Week 6 — Readings & Resources · Confederation & Constitution

Course: U.S. History to 1877 (HIST 1301) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Hartwell
Objectives covered: Objective 5 — the Articles of Confederation, the Constitutional Convention and its compromises, ratification, Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists, and the Bill of Rights.

How to use this page

Everything here is a link to an external resource — open it in your browser. Nothing needs to be downloaded, and there is nothing to buy.

This week's load is moderate: 2 short videos + 3 short readings + the two primary sources you'll use in the workshop and assignment. Watch or read one item per group and you're ready for the quiz; doing all of them will make the discussion and assignment much easier.

Order that matches the lecture: ① the Articles' failures → ② the Convention and its compromises → ③ ratification: Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists → ④ the week's primary sources (Federalist No. 10 and Brutus No. 1, for the workshop and assignment).

The habit that counts this week: before you trust any claim about the founding era — in these resources or in a chatbot — ask: who said this, to whom, and what did they want their audience to believe? Founding documents are arguments, not neutral descriptions.

① The Articles of Confederation and Their Failures

Maps to Lecture Segments 1–2. The first American government deliberately made the national government weak. Then a rebellion showed how dangerous that was.

Reading — "The Articles of Confederation" (OpenStax, U.S. History, Ch. 7.1)
🔗 https://openstax.org/books/us-history/pages/7-1-the-articles-of-confederation
Why it's assigned: a clear, free survey of the Articles' structure, why the Continental Congress chose a weak central government, and the predictable consequences — no taxing power, no enforcement, debt crises, and trade wars. Read before class Tuesday.
⏱ ~12 min

Video — "The Articles of Confederation" (Khan Academy, US History)
🔗 https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history
Why it earns the click: in the "American Revolution" or "Road to the Constitution" section, look for the Articles of Confederation lesson — a brisk overview of structural failures and Shays' Rebellion that maps directly to the lecture.
⏱ ~8 min

② The Constitutional Convention and Its Compromises

Maps to Lecture Segment 3. The Convention met in secret in Philadelphia in the summer of 1787 and produced the Constitution — but only after hard-fought compromises over representation, slavery, and the powers of the new government.

Reading — "Creating a New Government" (OpenStax, U.S. History, Ch. 7.2–7.3)
🔗 https://openstax.org/books/us-history/pages/7-2-the-constitutional-convention-and-federal-constitution
Why it's assigned: covers the Convention delegates, the competing plans (Virginia vs. New Jersey), and the key compromises — the Great (Connecticut) Compromise, the Three-Fifths Compromise, and the slave-trade clause. Read both sections.
⏱ ~15 min

③ Ratification: Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists

Maps to Lecture Segments 5–6. The Constitution had to be ratified — approved by nine of thirteen state conventions. That required winning a public argument. Two sides made sharply different cases.

Reading — "Ratification of the U.S. Constitution" (Khan Academy, US History)
🔗 https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/us-history
Why it's assigned: in the "Becoming a nation" or similar unit, find the ratification lesson. Covers the Federalists' core arguments (stability, large-republic theory, checks and balances) and the Anti-Federalists' concerns (consolidated power, no Bill of Rights).
⏱ ~10 min

Video — "The Constitution, the Articles, and Federalism" (CrashCourse US History #8)
🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bO7FQsCcbD8
Why it earns the click: a good overview of the move from the Articles to the Constitution, the Convention's compromises, and the Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist debate. Particularly clear on separation of powers and federalism.
⏱ ~12 min

④ The Week's Primary Sources (for the Workshop and Assignment)

You will analyze these in Primary Source Workshop 6 and Assignment 6. Read each once before the workshop so you arrive ready to source and close-read.

Primary source 1 — James Madison, Federalist No. 10 (November 22, 1787)
🔗 https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed10.asp (Avalon Project, Yale Law School — authoritative full text)
🔗 https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Madison/01-10-02-0178 (Founders Online, National Archives — with editorial notes)
Why it's assigned: the most-read essay in American political history. Madison's argument that a large republic, with its diversity of competing factions, is safer than a small direct democracy — the intellectual heart of the Federalist case. Your workshop and assignment draw directly from this text. Read it slowly; the argument is subtle.
⏱ ~20 min (full text); ~10 min (skim the faction argument, paragraphs 1–16)

Primary source 2 — Brutus No. 1 (October 18, 1787; author likely Robert Yates)
🔗 https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/brutus-i/ (Teaching American History — full text with notes)
🔗 https://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch8s13.html (University of Chicago Press, Founders' Constitution)
Why it's assigned: the Anti-Federalists' sharpest challenge to Madison's large-republic argument. Brutus argues that history shows free republics cannot survive over large territories — a direct counter to Federalist No. 10. Read alongside Madison's essay to see the intellectual clash.
⏱ ~15 min

Optional one-stop references (free online)

• National Archives — Constitution of the United States. The full text of the Constitution with an explanation of each article.
  🔗 https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution
• Bill of Rights — National Archives. The full text of the first ten amendments with transcription.
  🔗 https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/bill-of-rights-transcript
• The Federalist Papers — full collection (Avalon Project, Yale). All 85 essays, online and searchable.
  🔗 https://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/fed.asp
• Shays' Rebellion (National Park Service). Brief overview of the rebellion and its significance.
  🔗 https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/shays-rebellion.htm

Pick-one quick path (≈30 min total)

In a hurry? Do exactly these and you'll be ready for the quiz and discussion:
1. Read OpenStax Ch. 7.1 on the Articles' failures (group ①).
2. Watch CrashCourse #8 for the Convention and ratification overview (group ③).
3. Read the faction argument in Federalist No. 10 (the first ~16 paragraphs) and the first two pages of Brutus No. 1 (group ④).

Heads-up (links rot): these point to outside sites that occasionally move or rename pages. If a link ever fails, tell Prof. Hartwell and use the Avalon Project, National Archives, or OpenStax references in the meantime. The Avalon Project at Yale Law School (avalon.law.yale.edu) is the most stable home for the founding-era texts.