Core 100 Assume the Position Essay PDF

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An essay where the writer takes a side and either states facts and evidence to back up their thesis. In this case, the essays pertain to Paul Revere and the Pilgrims of the Mayflower Compact. ...

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Mendoza 1 Samantha Mendoza CORE 100 Professor Lentine September 9, 2018 Essay #1: Assume the Position According to many individuals, Paul Revere is one of America’s heroes who took on the responsibility of riding through the night and embarked on a journey to warn the colonists that the British were coming. On top of that, people believed Revere yelled “The British are coming!” to alert the colonists. While watching Robert Wuhl’s lecture on Assume the Position, many pupils in the video thought it was Paul Revere who rode day and night to deliver the warning across five different states. Little did they know they were giving Revere more credit than he deserved, as the truth was somewhat fabricated. Contrary to popular belief, Paul Revere was not alone in spreading the news to different towns and cities. During the 1860s, a writer by the name of Henry Longfellow witnessed America being torn by the Civil War, and wrote a story to inspire the nation. Longfellow knew of Israel Bissell’s exhausting journey from Boston to Philadelphia, but didn’t think Bissell’s name was catchy enough or had many rhymes to complement it. Instead, he used Revere’s name, resulting in a well-known poem throughout history. In addition, Revere only rode 20 miles from Boston to Cambridge and failed to make it to Concord as he was detained in Lexington by British troops. As for the latter, Bissell made a five-day trip delivering letters from General Palmer, shouting “To arms, to arms. The war has begun,” from town to town. While Paul Revere did a lot for the war, Israel Bissell should be the one commemorated for his efforts in bracing the colonists for war. As mentioned the article, In American History, a Midnight Rider Goes Unsung, in latimes.com, "Very few people know about poor Israel because Longfellow wasn't writing a poem about him" (Weber

Mendoza 2 1). In other words, due to Longfellow’s story causing confusion amongst historians and individuals, Israel Bissell’s accomplishments were overlooked, and we unknowingly let Paul Revere have all the glory posthumously. Bissell eventually gained recognition in 1967 when the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a bronze plaque near his headstone commemorating his participation. To conclude, Wuhl’s statements about Revere not deserving all the praise were true and history is indeed equivalent to pop culture. When we think of the Pilgrims that ventured into America, we describe their attire as all-black, white garments, gold buckles, and a hat. Whenever children had to draw or color in pictures of the ubiquitous group of people who came to America, monotone colors such as black, white, and a touch of yellow were used. Most people in the 1600s probably wore the color because the best clothes were often black, especially while posing for portraits. Lastly, dying clothes black was a long process requiring a lot of skill. All stereotypes aside, pilgrims had a more colorful sense of fashion than we thought. To debunk the myth, the Mayflower Compact kept a record of things they brought with them on their journey which gives us an idea of the pilgrim attire. They brought dyes and lace with them instead of buckles because lace was less expensive and more accessible. Other than black, brick red, yellow, and brown also made several appearances in a pilgrim’s outfit. What’s more, is when an individual passes away, a meticulous inventory of what they owned was made, including the color of their clothes. As Hiskey mentioned in his article, in todayifoundout.com “Historical records of Pilgrims’ clothing such as the passenger list of the Mayflower, wills, which included descriptions of clothing, and other records, paint a very different picture than the late 17th century artists depicted” (Hiskey 2). Seventeenth century artists must’ve had a limited sense of knowledge of Pilgrim fashion or painted portraits of individuals wearing their best clothes. On top of that, black wasn’t even worn unless it was a Sunday due to religious endeavors. To end, some of the knowledge we gained about the Pilgrims have

Mendoza 3 been inaccurate due to our choice to believe what many people have taught us through the years, along with what was shown on television and in historical literature.

Mendoza 4 Works Cited Press, David Weber | Associated. “In American History, a Midnight Rider Goes Unsung.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2007, articles.latimes.com/2007/apr/29/news/adna-unsung29. “The Pilgrims Didn't Wear All Black and White Clothing with Buckled Top Hats.” Today I Found Out, 6 Nov. 2013, www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2010/11/the-pilgrims-didnt-wear-all-black-andwhite-clothing-with-buckled-top-hats/....