Virginia Commonwealth University

Yes Virginia is an editorial from a writer of the New York Sun. It was written by a little girl named Virginia who is eight years old in 1897. In her letter she is explaining that her friends are telling her that there is no Santa claus so she asks the writer to tell her the truth. She also adds in her letter the reason she is writing to the sun. She states in her letter that "papa says". The writer then replies to her explaining his interpretation of a Santa claus. The newspaper can only print…

author of the declaration for independence and had served as governor of Virginia and minister in to the republic of France before being appointed as secretary of state by George Washington. Jefferson as a reformer The questions that lingered early on were whether in starting a new government it was prudent to follow precedents of governments or begin from scratch. This was amongst the decisions that had confronted the new Virginia assembly and the proposals of Jefferson were received and…

The taking of cultural narratives and providing a new interpretation for a modern audience has become a common practice in literature, theatre, and other disciplines of art. This concept, known as Reception History, can be exhibited in works ranging from Bernstein’s musical “West Side Story”, to the animated Disney classic film “The Lion King” which were based on Shakespeare’s plays “Romeo & Juliet” and “Hamlet” respectively. One may ask what is the point of retelling these stories in a…

After the battle, Robert E. Lee, retreated to Virginia on July 4th, 1863. His army was severely weakened, with about 28,000 captured, wounded, or killed. The Union army also suffered about 23,000 similar losses (Benson). Lee’s army withdrew to the southwest through a driving rain in a wagon train stretching 17 miles (Aines). During the retreat, Lee repeated his remarks at the failure of Pickett’s Charge: “It is all my fault, I thought my men were invincible.” Robert E. Lee offered his…

When most Americans think of those who wrote the Constitution, they think of writers and thinkers. In reality, many of the founding fathers like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were also amazing gardeners. They loved learning about and finding new types of plants from all over the world to try to grow in plots on their vast plantations. Gardening played a major role in the U.S. Constitution and the new country of America. The new country had just fought its first war for its freedom…

During the late 19th century in America, working class individuals did not have much opportunity in searching for self definition. This was a time in American history where big businesses and industries were flourishing and dominated a big part of the economy including the roles of workers. Many of these working class individuals were treated very poorly by their employers by having to deal with terrible working conditions and miniscule pay. The influx of immigrants into American also occurring…

Michael Sweeney’s Earth and Sky, commissioned for the 2013 Nebraska All-State Eighth Grade Band, celebrates the Omaha tribe’s belief that the sky and earth are interconnected. Prior to the 1800s, the animistic union between sky and earth permeated all aspects of Omaha culture. In fact, the tribe even developed a social structure based on the belief. During this time, the Omaha tribe was divided into two half-tribes: the Sky People (know as the Insta’shunda) and the Earth People (known as the…

different groups of people, the participants from the Virginia Company and the Puritans. Despite this similarity, both the participants and the Puritans had other intentions of moving to America and with this, many other differences. Taking all the advantages and disadvantages the two groups had into consideration, the state of Rhode Island in the New England colonies would have been in the best condition to live in. Both groups, the Virginia Company’s (settled in the Southern colonies) and…

From the very beginning of American history to the current day United States, equal opportunity has evolved to further incorporate more and more groups of people. With every step in the right path, there also seemed to be a backstep and vice versa. Starting from the beginning, the first major era in the American past was the Colonization and Settlement Period, approximately 1607-1750. During which settlers broke away from Britain but became confined within their villages and towns. The next era…

American Revolution leads to Civil War in America America, how we know it today, was not formed in one day, but was rather established through a series of events. Two of the greatest stepping stones in American history were the American Revolution, and the American Civil War. Although they were both two separate events, the Revolution lead to many events, such as the Constitution and the Articles of Confederation, that were primary causes of the American Civil War. The Revolution also caused…