11. Was the Mexican War an Exercise in AmericanImperialism?YES: Rodolfo Acuña, from Occupied America: A History ofChicanos, 3rd ed.NO: Norman A. Graebner, from "The Mexican War: A Study inCausation", Pacific Historical ReviewProfessor of history Rodolfo Acuña argues thatEuroamericans took advantage of the young, independent, and unstablegovernment of Mexico and waged unjust and aggressive wars against theMexican government in the 1830s and 1840s in order to take away halfof Mexico's original soil. Professor of diplomatic history Norman A.Graebner argues that President James Polk pursued an aggressive policythat he believed would force Mexico to sell New Mexico and Californiato the United States and to recognize the annexation of Texas withoutstarting a war.ISSUE 12. Did the Westward Movement Transform the TraditionalRoles of Women in the Mid-Nineteenth Century?YES: Sandra L. Myres, from Westering Women and the FrontierExperience, 1800-1915NO: John Mack Faragher, from Women and Men on the OverlandTrailProfessor of history Sandra L. Myres (1933-1991) arguesthat first- and second-generation American women often worked outsidethe home as teachers, missionaries, doctors, lawyers, ranchers,miners, and businesspeople instead of simply assuming the traditionalroles of wife and mother. According to professor John Mack Faragher,women were reluctant pioneers because they were unwilling to breakaway from their close networks of female relatives and friends.However, nineteenth-century marital laws gave their husbands the soleauthority to make the decision to move west.ISSUE 13. Did Slavery Destroy the Black Family?YES: Stanley M. Elkins, from Slavery: A Problem inAmerican Institutional and Economic Life, 3rd ed.NO: Eugene D. Genovese, from Roll, Jordan, Roll: TheWorld the Slaves MadeHistory professor Stanley M. Elkins maintains that slaverywas a closed system of total control that turned the culturallyuprooted African slaves into passive and childlike "Sambos". Historyprofessor Eugene D. Genovese argues that slaves developed their ownsystem of family and cultural values within the southern paternalisticand precapitalistic slave society.PART 4. Conflict and ResolutionISSUE 14. Is Robert E. Lee Overrated as a General?YES: Alan T. Nolan, from "Rally, Once Again!" Selected CivilWar Writings of Alan T. NolanNO: Gary W. Gallagher, from "Another Look at the Generalship of R.E. Lee", in Gary W. Gallagher, ed., Lee the SoldierAttorney Alan T. Nolan argues that General Robert E. Leewas a flawed grand strategist whose offensive operations producedheavy casualties in an unnecessarily prolonged war that the Southcould not win. According to professor of American history Gary W.Gallagher, General Lee was the most revered and unifying figure in theConfederacy, and he "formulated a national strategy predicated on theprobability of success in Virginia and the value of battlefieldvictories".ISSUE 15. Did Abraham Lincoln Free the Slaves?YES: James M. McPherson, from Drawn With the Sword:Reflections on the American Civil WarNO: Vincent Harding, from There Is a River: The Black Strugglefor Freedom in AmericaHistorian James M. McPherson maintains that AbrahamLincoln was the indispensable agent in emancipating the slaves throughhis condemnation of slavery as a moral evil, his refusal to compromiseon the question of slavery's expansion, his skillful politicalleadership, and his implementation and direction of Union troops as anarmy of liberation. Vincent Harding, a professor of religion andsocial transformation, credits slaves themselves for engaging in adramatic movement of self-liberation. He argues that Lincoln initiallyrefused to declare the destruction of slavery as a war aim and thenissued the Emancipation Proclamation, which failed to free any slavesin areas over which he had any authority.ISSUE 16. Did William M. Tweed Corrupt Post-Civil War NewYork?YES: Alexander B. Callow, Jr., from The TweedRingNO: Leo Hershkowitz, from Tweed's New York: AnotherLookProfessor emeritus of history Alexander B. Callow, Jr.,asserts that by exercising a corrupting influence over the city andstate governments, William M. "Boss" Tweed and his infamous "ring"extracted enormous sums of ill-gotten money for their own benefit inpost-Civil War New York. Professor of history Leo Hershkowitz portraysTweed as a devoted public servant whose reputation as the symbol forurban political corruption is grossly undeserved.ISSUE 17. Was Reconstruction a "Splendid Failure?''YES: Eric Foner, from "The New View of Reconstruction",American HeritageNO: Thomas Holt, from Black Over White: Negro PoliticalLeadership in South Carolina During ReconstructionProfessor of history Eric Foner asserts that althoughReconstruction did not achieve radical goals, it was a "splendidfailure" because it offered African Americans in the South a temporaryvision of a free society. Thomas Holt, a professor of American andAfrican American history, contends that in South Carolina, whereAfrican Americans wielded significant political clout, Reconstructionfailed to produce critical economic reforms for working-class blacksbecause of social and cultural divisions within the blackcommunity.