Honors section discussion question for 10/11/2007: William Penn, American Hero?
Please read as much of John A. Moretta's William Penn and the Quaker Legacy as you can before Thursday. I only recently read this book myself, and I must say that William Penn is now one of my heroes, a "Founding Father" we should look back to as much as Washington or Jefferson and probably more than lots of others who are better known, like Ben Franklin or Alexander Hamilton or John Smith or John Winthrop. Am I getting carried away? What are Penn's good and bad points as an historical figure and "role model"? Or, to be a bit simpler about it, what was most striking to you about Penn's life and beliefs after reading this book, or some of it?
posted by Jeff Pasley at 11:22 AM
7 Comments:
I agree that Penn should be considered an American hero, and be recognized as a "Founding Father" as much as Washington, Jefferson, and Co. While Penn was persecuted for being a Quaker, he was still allowed to officially control a colony. Instead of abusing his power, Penn implemented a new system of democratic governing which allowed for freedom of religion, elected representatives, fair trials, and seperation of powers. Penn was far before his time in his system of government, and for that alone he should be held in high esteem.
The most striking thing about Penn and his beliefs, I found,is that he chose to acquire lands for his colony through business rather than conquest, and paid the Indians what was considered a fair amount for their lands.
I am also in agreement that Penn was an excellent leader and could be considered as much of a “founding father” as many of the other leaders of early America. I think that the Quaker religion plays a large part in his success as a leader because of its peaceful ideals, giving freedom to all of the “Friends” as well as being much more liberal than the Church of England at the time. Although he grew up with a seemingly conservative father, Penn was able to lead his followers into building a new land, through peace and harmony, including relations with the Native Americans that were in the land they settled.
I find Penn heroic in the fact that he created a constitution an entire century before 1776 with many of the same ideals and issues that were discussed in the United States Constitution. The Frame of Government of Pennsylvania set up a democracy which protected rights, separated powers, and even proposed an amending process. I see Penn as way before his time. I also admire Penn for staying in Pennsylvania as long as he did with the colony never returning a profit for himself or his family. Penn’s respect for the Indians and the equal way in which he treated them is one thing I find striking about him. With all of the other colonists treating them so unfairly, Penn still fought to treat them the same. I now can also see the heroicness in Penn’s actions.
Penn is a very admirable man. He was a pioneer of sorts- Penn was the first man to have a democracy before the American Revolution, which was the formula for the Constitution. He was a Quaker, which definitely helps us understand the equality in his government. He wrote about his religion and was persecuted but continued to stand strong in his beliefs. Penn’s troubles with the English government would explain why his “Frame of Government” contained a separation of powers and religious freedoms (in addition to fair trials and elected representatives). Penn was also pretty ingenious with his creation of Philadelphia on the grid system. He was a diplomat- Penn learned a few different Indian languages.
However, he was only a colonist…and like most colonists of the time, he was out for a profit. He never ended up profiting off of Pennsylvania and was arrested for debts.
Overall, I can say that I think William Penn was an amazing man. He had ground-breaking ideas, without which our America would be unrecognizable.
In my opinion, Penn is highly admirable because he was ahead of his time. Decades before the Constitution was concieved, he created a constitution for Pennsilvania that expressed many of the same ideas that we hold to the modern day. As a role mode, William Penn can be viewed as a visionary, someone who proposes bold new ideas that go against the status quo. I am particularly impressed by his dedication to his beliefs. Even though his moral code ran contrary to most other people's, he never abandoned his policy of kindness and fairness to the Indians.
One of the things that struck me most about Penn that I dont think has been mentioned yet was that he championed a society that offered equal rights to different genders, races, and religions. I thought it was funny though, Penn thought races should have equal rights, yet he owned slaves himself. I also found it impressive that while most colonist took lands from indians, he went in and peacefully bartered for them. He was truely ahead of his time in many ways.
I believe William Penn should be regarded as the most significant founding father in terms of the ideas and governmental policies in America. His implementation of a democratic society with independent branches of government, freedom of religion, right to a trial by jury, freedom from unjust imprisonment, and free election nearly a hundred years before the creation of the American Constitution proves he is the origin of American ideals and values. He's also very interesting in that he, being a Quaker, was not a man willing to use force in any situation, and created a diverse, successful society in Pennsylvania. His kindness also extends to levels rarely reached among all colonists. For example, his respect for Native Americans, in that he adequately paid the Indians for use of their land. He even implemented a law stating that any confrontation with an Indian must result in a fair trial. His willingness to created a unified nation of all English colonies illustrates his status as a true founding father, years before men like Benjamin Franklin and George Washington ran things. Thus, I believe William Penn is a well-rounded, inspirational political genius who laid the foundation for America today.
Post a Comment
<< Home