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4.9 MCQs

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65 views4 pages

4.9 MCQs

Uploaded by

thomasowood4
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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4.9 – The Development of an American Culture – MCQs
1. 1. “Build, therefore, your own world. As fast as you conform your life to the pure idea in your mind, that will unfold
its great proportions. A correspondent revolution in things will attend the influx of the spirit.”

The 1836 passage above exemplifies which of the following intellectual trends?

A. Evangelicalism

B. Abolitionism

C. Transcendentalism

D. Mormon theology

E. Pragmatist philosophy

2. “It is not only important, but, in a degree necessary, that the people of this country, should have an American
Dictionary of the English language; for, although the body of the language is the same as in England, . . . yet some
differences must exist. Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one country cannot preserve an identity
of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of language. . . . But the principal differences between the people of this country
and of all others, arise from different forms of government, different laws, institutions and customs. Thus the . . . feudal
system of England originated terms which formed . . . a necessary part of the language of that country; but, in the United
States, many of these terms are no part of our present language,—and they cannot be, for the things which they express
do not exist in this country. . . . The institutions in this country which are new and peculiar, give rise to new terms or to
new applications of old terms, unknown to the people of England; which cannot be explained by them and which will
not be inserted in their dictionaries, unless copied from ours. . . . No person in this country will be satisfied with the
English definitions of the words congress, senate, and assembly, court, [etc.] for although these are words used in
England, yet they are applied in this country to express ideas which they do not express in that country.”

Noah Webster, “Preface,” An American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828

The national identity described in the excerpt most strongly reflects the influence of which of the following?

A. European precedents along with an American national culture

B. The English feudal system in which lords and landowners dominated vassals and farmers

C. Independence movements and revolutions in Europe and Latin America

D. Antislavery activism in the United States and Europe


3. “It is not only important, but, in a degree necessary, that the people of this country, should have an American
Dictionary of the English language; for, although the body of the language is the same as in England, . . . yet some
differences must exist. Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one country cannot preserve an identity
of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of language. . . . But the principal differences between the people of this country
and of all others, arise from different forms of government, different laws, institutions and customs. Thus the . . . feudal
system of England originated terms which formed . . . a necessary part of the language of that country; but, in the United
States, many of these terms are no part of our present language,—and they cannot be, for the things which they express
do not exist in this country. . . . The institutions in this country which are new and peculiar, give rise to new terms or to
new applications of old terms, unknown to the people of England; which cannot be explained by them and which will
not be inserted in their dictionaries, unless copied from ours. . . . No person in this country will be satisfied with the
English definitions of the words congress, senate, and assembly, court, [etc.] for although these are words used in
England, yet they are applied in this country to express ideas which they do not express in that country.”

Noah Webster, “Preface,” An American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828

The historical concept of the American identity, as characterized in the excerpt, was most clearly distinguished from the
identities of other nations by the

A. enthusiasm for copying English practices and institutions

B. movement toward establishing a capitalist economy

C. role women played in civic and public life

D. importance of liberal ideas about natural rights and liberties

4. “It is not only important, but, in a degree necessary, that the people of this country, should have an American
Dictionary of the English language; for, although the body of the language is the same as in England, . . . yet some
differences must exist. Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one country cannot preserve an identity
of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of language. . . . But the principal differences between the people of this country
and of all others, arise from different forms of government, different laws, institutions and customs. Thus the . . . feudal
system of England originated terms which formed . . . a necessary part of the language of that country; but, in the United
States, many of these terms are no part of our present language,—and they cannot be, for the things which they express
do not exist in this country. . . . The institutions in this country which are new and peculiar, give rise to new terms or to
new applications of old terms, unknown to the people of England; which cannot be explained by them and which will
not be inserted in their dictionaries, unless copied from ours. . . . No person in this country will be satisfied with the
English definitions of the words congress, senate, and assembly, court, [etc.] for although these are words used in
England, yet they are applied in this country to express ideas which they do not express in that country.”

Noah Webster, “Preface,” An American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828

The excerpt best reflects which of the following historical situations in the early 1800s?

A. The innovations in the market revolution creating new wealth for Americans
B. The transition of the United States to a more participatory democracy

C. The importance of reading literacy among Americans

D. The emergence of a new and distinctive American culture

5. “Free should the scholar be,—free and brave. . . . We have listened too long to the courtly muses of Europe. . . . We
will walk on our own feet; we will work with our own hands; we will speak our own minds. Then shall man be no longer
a name for pity, for doubt, and for sensual indulgence. . . . A nation of men will for the first time exist.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson, transcendentalist writer, 1837


Emerson’s remarks in the excerpt most directly reflected which of the following developments during the early
nineteenth century?

A. The Second Great Awakening


B. The expansion of a market economy
C. The emergence of a national culture
D. The growth of national political parties

6. The theme of individualism is most evident in the writings of

A. Jonathan Edwards
B. Ralph Waldo Emerson
C. George Fitzhugh
D. Washington Irving
E. Nathaniel Hawthorne

7. Which of the following was a core belief of the transcendentalists of the early nineteenth century?

A. Only highly centralized and conformist religious institutions can guarantee an orderly society.
B. Unjust laws must be obeyed until they can be changed through legislative action.
C. Human societies are inherently corrupt, and those seeking purity should practice good works.
D. American Indian practices of meditation are the key to attaining valuable spiritual insights.
E. Individual conduct should be guided by truths found in the individual conscience.

8. A distinguishing feature of American society in the early nineteenth century was the

A. lack of enthusiasm for religious reform


B. embrace of an aristocratic hierarchy
C. creation of original forms of art and architecture
D. increasing readership of newspapers
E. dislike of voluntary associations
9. Members of the Hudson River School were best known for their paintings of

A. landscapes
B. portraits
C. battle scenes
D. sporting scenes
E. still lifes

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