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PRIMARY SOURCE ANALYSIS: THE NATIONAL CRISIS

Chapter 12 — The American Yawp

Assignment Overview

In this assignment, you will analyze two primary sources from 1860: the 1860 Republican Party Platform and the South Carolina Declaration of Secession. The documents present competing arguments about slavery, constitutional authority, and the future of the United States. You will closely read the sources, compare their arguments, and connect them to the events discussed in Chapter 12 of The American Yawp.

Required Materials

· 1860 Republican Party Platform

· South Carolina Declaration of Secession

· Chapter 12, “The National Crisis,” from The American Yawp

Part I: Close Reading (20 points)

1. Defining Freedom (4 points)

The Republican Party Platform invokes the Declaration of Independence’s assertion that “all men are created equal” and argues that the “normal condition” of U.S. territories should be freedom. Analyze how the platform uses the language of equality and freedom. What does its position on slavery in the territories reveal about the limits of the Republican Party’s antislavery position? Use specific evidence from the document and explain its significance.

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2. Constitutional Rights (4 points)

The South Carolina Declaration of Secession argues that Northern states violated their constitutional obligations by resisting the enforcement of fugitive slave laws. How does South Carolina use the Constitution and fugitive slave laws to justify secession? What does this argument reveal about the state’s priorities? Support your interpretation with specific language from the declaration.

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3. Property and Political Power (4 points)

The South Carolina Declaration describes slavery in terms of property and the rights of slaveholders. Examine how the document describes enslaved people in relation to slaveholders. Whose rights does the declaration emphasize, and whose experiences or perspectives does it leave unaddressed? Use evidence from the source to explain your answer.

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4. Lincoln’s Election (4 points)

The South Carolina declaration describes Lincoln’s election as a threat and refers to the possibility of slavery’s “ultimate extinction.” Why did South Carolina’s leaders view Lincoln’s election as a threat? Use the declaration’s language to explain what they feared about slavery’s future and how this fear was used to justify secession.

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Part II: Comparing the Documents (12 points)

5. Competing Visions for the Nation (8 points)

Compare the 1860 Republican Party Platform with the South Carolina Declaration of Secession. How does each document use constitutional principles to defend its position on slavery and the future of the Union? Explain why their competing views made political compromise increasingly difficult. Use specific evidence from both documents. Your response should analyze the authors’ arguments rather than simply summarize each source.

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6. Evaluating Historical Evidence (4 points)

Both documents were created to advance particular political positions. Identify one limitation of using these sources to understand the national crisis. Whose perspective or experience is missing or marginalized? Name one additional primary source or type of evidence a historian could examine and explain how it would provide a fuller understanding of the conflict.

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Part III: Connecting to The American Yawp (8 points)

7. From Sectional Conflict to Secession (8 points)

Using Chapter 12 of The American Yawp, identify one event or development that intensified disagreements over slavery before the election of 1860. Examples include the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Bleeding Kansas, or the Dred Scott decision. Explain how this event intensified sectional conflict and connect it to arguments in both primary sources. Conclude by explaining how the event and the competing positions in the documents help explain the secession crisis of 1860. Use specific historical evidence and make clear connections between the chapter and the primary sources.

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Primary Source Analysis: The National Crisis