Early America: Prehistory-1800 Unit 1

Questions to answer How did the Native Americans view their relationship to the world around them? What were the major cultural features that the Puritans brought with them to New England? How did the development of society in colonial America lead to the Revolution?

Native Americans Arrived in North America around 35,000 B.C. Came over on a land bridge that linked Russia and Alaska Land was sacred-no one could own it Lives were organized around the cycles of nature, not around the past or the future Never focused on progress

Native Americans Storytelling was an important part of life Oral Traditions: passing of a story verbally from generation to generation Folklore: The traditional beliefs, customs, stories, songs, and dances of a culture. Folklore is passed down through oral traditions and is based on the concerns of the ordinary people

During the Renaissance ( ) people became curious about the world. Portuguese and Spanish led the Age of Exploration Europeans brought all parts of the world into meaningful contact with one another

Early Settlements In 1607 Jamestown, Virginia was the 1 st successful settlement Within 7 months 73 of 105 were dead Plymouth, Massachusetts was settled in 1620

Puritans Pilgrims came to America for economic reasons Puritans came here to escape religious persecution They wanted to “purify” the Church of England by eliminating rituals and practices and making religion part of their daily lives Believed in theocracy- government organized according to religion

Puritans Three doctrines lie at the heart of Puritanism – The Bible is the sole source of God’s law – All humans have an inherent evil called original sin “In Adam’s fall, we sinned all” – Predestination- God decided ling ago who would achieve salvation and who would not. Grace, the way to salvation, comes to a select few as the free gift from God, not as a result of human effort

Puritans Some believe that the Salem witch trials were a final attempt by the Puritan leaders to maintain a tight hold on the community They were highly educated and insisted on public education Established the first college, Harvard, in st American poet was Anne Bradstreet, which isn’t surprising because they believed in educating women and giving them a say in important matters

Slavery 1619 the first 20 slaves were brought to Virginia 1688 the first anti-slavery protest was held in Germantown, PA

Food and Fashion Corn, squash, beans and fish came from the Native Americans Pigs and Cattle were brought from Europe Puritans favored dark, plain clothing Wealthy plantation owners wore lavish clothing

Literature Flyers and Pamphlets were handed out in Europe to promote life in America 1611 the King James Bible, in English, was widely read 1735 John Zenger was arrested for criticizing the governor in NY Weekly Journal- this paved the way for freedom of press

Writing Mainly journals and letters Style was plain Focus was on nature Was the opposite of Shakespeare and the Renaissance era Jonathan Edwards VS. Shakespeare

Big Idea 1 The Sacred Earth and the Power of Storytelling Big Idea 2 Life in the New World Big Idea 3 The Road to Independence