The Mapping Thesis Historians have often portrayed the

The Mapping Thesis

• Historians have often portrayed the capitalists who shaped post-Civil War industrial America as either admirable “captains of industry” or corrupt “robber barons. ” Evaluate which of these descriptions, “captains of industry” or, “robber barons”, is a more accurate characterization of these men. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1875 -1900 to compose your answer. • Sample Thesis: Because they created so many jobs, modernized the economy, and gave millions to philanthropic causes, the tycoons of the Gilded Age are properly considered "captains of industry". However, one could also argue that their legacy, while largely positive, was tainted by the mistreatment of their workers.

On the AP US History Exam, your Long Essay Questions will sometimes require 3 supporting arguments. Other times it will be two, or maybe four. It varies depending on the question and the available evidence. Be flexible.

Historical Contextualization

According to the College Board, contextualization refers to the following: An historical thinking skill that involves the ability to connect historical events and processes to specific circumstances of time and place as well as broader regional, national, or global processes.

Put another way contextualization is connecting events to their specific place and time in history.

• One of the biggest pitfalls that prevent students from earning the contextualization point is that they are too brief or vague. • In general, it is difficult for students to earn the point if they are writing only a sentence or two. • In other words, you need to establish context in detail. • How much detail? You intro should be between 6 -8 sentences, including your thesis.

Let’s look at the following prompt and some student examples and see if we can’t figure out what good contextualization looks like: Evaluate the extent in which the Civil War was a turning point in the lives of African Americans in the United States. Use the documents and your knowledge of the years 1860 -1877 to construct your response. • Contextualization Example 1: The Civil War was a bloody event that led to the death of thousands of Americans. • Contextualization Example 2: Slavery had existed for hundreds of years in the United States. It was a terrible thing that had to be abolished. • Contextualization Example 3: The peculiar institution of slavery had been a part of America’s identity since the founding of the original English colony at Jamestown. In the early years, compromise was key to avoiding the moral question, but as America entered the mid 19 th century sectional tensions and crises with popular sovereignty, Kansas, and fugitive slaves made the issue increasingly unavoidable. When the Civil War began, the war was transformed from one to simply save the Union to a battle for the future of slavery and freedom in the United States.

Let’s all look at the prompt again: Evaluate the reasons why European powers sought to establish colonies in the Americas in the period from 1492 to 1607.

If you get stuck with contextualization, SPRECT it! SPRECT your introduction by establishing context using the five lenses below: • Social Factors • Political Factors • Religious Factors • Economic Factors • Technological Factors Another way is to simply apply the 5 W’s. • What was going on? • Who was doing it? • Why were they doing it? • When were they doing it? • Where were they doing it?