We began our class talking about "america the exception." in other words, america was an exception to the great civilizations of the past (ancient china, rome, egypt, etc.) in that american society was not ruled by a monarch or religious official but by the people. the years between the establishment of the constitution and the civil war posed a significant challenge to the concept of the "people’s rule" in america. construct an argumentative essay that discusses the challenges that the expansion of the federal government, the industrial revolution, and, most importantly, chattel slavery posed to american freedom and democracy. why were these issues so challenging and what did america do to "restore" power to the people?

it may be to consider the following issues:

• the northwest ordinance
• internal slave trade
• industrialization/lowell, massachusetts
• urbanization
• the missouri compromise
• texas annexation
• the compromise of 1850
• the kansas-nebraska act
• the dred scott decision
• gettysburg address
• black codes
• 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments

you are expected to treat this question with the same consideration you would any other essay. it should have a thesis. it should be properly organized. it should be written in complete sentences. i do not expect citations. i do expect that you appropriately engage course material.