HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE PA Standard
8.1.12.C LESSON 3 THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION APPLYIN
G THE LESSONS OF INTERPRETATION
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BELL RINGERS
Click on the hyperlink to watch the video.
http//origin.theonion.com/content/video/u_s_final
ly_gets_around_to

• What are you initial thoughts on this satirical
  video? How did it make you feel?
• If this had been a Japanese news broadcast, how
  would it have been different?
• Why do you think the Press Secretary was so blasé
  about the issue?

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OBJECTIVES

• Following this lesson, Students will be able to
• Restate lessons learned about how points of
  view or opinion helped determine historians
  interpretations of the American Revolution.
• Compare how these lessons may be applied to
  another incident in American History the
  internment of Americans of Asian descent during
  WWII.
• Evaluate how a historians perspective
  determines how they approach the central issue
  that is being addressed, using the internment
  issue as an example.

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PONDER THIS
Click on the hyperlink and listen to the opinions
given by Red (the bald guy) in these scenes.
Though spoken in jest here, have you heard these
sentiments before? Click on the picture.
http//www.youtube.com/watch?vSjj2oiO8yCs

• Though spoken in jest here, have you heard
  these sorts of sentiments before?
• What do you think Reds historical perspective
  is on any conflict involving the United States?

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A persons a person, no matter how small. from
Dr. Seuss Horton Hears a Who

• Dr. Seuss is a beloved figure in childrens
  literature. However, during wartime, even such a
  figure could be enlisted to give a definitely
  slanted view of current history.
• Click on this link to see some of his work from
  WWII.
• http//orpheus.ucsd.edu/speccoll/dspolitic/Frame.h
  tm
• Do you feel Dr. Seuss treated the Japanese and
  Germans fairly in his illustrations?
• Given the circumstances of the time, do you
  feel Dr. Seuss would have been considered racist?
  How did the emotional and political landscape
  affect his perspective?

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APPLY THE PRINCIPLES

• On the left is the engraving of the Boston
  Massacre by Paul Revere. On the right is a
  poster drawn and conspicuously signed by Dr.
  Seuss during World War II.
• How did these works contribute to the
  objectification of a certain nationality or race?
• Could this objectification contribute to how
  historians treat the central issues of those
  times? How?
• Does the central issue change depending on your
  historical perspective?

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ACTIVITY

• First, click on this link and watch the
  historical propaganda film released by the US
  Government after World War II.
• http//www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey
  9840553ae57f4acc96e8
• Now click on this link for the activity. You
  will explore the experiences of those of Asian
  Ancestry in the United States during WWII,
  beginning shortly after the bombing of Pearl
  Harbor. Just click on the Liberty Bell.
• http//americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/resourc
  es/activity2.html

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CLOSURE

• Lets Review
• Weve seen that a historians point of view or
  opinion can be key in determining their
  interpretation of certain events. Name at least
  two instances of this drawing on our discussions
  of the American Revolution.
• Compare how these lessons may be applied to
  another incident in American History the
  internment of Americans of Asian descent during
  WWII. Why is the mass internment of a race of
  people given such slim coverage in most accounts
  of World War II? Support your answer with
  references to historical perspective on the
  American Revolution.
• What aspects of the Asian Internment in the
  United States are likely to be emphasized by
  American Historians? How may this differ from
  the aspects that Asian historians may focus upon?

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Essential Principles before Moving Forward

• Weve used the American Revolution and the
  Asian Internment during World War II to analyze
  the concept of historical interpretation. Weve
  seen how historians may be influenced by personal
  opinion, political philosophy, lack of sufficient
  information, and many other aspects. As such,
  history is constantly being re-evaluated and
  rewritten.
• If nothing else, take away these thoughts.
  What facts in our current understanding of
  history are based on false interpretations or
  assumptions of which we arent aware or choose to
  ignore? What important lessons from the history
  of other cultures are we unwittingly not learning
  from?
• Has the internet made it easier to learn from
  the history of other cultures, or more difficult
  due to the instant flow of information,
  regardless of veracity?

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REFERENCES/LINKS

• http//origin.theonion.com/content/video/u_s_final
  ly_gets_around_to
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vSjj2oiO8yCs
• http//orpheus.ucsd.edu/speccoll/dspolitic/Frame.h
  tm
• http//www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey
  9840553ae57f4acc96e8
• http//americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion/resourc
  es/activity2.html