The midterm will consist of two sections:
I.
MULTIPLE CHOICE AND II. ONE ESSAY
I. MULTIPLE CHOICE: There
will be 27 questions, of which you will answer 25. These will cover the
material from lectures and the readings. Focus especially on the lecture
outlines and key terms that are on the blog.
II. ESSAY:
The essay question will ask you to respond to a
series of documents and to incorporate them into your own answer of the
following question:
Consider the goals of the Revolutions in France, Haiti, and
Spanish-America. Were those goals fulfilled or betrayed throughout the course
of each of these revolutions and in the first years after each revolution?
To answer this essay question, you may use the attached
documents.
I will provide the question and the documents for you. You may
not bring in an outline, but you have my permission to create an outline and
memorize it.
DOCUMENT
A:
Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789
The
representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly,
believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the
sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have
determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and
sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before
all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their
rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as
those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects
and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and,
lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon
simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the
constitution and redound to the happiness of all. Therefore the National
Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in the presence and under the auspices of
the Supreme Being, the following rights of man and of the citizen:
Articles:
1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights.
2. The aim of all political association is the preservation of
the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty,
property, security, and resistance to oppression.
3. The principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the
nation. No body nor individual may exercise any authority which does not
proceed directly from the nation.
4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which
injures no one else.
5. Law can only prohibit such actions as are hurtful to
society. Nothing may be prevented which is not forbidden by law, and no one may
be forced to do anything not provided for by law.
6. Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen
has a right to participate personally, or through his representative, in its
foundation. It must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes.
7. No person shall be accused, arrested, or imprisoned except
in the cases and according to the forms prescribed by law.
8. The law shall provide for such punishments only as are
strictly and obviously necessary, and no one shall suffer punishment except it
be legally inflicted in virtue of a law passed and promulgated before the
commission of the offense.
9. As all persons are held innocent until they shall have been
declared guilty, if arrest shall be deemed indispensable, all harshness not
essential to the securing of the prisoner's person shall be repressed by law.
10. No one shall be disquieted on account of his opinions,
including his religious views, provided their manifestation does not disturb
the public order established by law.
11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the
most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak,
write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this
freedom as shall be defined by law.
12. The security of the rights of man and of the citizen
requires public military forces. These forces are, therefore, established for
the good of all and not for the personal advantage.
13. A common contribution is essential for the maintenance of
the public forces and for the cost of administration. This should be equitably
distributed among all the citizens in proportion to their means.
14. All the citizens have a right to decide, either personally
or by their representatives, as to the necessity of the public contribution; to
grant this freely; to know to what uses it is put; and to fix the proportion,
the mode of assessment and of collection and the duration of the taxes.
15. Society has the right to require of every public agent an
account of his administration.
16. A society in which the observance of the law is not
assured, nor the separation of powers defined, has no constitution at all.
17. Since property is an inviolable and sacred right, no one
shall be deprived thereof except where public necessity, legally determined,
shall clearly demand it, and then only on condition that the owner shall have
been previously and equitably indemnified.
DOCUMENT
B:
“The Jamaica Letter,” Simón Bolívar, 185:
It
is even more difficult to foresee the future fate of the New World, to set down
its political principles, or to prophesy what manner of government it will
adopt. Every conjecture relative to America's future is, I feel, pure
speculation. When mankind was in its infancy, steeped in uncertainty,
ignorance, and error, was it possible to foresee what system it would adopt for
its preservation? Who could venture to say that a certain nation would be a
republic or a monarchy; this nation great, that nation small? To my way of
thinking, such is our own situation. We are a young people. We inhabit a world
apart, separated by broad seas. We are young in the ways of almost all the arts
and sciences, although, in a certain manner, we are old in the ways of
civilized society. We scarcely retain a vestige of what once was; we are,
moreover, neither Indian nor European, but a species midway between the
legitimate proprietors of this country and the Spanish usurpers. In short,
though Americans by birth we derive our rights from Europe, and we have to
assert these rights against the rights of the natives, and at the same time we
must defend ourselves against the invaders. This places us in a most
extraordinary and involved situation.
The
role of the inhabitants of the American hemisphere has for centuries been purely
passive. Politically they were nonexistent. We are still in a position lower
than slavery, and therefore it is more difficult for us to rise to the
enjoyment of freedom. Permit me these transgressions in order to establish the
issue. States are slaves because of either the nature or the misuse of their
constitutions; a people is therefore enslaved when the govemment, by its nature
or its vices, infringes on and usurps the rights of the citizen or subject.
Applying these principles, we find that America was denied not only its freedom
but even an active and effective tyranny. Let me explain. Under absolutism
there are no recognized limits to the exercise of govemmental powers.
We
have been harassed by a conduct which has not only deprived us of our rights
but has kept us in a sort of permanent infancy with regard to public affairs.
If we could at least have managed our domestic affairs and our internal
administration, we could have acquainted ourselves with the processes and
mechanics of public affairs. We should also have enjoyed a personal
consideration, thereby commanding a certain unconscious respect from the
people, which is so necessary to preserve amidst revolutions. That is why I say
we have even been deprived of an active tyranny, since we have not been
permitted to exercise its functions.
Success
will crown our efforts, because the destiny of America has been irrevocably
decided; the tie that bound her to Spain has been severed. Only a concept
maintained that tie and kept the parts of that immense monarchy together. That
which formerly bound them now divides them. The hatred that the Peninsula has
inspired in us is greater than the ocean between us. It would be easier to have
the two continents meet than to reconcile the spirits of the two countries. The
habit of obedience; a community of interest, of understanding, of religion;
mutual goodwill; a tender regard for the birthplace and good name of our
forefathers; in short, all that gave rise to our hopes, came to us from Spain.
As a result there was born principle of affinity that seemed eternal,
notwithstanding the misbehavior of our rulers which weakened that sympathy, or,
rather, that bond enforced by the domination of their rule. At present the
contrary attitude persists: we are threatened with the fear of death, dishonor,
and every harm; there is nothing we have not suffered at the hands of that
unnatural stepmother-Spain. The veil has been torn asunder. We have already
seen the light, and it is not our desire to be thrust back into darkness. The
chains have been broken; we have been freed, and now our enemies seek to
enslave us anew.
When
success is not assured, when the state is weak, and when results are distantly
seen, all men hesitate; opinion is divided, passions rage, and the enemy fans these
passions in order to win an easy victory because of them. As soon as we are
strong and under the guidance of a liberal nation which will lend us her
protection, we will achieve accord in cultivating the virtues and talents that
lead to glory. Then will we march majestically toward that great prosperity for
which South America is destined. Then will those sciences and arts which, born
in the East, have enlightened Europe, wing their way to a free Colombia, which
will cordially bid them welcome.
DOCUMENT
C: In
1802 Toussaint L’Ouverture was captured by the French, imprisoned, and starved
to death. Before dying, he wrote a memoir:
MEMOIR OF
GENERAL TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE
In
regard to the Constitution, the subject of one charge against me: Having driven
from the colony the enemies of the Republic, calmed the factions and united all
parties; perceiving, after I had taken possession of St. Domingo, that the
Government made no laws for the colony, and feeling the necessity of police
regulations for the security and tranquillity of the people, I called an
assembly of wise and learned men, composed of deputies from all the
communities, to conduct this business. When this assembly met, I represented to
its members that they had an arduous and responsible task before them; that
they were to make laws adapted to the country, advantageous to the Government,
and beneficial to all,--laws suited to the localities, to the character and
customs of the inhabitants. The Constitution must be submitted for the sanction
of the Government, which alone had the right to adopt or reject it. Therefore,
as soon as the Constitution was decided upon and its laws fixed, I sent the
whole, by a member of the assembly, to the Government, to obtain its sanction.
The errors or faults which this Constitution may contain cannot therefore be
imputed to me. At the time of Leclerc's arrival, I had heard nothing from the
Government upon this subject. Why to-day do they seek to make a crime of that
which is no crime? Why put truth for falsehood, and falsehood for truth? Why
put darkness for light and light for darkness?
If
I did oblige my fellow-countrymen to work; it was to teach them the value of
true liberty without license; it was to prevent corruption of morals; it was
for the general happiness of the island, for the interest of the Republic. And
I had effectually succeeded in my undertaking, since there could not be found
in all the colony a single man unemployed, and the number of beggars had
diminished to such a degree that, apart from a few in the towns, not a single
one was to be found in the country.
DOCUMENT
D:
Olympe de Gouges, The Declaration of the Rights of Woman (September
1791)
1. Woman is born free and remains equal to man in
rights. Social distinctions may be based only on common utility.
2. The purpose of all political association is the
preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of woman and man. These
rights are liberty, property, security, and especially resistance to
oppression.
3. The principle of all sovereignty rests
essentially in the nation, which is but the reuniting of woman and man. No body
and no individual may exercise authority which does not emanate expressly from
the nation.
4. Liberty and justice consist in restoring all
that belongs to another; hence the exercise of the natural rights of woman has
no other limits than those that the perpetual tyranny of man opposes to them;
these limits must be reformed according to the laws of nature and reason.
5. The laws of nature and reason prohibit all
actions which are injurious to society. No hindrance should be put in the way
of anything not prohibited by these wise and divine laws, nor may anyone be
forced to do what they do not require.
6. The law should be the expression of the general
will. All citizenesses and citizens should take part, in person or by their
representatives, in its formation.
7. No woman is exempted; she is indicted, arrested,
and detained in the cases determined by the law. Women like men obey this
rigorous law.
8. Only strictly and obviously necessary
punishments should be established by the law, and no one may be punished except
by virtue of a law established and promulgated before the time of the offense,
and legally applied to women.
9. Any woman being declared guilty, all rigor is
exercised by the law.
10. No one should be disturbed for his fundamental
opinions
11. The free communication of thoughts and opinions
is one of the most precious of the rights of woman, since this liberty assures
the recognition of children by their fathers.
12. The safeguard of the rights of woman and the
citizeness requires public powers.
13. For maintenance of public authority and for
expenses of administration, taxation of women and men is equal; she takes part
in all forced labor service, in all painful tasks; she must therefore have the
same proportion in the distribution of places, employments, offices, dignities,
and in industry.
14. The citizenesses and citizens have the right,
by themselves or through their representatives, to have demonstrated to them
the necessity of public taxes.
15. The mass of women, joining with men in paying
taxes, have the right to hold accountable every public agent of the
administration.
16. Any society in which the guarantee of rights is
not assured or the separation of powers not settled has no constitution.
17. Property belongs to both sexes whether united
or separated;
DOCUMENT
E:
Father Miguel Hidalgo, excerpt of “Grito de Dolores.”
"My friends and countrymen:
neither the king nor tributes exist for us any longer. We have borne this
shameful tax, which only suits slaves, for three centuries as a sign of tyranny
and servitude; [a] terrible stain which we shall know how to wash away with our
efforts. The moment of our freedom has arrived, the hour of our liberty has
struck; and if you recognized its great value, you will help me defend it from
the ambitious grasp of the tyrants. Only a few hours remain before you see me
at the head of the men who take pride in being free. I invite you to fulfill this
obligation. And so without a patria nor liberty we shall always be at a great
distance from true happiness. It has been imperative to take this step as now
you know, and to begin this has been necessary. The cause is holy and God will
protect it. The arrangements are hastily being made and for that reason I will
not have the satisfaction of talking to you any longer. Long live, then, the
Virgin of Guadalupe! Long live America for which we are going to fight!"
