1. Roger P. Mellen, the author of this academic essay, is focusing on the Stamp Act that was imposed on the American colonies by the British Parliament in 1765 and forced the colonies to pay a tax on every printed material, such as newspapers, legal documents, magazines, playing cards, ship’s paper, license, and other publications. The article starts with “This study helps to clarify an historical debate regarding the colonial printers’ supposed unanimous opposition to the tax”, the simple abstract of the article, which gives the main idea of what Roger P. Mellen is trying to say in the article. He also indicates that it was a preface to the American Revolution and this act also lead to significant transition for colonial printers in the colonies.
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Roger P. Mellen provides the list of references that he uses in the article and the list gives a proof of how the sources are credible. He quotes advertisements and popular prints to explain the American Revolution by describing how those advertisements and prints help to lead to social and political change in the colonies. Mellen also uses articles and photographs of two newspapers, ‘Virginia Gazette’ and ‘Maryland Gazette’, to make a comparison of them to show a political comparison of the Virginia press, which helps to give accuracy and credibility to his purpose in this article. He also mentions one of the best known pamphlets of Daniel Dulany to explain the public political issues in Virginia. These evidences in the article support Mellen’s purpose and they are also very credible, persuasive, accurate and …show more content…
The key concepts that are needed to understand the material in this article are the Stamp Act in 1765 and the Colonial Virginia Press. Before he starts his article, he provides some sentences summarized to explain, which are “the Stamp Act, which was imposed on the American colonies by the British government in 1765, was an essential preface to the American Revolution. Historians have observed that it brought about an important transition for colonial printers, politicizing them and turning them into influential purveyors of propaganda.” These sentences are the information and explanation of the Stamp Act and historical events that are mentioned in the article, which helps me to understand some of the materials. Even though he gives me a simple brief of the Stamp Act, it’s not enough to explain other historical events that are mentioned in this article. I had to look some people and events, such as Arthur Schlesinger, Joseph Royle, and Patrick Henry, to understand and to comprehend who they are and what they did in the period of when the Stamp Act occurs. 4. If Mellen’s argument or line of reasoning is true, it means that the British government’s control over the press in Virginia is dissatisfaction, which is the beginning of print competition during the period. It also turns out that the Stamp Act impacts on Virginia’s print culture greatly and helps Virginia to form the new nation of America. Moreover, if his argument is true, the Stamp Act contributes to the First Amendment
Roger P. Mellen provides the list of references that he uses in the article and the list gives a proof of how the sources are credible. He quotes advertisements and popular prints to explain the American Revolution by describing how those advertisements and prints help to lead to social and political change in the colonies. Mellen also uses articles and photographs of two newspapers, ‘Virginia Gazette’ and ‘Maryland Gazette’, to make a comparison of them to show a political comparison of the Virginia press, which helps to give accuracy and credibility to his purpose in this article. He also mentions one of the best known pamphlets of Daniel Dulany to explain the public political issues in Virginia. These evidences in the article support Mellen’s purpose and they are also very credible, persuasive, accurate and …show more content…
The key concepts that are needed to understand the material in this article are the Stamp Act in 1765 and the Colonial Virginia Press. Before he starts his article, he provides some sentences summarized to explain, which are “the Stamp Act, which was imposed on the American colonies by the British government in 1765, was an essential preface to the American Revolution. Historians have observed that it brought about an important transition for colonial printers, politicizing them and turning them into influential purveyors of propaganda.” These sentences are the information and explanation of the Stamp Act and historical events that are mentioned in the article, which helps me to understand some of the materials. Even though he gives me a simple brief of the Stamp Act, it’s not enough to explain other historical events that are mentioned in this article. I had to look some people and events, such as Arthur Schlesinger, Joseph Royle, and Patrick Henry, to understand and to comprehend who they are and what they did in the period of when the Stamp Act occurs. 4. If Mellen’s argument or line of reasoning is true, it means that the British government’s control over the press in Virginia is dissatisfaction, which is the beginning of print competition during the period. It also turns out that the Stamp Act impacts on Virginia’s print culture greatly and helps Virginia to form the new nation of America. Moreover, if his argument is true, the Stamp Act contributes to the First Amendment