Great Awakening:
Before the age of revolution, America experienced a time of intense revival and
renewed focus on religion. It shaped much of American culture in years to come
and laid the foundation for future religious and social movements. As an AP US
History student, it is absolutely essential that you understand the importance of
the first great awakening in America. This crash course will fill you in!
Definition:
th​
A movement of religious revival during the mid to late 18​
century.
Background:
th​
One of the most prominent movements of the 18​
century was the
enlightenment, which was a result of the scientific revolution.The Enlightenment,
which originally took hold in Europe, encouraged people to value logic and
reason more than just taking things at face value or accepting them by
faith.People such as philosophers John Locke and David Hume led the
movement.This ultimately led to a decline in faith, and often, a decline a
piety.Church attendance declined, and the importance of spiritual matters in
daily life was diminished.
Overview:
As stated in the definition, the first great awakening refers to a period of time in
th​
the mid 18​
century marked by religious renewal.It was a time that saw a
dramatic increase in preaching and church attendance, and religious and
spiritual matters were brought to the forefront of American life, more so than
they had been since before the enlightenment.People not only started to pay
more attention to spiritual matters, particularly the Christian faith, but people
also started to think about how these things played a role in their everyday
lives.Also, emotion, more than reason, started to have a significant impact on
people’s faith.
A couple of key figures ultimately sparked the Great Awakening in America. One
of those figures was Jonathan Edwards, a prominent minister who is most well
known for his sermon titled “Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God.” Edwards not
only delivered very intense and emotional sermons, he was also an extremely
well known author with many popular books. One of these books is simply
known as “A Faithful Narrative” and it describes a revival that took place in
Northampton, MA.His accounts of this revival sparked many other revivals
across the country.
Another key figure to the first Great Awakening is George Whitefield. Whitefield
was a popular preacher at the time and he was famous for his incredible oratory.
He was known to attract thousands of people just to hear him speak. He is often
described as a very theatrical teacher with a flair for the dramatic, and his
preaching is rumored to have brought grown men to tears. Similar to Edwards,
there was a certain emotional aspect to his teaching, which was mostly unheard
of before hand.
One important theme that is important to know about the first Great Awakening
is the idea of Old Lights and New Lights. Basically, Old lights did not appreciate
all of the emotional fervor that went along with the Great Awakening, and they
were ultimately against the Great Awakening movement. New lights, on the other
hand, embraced the emotional aspects of the movement and were very much in
support of it. Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield both fall under the
category of new lights. This created a divide within the church, although the New
light movement was much more popular. It eventually even led to the creation of
separate churches and universities based on this divide.Princeton University
actually stemmed out of the first Great Awakening and the divide between Old
and New Lights.
Effects of the Great Awakening:
The Great Awakening had numerous effects on the political and social spheres of
the United States. For one, Protestant Christianity became one of the most
prominent religions in America. Within Christianity, a lot of different forms and
denominations emerged. Up until the Great Awakening, it was pretty much just
Congregational, Quaker, and Puritan churches in the U.S. Because of all the new
ideas being put forward, and the inevitable disagreements over these ideas,
Christian groups broke off into different denominations. As a result Methodism,
Baptists, Presbyterians, and a few other groups grew immensely.
Another effect is that it unified colonies. Although denominations meant more
division within the church, they created a certain kind of unity among the
colonies. This is mostly just due to the large scope of the Great Awakening.
Regardless of where in the states you lived, chances are you had been exposed to
Great Awakening teachings or had even been a part of the movement in some
shape or form.
Lastly, it drastically changed the religious landscape of the United States. Religion
started to become a much bigger part of everyday life. People began to practice
piety, meaning that they practiced their faith fervently and consistently. It also
had a much more emotional spirit to it, and was not so centered on knowledge
and traditions. At the same time, it caused a refocusing on different theological
ideas such as the pre-destination versus free will debate that marked the time.
These new thoughts and ideas also opened up the way for different religious
movements in the future, and made it easier for these to take hold.
Why you need to know it for AP US History:
For the AP US History exam it is almost a guarantee that you will be asked at least
one question about the Great Awakening. It is absolutely essential that you know
the time period when the first Great Awakening took place. Further, you may be
asked about whom Jonathan Edwards or George Whitefield were. A likely
question might ask you which leader wrote “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry
God.” Further, you could be asked a multiple choice question about the effects of
the Great Awakening, and you should know that if “increased diversity among
religions” is an answer, then it’s the right one.
For free response or document based questions, you will need to know some of
the origins of the Great Awakening, as well as some of the themes and effects of
the movement. You should note how it was a time marked by religious fervor,
and how the importance of emotions within religion greatly increased. Aside
from specific people, time, and places, be aware of the themes and shifts that
occurred.
This is a great topic to try to start thinking about potential questions and answers
that may be asked (there aren’t a ton of possibilities). Using this crash course
review as a guide, you should be set for an APUSH questions about the first Great
Awakening.
Dollar diplomacy.​
Aside from sounding like the sweet name of a movie, do you
have any idea what it means? Could you explain it to a friend in easy to understand
terms? More than that, could you successfully answer an essay question about it on the
AP US History exam? Do you know the politicians involved or what time period it is
associated with? Chances are, the answer was no to at least one of those questions.
Thankfully, we are going to give you a crash course on dollar diplomacy and explain
everything you need to know about it to kick butt on the APUSH exam.
Definition:
Dollar diplomacy is most often defined as exerting financial power as a form of
imperialism, as seen in the US under President Taft.
Background:
The period marked by dollar diplomacy is usually marked by the years of 1909-1913.
Prior to this, America experienced the executive authority of Theodore Roosevelt and his
“Big stick diplomacy” attitude about foreign affairs. This policy was in many ways
dominated by the desire to imperialize and expand American influence.Under this, the
US exerted its power financially and militaristically. Basically, he wanted to expand U.S.
influence, and if he had to use military force to do so, he would.
Also during this time, America had continued to emerge as an economic powerhouse.
th​
Effects of the industrial revolution continued through the end of the 19​
century and
th​
into the beginning of the 20​
. Industry started to increase in its importance to the U.S.
economy. More than that, the United States became an international player in the
economy, and started to gain a lot of global force in terms of economics. When the U.S.’s
thriving economy matched with their powerful military, they were a force to be reckoned
with.
The Overview:
William Howard Taft served as the secretary of war under President Roosevelt from
1904-1908. He was a highly influential and well-respected leader of that time, and often
served as the right hand man to Roosevelt. Thus it seemed only natural that he would
successfully run for office in 1908. When he came to power, Republicans were well liked
and he gained quite a bit of approval simply by being supportive of Roosevelt. However,
his agenda proved to be quite different from Teddy’s, and this was clear from the start.
Once in office, Taft shook things up pretty quick. He got rid of a really prominent
diplomat, and went on to reorganize the entire state department, doing so based on
geographical premises. That process was mostly led by Huntington Wilson, the
incredibly active assistant secretary to the Secretary of State. Many of his biggest
changes, however, occurred on the international scale. One of Taft’s biggest priorities
was to expand the United States economic market. In fact, his policy is actually known
as dollar diplomacy because it was, in essence, an attempt to increase the value of the
American dollar.
Taft basically just built on Roosevelt’s idea of “speak softly and carry a big stick” except
for he replaced the use of military force with financial force. He also hoped that by
establishing the prominence of American business, it would limit power of other
countries. His efforts to imperialize through the use of economic force were focused
primarily on China and Latin America. And with these goals in mind, Taft went on to get
involved in the economic affairs of countries that America did not have any particular
claim to.
China had an existing “open door policy” that President Taft hoped to expand on.
According to this policy, China was open to free trade so that no one country could have
too much control of the country. However, Taft felt that Japan and Russia had an unfair
hold on Chinese business, and so he worked to get America more involved with China.
Specifically he did this by partnering with Britain, France, and Germany to invest in a
massive Chinese railroad project. For numerous reasons, one of which was Japan and
Russia’s interest in Chinese business, the project ultimately failed.
Aside from his work in Asia, President Taft was also very active in Latin American
countries. Taft and his counterparts arranged for large investments to be made in
countries like Haiti, Liberia, and the Dominican Republic. In each of these countries, the
U.S. leadership felt that by giving out loans and investing heavily, they could bring about
some kind of reform or improve U.S. relations. Unfortunately, this was not the case, and
much of his investments backfired. A lot of countries were frustrated with the U.S.’s
ambitious involvement where it did not belong, and in general it led to more tension
than it did to any kind of peace.
Why it matters for you in AP US History:
Although Taft’s dollar diplomacy is usually recognized as a failure, it is still very
important to know about as an AP US History student. For one, a lot of the actions
involved in dollar diplomacy eventually led to revolts, Civil Wars, and U.S. military
involvement. Its effects, although negative, were indeed far reaching.
Beyond that, the idea of dollar diplomacy in America is part of a larger debate that you,
as an APUSH student, should be involved in. This debate is centered on determining the
role of America in global affairs, be it politically, economically, or militarily. It also
involves the growing tension between imperialists (who want more American
involvement overseas) and anti-imperialists (who want America to mind its own
th​
business). This was a crucial matter during the early 20​
century, and dollar diplomacy
is a key indicator of its importance.
As you review for the AP US History test, make sure you know what dollar diplomacy
means, which president supported the idea, how it manifested itself in American foreign
affairs, and what its overall lasting effects were. Just remember: dollar diplomacy is just
one example of a larger theme in AP US History, and you have to know what role it plays
within that context.