1. Why did many Americans critize the Mexican War? How did they see expansion as a threat to American liberties?
2. How did western expansion affect the sectional tensions between the North and South?
3. What was the "Slave Power," and why did many northerners feel threatened by it?
4. Why did Stephen Douglas, among others, believe that "popular sovereignty" could resolve sectional divisions of the 1850s? Why did the idea not work out?
5. What do the California gold rush and the opening of Japan reveal about the United States involvement in a global economic system?
6. What made the American Civil War the first modern war?
7. Describe how President Lincoln's war aims evolved between 1861 and 1863, changing from simply preserving the Union to also ending slavery.
8. What role did blacks play in both winning the Civil War and in defining the wars consequences?
9. What was the impact of the civil war on civil liberties?
10. In what ways did the outcome of the Civil War change the United State's status in the world?