AP EXAM
REVIEW
QUESTIONS
A40
9.4.27
Colonial
“Throughout the colonial
period, economic concerns had
more to do with the settling of
British North America than did
religious concerns.” Assess the
validity of this statement with
specific reference to economic and
religious concerns.
COLONIAL
“Although New England and
the Chesapeake region were
both settled largely by people of
English origin, by 1700 the
regions had evolved into two
distinct societies.” Why did this
occur?
Revolution
In what ways did the French
and Indian War (1754-63)
alter the political, economic
and ideological relations
between Britain and its
American colonies? Use your
knowledge of the period 17401766.
REVOLUTION
Evaluate the relative importance
of the following as factors
promoting Americans to rebel:
parliamentary taxation,
restriction of civil liberties,
British military measures and the
legacy of colonial religious and
political ideas.
REVOLUTION
To what extent did the
American Revolution
fundamentally change
American society? In your
answer, be sure to address
the political, social and
economic effects of the
Revolution in the period
from 1775 to 1800.
Articles of Confederation
Analyze the degree to which the
Articles of Confederation
provided an effective form of
government with respect to any
TWO of the following: foreign
relations, economic conditions
and Western lands.
CONSTITUTION
“The United States Constitution of
1787 represented a betrayal of the
ideals that inspired the American
Revolution. Instead, it represented an
economic and ideological victory for
the traditional American political
elite.”
Assess the validity of this assertion.
EARLY REPUBLIC – JEFFERSONIAN REPUBLICANISM
With respect to the federal Constitution, the Jefferson Republicans are
usually characterized as strict
constructionists who were opposed
to the broad constructionism of the
Federalists. To what extent was this
characterization of the two parties
accurate during the presidencies of
Jefferson and Madison?
EARLY REPUBLIC – JEFFERSONIAN REPUBLICANISM
Thomas Jefferson’s DemocraticRepublican Party dominated
national affairs in the period from
1800 to 1824. To what degree did
developments during this period
reflect the political, economic and
social ideals of Jefferson and the
Republicans?
Era of Good Feelings
Historians have traditionally labeled
the period after the War of 1812
the “Era of Good Feelings.”
Evaluate the accuracy of this
label, considering the emergence
of nationalism and sectionalism.
Use the documents and your
knowledge of the period 18151825 to construct your answer.
JACKSONIAN PERIOD
The Jacksonian Period (1824-1848)
has been characterized as the era
of “the common man.” To what
extent did the period live up to its
characterizations? Consider the
following in your response: Economic
Development, Politics, Reform
Movements
DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION/JACKSON
Analyze the extent to which the
following influenced the
development of democracy
between 1820 and 1840
•
•
•
•
Changes in electoral politics
Jacksonian economic policy
Second Great Awakening
Westward movement
INDIANS:
To what extent were government
actions toward the Plains Indians
in the second half of the 19th
century a continuation of the
policies and actions of the
Jackson Administration toward
the “Five Civilized Tribes” in the
1830s?
ECONOMIC GROWTH
“Developments in transportation,
rather than in manufacturing and
agriculture, sparked American
economic growth in the first half of
the 19th century”
Assess the validity of this statement.
IMMIGRATION
Describe the patterns of
immigration in the periods listed
below. Compare and contrast the
responses of Americans to
immigrants in these periods.
• 1820-1860
• 1880-1924
• 1965-2000
REFORM:
Analyze the ways in which THREE of
the following reform movements
influenced the development of
American society in the period 18201860:
• anti-slavery
• education,
• temperance,
• Second Great Awakening,
• utopian experiments
WOMEN – 19TH CENTURY
How and why did the
lives and status of
northern middle-class
women change
between 1776 and
1876?
EXPANSION
Discuss the impact of
territorial expansion
on national unity
between 1800 &
1850.
Expansion & Division
Analyze the effectiveness of political
compromise in
reducing sectional
tensions in the period
from 1820 to 1861.
CIVIL WAR & RECONSTRUCTION
In what way, and to
what extent, did
constitutional and
social developments
between 1860 and
1877 amount to a
revolution?
CIVIL WAR CONSEQUENCES
Evaluate the impact of the
Civil War on the political &
economic development of
the following regions: The
South, the North, the West
(Focus on the period 1865-1900)
Laissez-faire
To what extent and for what reasons did
the policies of the federal government
from 1865 to 1900 violate the principles of
laissez-faire, which advocated minimal
governmental intervention in the economy? Consider with specific reference to
the following three areas of policy: railroad
land grants, control of interstate
commerce and antitrust activities.
Labor
Analyze the impact of any
TWO of the following on
the American industrial
worker between 1865 and
1900: Government actions,
Immigration, Labor unions,
Technological changes
INDUSTRIALIZATION - WORKERS & FARMERS
Analyze the ways
farmers and industrial
workers responded to
industrialization in the
Gilded Age (1865-1900)
LABOR
“The size, character, and effectiveness
of the organized labor movement
changed significantly during the late
nineteenth century and the first half of
the twentieth century.” Apply this
statement to the following periods:
a) 1870-1915,
b) 1915-1935,
c) 1935-1950
Populists
Analyze the reasons
for the emergence of
the Populist Movement
in the late nineteenth
century
JACKSON & POPULISTS
In what ways were the late
nineteenth-century Populists
the heirs of the Jacksonian
Democrats with respect to
overall objectives AND
specific proposals for reform?
Imperialism
To what extent was late 19thcentury and early 20th-century
US expansionism a
continuation of past US
expansionism and to what
extent was it a departure? Use
your knowledge of US history to
1914 to construct your answer.
Progressives
Evaluate the effectiveness of
the Progressive Era reformers
and the federal government in
bringing about reform at the
national level. In your answer,
be sure to analyze the successes
and limitations of these efforts in
the period 1900-1920.
AFRICAN AMERICANS
Booker T. Washington and W.E.B.
DuBois offered different strategies for
dealing with the problems of poverty
and discrimination faced by black
Americans at the end of the 19th and
beginning of the 20th centuries. Using
your knowledge of the period 1877-1915, assess
the appropriateness of each of these strategies
in the historical context in which each was
developed.
AFRICAN AMERICAN CIVIL RIGHTS
Compare the goals and
strategies of the African
American reform
movement of the period
1890-1910 to the goals
and strategies of the
Black reform movements
in the period 1950-1970.
Women 1840-1890
“From the 1840s through the
1890s, women’s activities in the
intellectual, social, economic &
political spheres effectively
challenged traditional attitudes
about women’s place in society.”
Assess the validity
Women 1890-1925
To what extent did economic
and political developments as
well as the assumptions about
the nature of women affect
the position Of American
women during the period
1890-1925?
WWI
Assess the relative influence of
THREE of the following in the
American decision to declare war
on Germany in 1917: German naval
policy, American economic
interests, Woodrow Wilson’s
idealism, allied propaganda,
America’s claim to world power
1920s
The 1920s were a period of
tension between new and
changing attitudes on the one
hand and traditional values and
nostalgia on the other. What led
to the tension be-tween old and
new AND in what ways was the
tension manifested?
1920s & 1950s
Compare and contrast
U.S. society in the 1920s
and 1950s with respect
to the following:
Race relations, role of
women, consumerism
New Deal
How successful were the
programs of the New Deal in
solving the problems of the
Great Depression? Assess
with respect to TWO of the
following: Relief, Recovery,
Reform
PROGRESSIVES & NEW DEAL
Compare and contrast the
programs and policies designed
by reformers of the Progressive
era to those designed by
reformers of the New Deal
period. Be sure to include in your answer
the programs and policies that addressed the
needs of those living in poverty.
NEW DEAL & GREAT SOCIETY
In what ways did the Great
Society resemble the New Deal
in its origins, goals, and social
and political legacy? Cite
specific examples and policies
in support of your argument.
Foreign Policy 1920-41
How and for what
reasons did U.S.
foreign policy change
between 1920 and
1941?
Cold War/Foreign Policy
Analyze the success & failures
of the U.S. Cold War policy of
containment as it developed in
the following regions of the world
during the period 1945-1975:
E&SE Asia, Europe, Latin
America & Middle East
20TH CENTURY REFORM
“Reform movements of the twentieth
century have shown continuity in
their goals & strategies.” Assess the
validity of this statement for the
following pairs of reform movements:
Progressivism & the New Deal;
Women’s Suffrage & post-WWII
Feminism; The New Deal & the Great
Society
WOMEN’S RIGHTS
“Reform movements of the twentieth
century have shown continuity in their
goals and strategies.” Assess the validity of
this statement for the following reform
movements:
• Women’s Suffrage and
• post-Second World War Feminism