Calla Videt

Social Studies H

September 1, 1999

My Brother Sam is Dead Questions

Chapter 1
Explain Mr. Meeker*s statement, "You may know principle, Sam, but I know
war."

Sam has idealistic and naïve views and beliefs on war. Sam is young and has yet to experience REAL war, as his father is saying he himself has. The father knows what the feeling is to actually SEE people die, his friends and leaders perish. Sam knows not of this feeling, but can only imagine the experience.

Chapter 2
Explain the statements that Mr. Meeker makes, "But you never get rid of
injustices by fighting" and Sam makes, "Either we*re going to be free or we*re
not." How is Mr. Meeker*s comment an argument against war? How is Sam*s
comment an argument for war? Which one do you agree with? Why?

Mr. Meeker is saying that fighting is actually an injustice itself. It is not fair that there is a winner and loser. Freedom will only be determined and yet there is still no guarantee of victory or that freedom will be the answer to their problems. Sam is saying that they have nothing to lose. If they win, they*ll achieve freedom and if they lose, they*ll be the same as the present. Yet, he is not considering the consequences of war. I probably agree with Mr. Meeker. He has learned from experience and I am also for more peaceful ways. Fighting would not be my first pick but I would still be for independence and justice through compromise and agreement.

Chapter 3
How would you explain Tim*s statement, "It made me wonder how the war
was going to make us freer if you couldn*t read any paper you wanted any
more." What does this tell you about war and revolution in general?

War is a power struggle. During war, many freedoms are taken away in order to weaken the opponent. Tim was talking about Tory papers and the patriots wished to forbid anything promoting loyalty. Papers are also a big influence on people. Revolution causes persuading people to take on a certain viewpoint and that can be done when there is no promoting the other side. It is a hard time.

Chapter 4
Tim said, "* anybody who joined the army to fight couldn*t be a coward." Do
you agree or disagree? Why?

I disagree. Maybe they went in all "I am brave. I can fight," not REALLY taking to mind the extremes of war. They are brave to risk their lives yet there is a coward in everyone. I*m sure there were many times when a soldier would stand in a field filled with his dead friends, crying to himself, filled with fear that it could have been him. The actual realization that these moments could be your last. Somewhere on those battlefields, someone was scared half to death. It might have been a peer pressure thing too. If all your friends went to fight, you might as well go and face your fears.

Chapter 5
Why do you think men like Tom Warrups could work for both the Patriots and
the Tories? What is your opinion of people who take both sides of a dispute?

A lot of Indians, like Tom Warrups, or other races had no whatsoever connection with British. They had never come from England and really didn*t care which side would win. They would "sit on the fence" and would take neither side. I don*t feel people who can*t make up their mind to which side is right should be in the dispute. They should stay out or pick a side to support and actually contribute. There*s no use of someone helping both sides.

Chapter 6
What was the message in the letter? Why was Mr. Heron sending it? What
does this tell you about communication during this time period?

The message was "If this message is received, we will know that the messenger is reliable." Mr. Heron sent it to confirm his trust in Tim. He had to have that trust if was going to carry important messages. Communication was through messenger and letters. No one was trusted to carry these business letters back then. It was dangerous to carry spy records during war as the enemy was always on the look out for the travel of this information. You could never be certain if the person would actually deliver the message or use it to start rumors or to their own advantage. Communication was filled with rumors and people always speculated what could be in the letters, as Betsy did.

Chapter 7
How did the war affect Tim*s family (think beyond physical affects)?

First of all, it caused family disputes. Sam and his father fought over being loyalists or rebels. It broke up the family, with Sam leaving to fight as well as confusing Tim about whom was right and wrong. Mother and father fought about Sam, that he was not a child anymore. Tim was caught in the middle all the time. He was always wondering if he should be on his brother or father*s side. Food and cloth became in short supply and people were left without guns. During the trip to Verplancks Point, they were caught by cowboys, or thieves, who ran around during these wars. It put them in danger, making it harder to get supplies to earn a living. It also scared Tim greatly.

Chapter 8
What did Tim really think about the war? Had he made up his mind which
side he was on?

Tim was still confused about the war. When talking to his cousin, he told him that Sam made the rebels sound right and Father made the loyalists sound right. He was still unsure about what side he was on and he probably only said that if he fought, it would be with the loyalists so his cousin would not think badly of him. Though inside, he was still disoriented and undecided. The war seemed to scare him and I*m sure he wanted it to end so his family could reunite.

Chapter 9
What do you think happened to Mr. Meeker? What impact will it have on
Tim?

I think Mr. Meeker ran into the same cowboys as the first time (as the hoofprints showed). They probably questioned where his son and supplies were. He probably began making up some story that Tim was staying with family until the snow stopped and he was going home to check on his wife. Realizing Mr. Meeker was just protecting his son and wanting revenge for his prior escape, the cowboys likely captured him. Taking him somewhere as prisoner, he was probably to be tortured or killed. This will sadden Tim and when he gets home, he will have to take his father*s place and work will be hard. It might anger him and he might lean more towards the Tories or be totally against the war.

Chapter 10
Explain Tim*s statement, "I still hadn*t figured out what he was fighting for. It
seemed to me that we*d been free all along."

Tim was young when the war started. He had never realized how America was being treated by the English. At the time he was never aware of the unjust taxes or laws that were set as he was probably too young to understand. He was not the one paying taxes and never realized how unfairly they were being treated. As a child, things like the Boston Massacre were far off tales and never were "real". He felt free, and the fact that he was working hard and Britain just sat there making laws, never really had any personal affect on him.

Chapter 11
Mrs. Meeker begs Sam to come home after his father*s death. Sam refuses.
Tim says that he realizes that his brother will never leave the army because
he thinks he is part of something big. Explain what Tim means by "something
big."

Everybody wants to be part of "something big". That big something is something that people look up to you for; that you can tell great stories about, placing people in awe. Every young boy dreams of being something great, doing something different to prove that they are brave. What recognition could Sam get from working a bar? He needed adventure, to get away from ordinary life and do something that, to him, was extraordinary. It wasn*t his "duty". He felt free and good inside fighting in the war. To him, he was a hero.

Chapter 12
Explain the statement, "In war the dead pay the debts for the living."

During war, people make the ultimate sacrifice of dying for their beliefs and fight so that they may achieve their deserved rights. They do this for the chance of bettering life, and if they die, their life will pay for the improvements in others lives when they achieve those rights. The living owe this better life to the lives that perished to gain it.

Chapter 13
Patrick Henry, a famous Patriot, said, "Give me liberty or give me death!"
How might his words have inspired soldiers like Sam?

Patrick Henry said this as a hero; a brave man willing to put down his life for something he believed in. This is quite honorable and these soldiers were out there to achieve honor, to be known for something, to be part of "something big". They ALL wanted to be heros, to die with honor and be brave, and be idealistic. Things like this pushed the men on, to fight to their deaths.

Chapter 14

What was the irony of Sam*s pending execution? How is this similar to the irony of what happened to Mr. Meeker?

Things were just chaotic in war. Nevermind if Sam was innocent, they needed to take a life in order to scare others and set an example. Sam had been loyal and yet was still killed by the rebels, the side he had fought on for three years. What made it worse was that he had done nothing wrong. It was quite a similar situation with Mr. Meeker. He had done nothing illegal, just trying to earn a living by traveling with supplies. Yet, he was captured and somehow ended up on a British prison ship, although he was considered a Tory and on the English side. The side he believed in eventually killed him (through disease), although not directly, as it did to Sam. The tensions of war cause such confusions and mishaps.

Epilogue
What is your reaction to the statement, "But somehow, even fifty years later, I
keep thinking that there might have been another way, besides war, to achieve the same end." Do you think the United States could have become a nation without the Revolutionary War?

Eventually, I believe the US would become independent, as the history of colonization is ending. However, I*m sure that the country would be extremely different than what it is today. Independence would have only been achieved recently and our nation would still be developing. It might have become more British and chosen a different government and it might not be "the land of the free", as it is today. Without the Revolutionary War, Britain would have held on to this valuable piece of land for quite some time and I think the most we would have been able to achieve would be just an agreement about rights. Our determination for independence is what made our culture what it is today.