American Revolution Analysis

The American Revolution was not as radical as people may think. Instead, it was a war that focused more of its attention on the concept of rule at home. The Patriots beliefs reflected their parent country. Their motives were not absurd; in fact, they were an imitation of what they had already known. In the article, An Account of a Stamp Riot, the author describes a vicious attack on the governor and his home. “The mob…came up to the Fort Gate with a number of torches, and a scaffold on which two images were placed, one to represent the governor, & the other the devil by his side” (69). In other words, the citizens of New York were not happy with the Stamp Act passed by Britain. They saw this Act as an attempt to control what they could do …show more content…
According to a “Dialogue Between Orator Puff and Peter Easy”, Peter made an argument against broad voting rights. “For the right of electing is vested in them… and in them alone, and therefore the extending the same right to all men without distinction…takes away so much of their right, from those who are worth fifty pounds” (75). Peter implied that it would not be fair for all male taxpayers to take part in elections. A man who has not acquired at least fifty pounds was a threat to men who were worth “fifty pounds in real or personal estate” (75). To let all males, take part in voting was a disaster waiting to happen. The less unfortunate males would have nothing to lose but would have a greater chance at engaging “in seditions, tumultuous and factious proceedings” (76). This liberal concept in letting all male taxpayers vote was a topic disregarded by many. Although the colonist had demanded their independence, they were steadily incorporating their views from Britain to American culture. The colonist was accustomed to the concept of only males with property having the ability to vote. So it is not strange to see these customs arise in America. The demand to break away from Britain was not radical, there wasn’t anything that the Colonist did that was extremely different from their mother country. Their behavior was a progression of what they knew …show more content…
They didn’t want America to stand on its own. Thomas Paine made an interesting statement saying “We have boasted the protection of Great Britain, without considering, that her motive was INTEREST not ATTACHMENT; and that she did not protect us from OUR ENEMIES on OUR ACCOUNT; but from HER ENEMIES on HER OWN ACCOUNT, from those who had no quarrel with us on any OTHER ACCOUNT, and who will always be our enemies on the SAME ACCOUNT (Para. 9). He implied that Britain wanted America under her rule, not because of attachment like a mother has with her child, but for self-interest. Despite being the mother country she wanted to protect herself from her enemies by dragging America in it with her, so she wouldn’t be alone. Being able to have rule over another country would force America to be involved in all Foreign affairs related to Britain, causing undesirable problems for America. The distance between Britain and America was so far apart, that it was impossible for Britain to protect America from their own enemies. The colonist was neglected from their mother country, most of the time and was forced to make their own rules and regulations in their new world. After much success of thriving on their own, they had all the reason to separate their ties from Britain. A sign of radical change for example would be Native Americans influencing their beliefs on the colonist, because this is something extremely