AP U.S. Government and Politics
D’Souza and Peim Summer Reading Assignment
2015-2016
Read and Respond to the Discussion Questions.
Due: Friday, September 11, 2015
Directions: Each student is expected to read the U.S. Constitution in its entirety, each of the
articles, and respond to the discussion questions fully, providing details, explanations and
specific supporting examples from the readings. Most of these questions can be answered in a
well written paragraph, some, however, will require you to provide a lengthier answer. You
should make sure you give complete well written answers. Students are expected to cite
evidence from the source. If a response incorporates a direct quote from the source,
students are expected to provide page numbers.
You can be certain that an assessment based on this work will be administered as the
coursework begins in the fall semester. This is an independent assignment DO NOT
COLLABORATE (VERBALLY OR PHYSICALLY) or WORK WITH YOUR CLASSMATES.
ANY COLLABORATION WITH ANOTHER STUDENT WILL BE CONSTRUED AS
CHEATING.
Part A:
The Constitution
Please see the attached sheet for directions and questions to answer for this assignment.
Part B:
All articles are taken from:
Ladd, Everett C. and Ann G. Serow eds. The Lanahan Readings in the American Polity. 4th ed.
Baltimore: Lanahan, 2007.
Question 1: Alexis de Tocqueville, “Democracy in America,” pg. 3-6.
Alexis de Tocqueville was a French aristocrat who travelled extensively in the fledgling United
States. After his travels he returned to France and wrote Democracy in America. In this book he
noted the uniqueness of America and its founding principles.
a) Describe the reasons why de Tocqueville states “all these European colonies contained
the elements, if not the development, of a complete democracy.” Use specific examples
from the article in your answer.
b) How did America’s founding principles differ from those in Europe at the time? Use
specific examples from the article in your answer.
c) How are the reasons supported by ideas found in the Constitution? Use specific
examples from the Constitution and this article in your answer.
Question 2: James Bryce, “American Commonwealth,” pg. 7-10.
Bryce focuses on the American ideal of equality in this selection. He notes that while people in
America may be unequal in wealth, education, and station, they are inherently equal as human
beings.
a) Is the Bryce thesis correct? Do Americans see themselves as equal to each other and has
the ideal of equality for all always been true? Use specific examples from the article in
your answer.
Question 3: Louis Hartz, “The Liberal Tradition in America,” pg. 11-16.
Hartz builds off the ideal, expressed by de Tocqueville, of Americans being born equal to each
other. He talks extensively about “Liberalism” and paradoxes in explaining the cauldron from
which the United States emerged.
a) Describe the doctrine of “Liberalism” as explained by Hartz.
b) Describe the different paradoxes Hartz notes in this article. Use specific examples from
the article in your answer.
c) Is there one paradox that Hartz says is central to understanding the development of the
history of the United States and the American psyche? Explain your answer using
specific examples from the article.
Question 4: Theda Skocpol, “Diminished Democracy,” pg. 17-22.
Theda Skocpol concentrates on the importance of social organizations and “democratic
mobilization” in this article. She writes: “Democratic mobilization becomes the norm when
would-be leaders can achieve power and influence only by drawing others into movements,
associations, and political battles.”
a) Describe why elites had the incentive to organize others. Are these incentives still
present in current citizen groups? Why or why not? Use specific examples from the
article in your answer.
b) Are citizen groups still important in American democracy? How does Skocpol’s view of
citizen groups compare with de Tocqueville’s? Use specific examples from the article
in your answer.
Question 5: Cornel West, “Race Matters,” pg. 22-30.
In this article West describes the issue of racism in the United States.
a) How does this article compare with the ideals identified by de Tocqueville and Bryce?
Use specific examples from the articles in your answer.
Question 6: Michael Kammen, “People of Paradox,” pg. 30-34.
In this article Kammen states, “The quintessential American hero wears both a halo and horns.”
a) The quote above represents the pluralistic nature of American society; describe this
pluralistic thesis and why it is important in understanding American political society.
Use specific examples from the article in your answer.
Question 7: Robert Bellah/Others, “Habits of the Heart,” pg. 34-39.
Bellah et al. spend much of this article discussing individualism, memory, and tradition.
a) Describe the role of individualism in American society. What role does it play in our
traditions and memory? Use specific examples from the article in your answer.
Question 8: Michael Kammen, “A Machine That Would Go of Itself,” pg. 56-62.
In this article Kammen discusses different interpretations of the Constitution and uses an episode
of “Star Trek” as a metaphor for our understanding of the Constitution.
a) Describe the different interpretations of the Constitution discussed by Kammen (using
specific examples from the article ).
b) What is the significance of the “Star Trek” metaphor? How does it relate to our
understanding of the Constitution?
Name:
Summative Grade
Per.:
AP U.S. Government and Politics
Scoring Guide
Summer Reading Assignment
Due: Friday, September 11, 2015
Question
Question 1
a.
Describe the reasons why de Tocqueville states “all these European
colonies contained the elements, if not the development, of a complete
democracy.” Use specific examples from the article in your answer.
b.
How did America’s founding principles differ from those in Europe at
the time? Use specific examples from the article in your answer.
c.
How are the reasons supported by ideas found in the Constitution? Use
specific examples from the Constitution and this article in your
answer.
Question 2
a.
Is the Bryce thesis correct? Do Americans see themselves as equal to
each other and has the ideal of equality for all always been true? Use
specific examples from the article in your answer.
Question 3
a.
Describe the doctrine of “Liberalism” as explained by Hartz.
b.
Describe the different paradoxes Hartz notes in this article. Use specific
examples from the article in your answer.
c.
Is there one paradox that Hartz says is central to understanding the
development of the history of the United States and the American
psyche? Explain your answer using specific examples from the
article.
Question 4
a.
Describe why elites had the incentive to organize others. Are these
incentives still present in current citizen groups? Why or why not? Use
specific examples from the article in your answer.
b.
Are citizen groups still important in American democracy? How does
Skocpol’s view of citizen groups compare with de Tocqueville’s? Use
specific examples from the article in your answer.
Question 5
a.
How does this article compare with the ideals identified by de
Tocqueville and Bryce? Use specific examples from the articles in
your answer.
Question 6
a.
The quote above represents the pluralistic nature of American society;
describe this pluralistic thesis and why it is important in understanding
Possible
Points
5
4
4
10
4
6
10
9
9
9
9
Earned
Points
American political society? Use specific examples from the article in
your answer.
Question 7
a.
Describe the role of individualism in American society. What role does
it play in our traditions and memory? Use specific examples from the
article in your answer.
Question 8
a.
Describe the different interpretations of the Constitution discussed by
Kammen (using specific examples from the article ).
b.
What is the significance of the “Star Trek” metaphor? How does it
relate to our understanding of the Constitution?
Final Score
9
6
6
100