1. How did American industrialization emerge? What areas were first to undergo this transformation and why?
2. What caused the Panic of 1819? How did it differ from early financial problems in America?
3. Why did the US focus on internal improvements in the early 19th century? What role did innovation and technology play in this process?
4. Why did class divisions begin to accelerate in the early 19th century?
5. What were some of the social and cultural beliefs that became widespread during the Age of Jackson? What lay behind these beliefs, and do you observe any of them in American culture today?
6. Were the political changes of the early nineteenth century positive or negative? Explain your opinion.
7. How did depictions of Native Americans in popular culture help to sway popular opinion? Does modern popular culture continue to wield this kind of power over us? Why or why not?
8. How did Jackson’s Presidency shape the course of the nation for the next 20 years?
Reading Assignment 5
1. What evidence did Niles present to prove that manufacturing was a positive development for the country?
2. Did Niles note a connection between production, population, and prosperity?
