THE SUMMER OF 1787
David O. Stewart (nonfiction)
Year1787
Supporting ArgumentsStatesmen draft the U.S. Constitution, a blueprint for democracy that (with 1791's Bill of Rights) establishes basic human rights.
On the Other Hand)...
The ''blessings of liberty'' rhetoric doesn't apply to slaves, who are
kept in chains for another 78 years; powdered wigs aren't optimal in
summer heat.
Turning Pointiness Four out of four
HEYDAY
Kurt Andersen (novel)
Year1948-49
Supporting Arguments
Gold found in California's American River; the U.S. wins the Mexican
War; indoor plumbing and bourgeois department stores gain popularity.
On the Other Hand...
The war is bloody and costly; prostitution runs rampant in New York
City; Europeans view the U.S. as a vulgar wasteland.
Turning Pointiness Two out of four
SAVAGE PEACE
Ann Hagedorn (nonfiction)
Year1919
Supporting Arguments
Woodrow Wilson forms the League of Nations; the Anti-Lynching Conference
brings this barbaric murder of blacks to national attention; faster air
and sea communication.
On the Other Hand...
The first Red Scare; the Espionage Act threatens free speech; lynchings
continue.
Turning Pointiness Three out of four
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