THE JEFFERSONIAN UNIT & RHETORICAL ANALYSIS

ARCHITECTURE I. Jefferson Biography II. Jefferson’s Influences and how he is Influential III. Reading Strategies IV. Formative and Summative Assignments

JEFFERSON’S BIOGRAPHY (April 13th, 1743 – July 4, 1826)

 Born in Shadwell, Virginia, in the Blue Mountain Foothills.  Father, Peter Jefferson, land owner and surveyor who owned 60 slaves.  Mother, Jane Randolph Jefferson, descended from one of the wealthiest families in colonial Virginia.  Had seven siblings.  Earliest memory: being carried around the Jefferson estate on pillow by four slaves. EARLY LIFE

 Practiced law under George Wythe.  Decided in 1768 to build his own house which he called Monticello (Jefferson never finished completion of the house).  Married Martha Skelton in EARLY ADULTHOOD

 Father died when he was 14.  Ran away from home because of strained relationship with mother.  Attended College of William and Mary in Williamsburg.  Obsessive student: spent 15 hours a day reading, 3 hours practicing violin, and the remaining 6 hours sleeping. EDUCATION

 Wrote A Summary View o f the Rights of Britshy America in 1774 which argued the American colonies were loosely controlled by Great Britain.  Virginia Legislature appointed him delegate to 2 nd Continental Congress in  Though shy in nature, elected to five- person committee to separate from England with Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, among others. EARLY POLITICAL CAREER

 Drafted The Declaration of Independence which included phrase “We hold these truths to be self- evident; that all men are created equal” which has inspired emerging democracies across the globe.  Involved in the drafting of the Constitution  Elected governor of Virginia in  Wife died in 1782 giving birth to 3 rd daughter..  Served as ambassador to France from 1784 – REVOLUTION YEARS

 1781 wrote Notes on the State of Virginia. which stated that the race in America would be resolved with “convulsions which will probably never end but in the extermination of one or the other race.”  Implicit in this statement, blacks and whites would never get along.  Historians find this hypocritical because Jefferson had a long affair with his slave Sally Hemmings.  Note: the phrase “all men are created equal” only included white men. It never included African Americans or women. SLAVERY AND RACISM

 Louisiana Purchase and Lewis and Clark Expedition begins (1803).  Most other acts of president unsuccessful with his battles with Congress and the Supreme Court. PRESIDENCY

 During last years of Jefferson’s life he was extremely active.  Wrote thousands of letters each year, including a long correspondence with John Adams.  He created a machine that would replicate any letter he wrote.  Founded the University of Virginia which was built from his design.  Tinkered with Monticello, but never found it to be complete.  John Adams and Jefferson died within hours of each other on July 4 th, 1826 – fifty years to the day since the founding of the Republic.  Though Jefferson passed before Adams, Adams’ last words were “Jefferson still lives.” RETIREMENT

JEFFERSON’S INFLUENCES AND INFLUENCE ON AMERICAN RHETORIC

RATIONALISM AS A REACTION TO PURITANISM

PURITANISM Key Dates: 1620 – 1720 Founded by the Puritans who immigrated to American from England to escape religious persecution.

PURITAN SUBJECT MATTER  Preoccupied with sin and salvation.  Religion determines social order and morals.  “Didactic” or teaching through lecturing.

PURITAN BELIEFS  People born from Original Sin.  Hard Work and Discipline lead to salvation.  Emphasis on conforming to God’s will and the will of the group.

RATIONALISM (1720 – 1820)  The period leading up to the Revolutionary War and the founding of the United States of America.

RATIONALISM SUBJECT MATTER  Nature of Government -Monarchy vs. Democratic  Politics and Public Discussion  Based upon Science

RATIONALIST BELIEFS  Support Personal Freedoms  “Deism” -Religion based upon reason vs. Didactic lecturing.  Universe Explored through Discovery

 Is a dramatic depiction of how the Salem Witch Trials affected colonial Salem, MA.  The play centers around the conflict between faith vs. reason. THE CRUCIBLE

 Jefferson has influenced prominent American leaders from Abraham Lincoln to JFK, to FDR to President Obama.  This unit we will explore those influences and the conversation that is still going on how America forms “a more perfect union.” POLITICAL ANCESTRY

 Building on our foundation discuss ethos/pathos/logos, and SOAPSToneR, we will add two new reading strategies: 1.Liu Method: A reading strategy the analyzes the structure of a text. 2.Close Reading: A dissection of a text. READING STRATEGIES

1.Practice Essays 2.Practice Multiple Choice Exam 3.Op-Ed Beats 4.Your own Declaration… 5.Close Reading 6.Vocabulary/Terms 7.Draft 1 of JRP (more info later) 1.Vocab/Term Quizzes 2.Summative Rhetorical Analysis Essay FORMATIVE AND SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT Formative Summative

QUESTIONS?

PLEASE STAND FOR THINK ON YOUR FEET