Reconstruction: Healing vs. Justice

Target: I can compare the different plans for Reconstruction to determine if the nation needed "healing" (forgiveness) or "justice" (punishment) after the Civil War.

Key Vocabulary

• Amnesty: An official pardon (forgiveness) for a group of people who have committed a political crime.

• Reconstruction: The period after the Civil War when the U.S. government tried to rebuild the South and bring the states back into the Union.

• Radical: Favoring extreme changes, especially in government.

• Pardon: To forgive a person for a crime and stop their punishment.

• Emancipation: The act of being set free.

Part 1: Do Now (5 minutes)

Directions: Read the prompt below and write a 5-8 sentence response.

Prompt: The Bad Group Project. Imagine you are working on a huge group project for a major grade. One member quits halfway through, tries to sabotage your work, and insults you. The teacher intervenes and you finish the project. Now, that student wants to come back to the group and share the "A" grade. In a complete paragraph, answer: Do you let them back in? If yes, what rules must they follow? Do you make them apologize, or do you punish them? Explain your decision.

Sentence Starter: If a group member tried to ruin our project and then wanted to come back, I would... I believe that before they are allowed back in, they must... This is fair because...

Part 2: Analyzing the Sources

Directions: Analyze the two documents below and then answer the questions that follow.

Source 1: Abraham Lincoln, "The 10% Plan" (Adapted Excerpt, 1863)

Original Text	Simplified Text
"I, Abraham Lincoln... do proclaim... that a full pardon is hereby granted to them... upon the condition that they take and subscribe an oath..."	"I, Abraham Lincoln, declare that I grant a full pardon (official forgiveness) to the rebels, as long as they take an oath of loyalty to the U.S."
"And I do further proclaim, that whenever, in any of said States, a number of persons, not less than one-tenth in number of the votes cast in such State at the presidential election of the year A.D. 1860... shall re-establish a State government... such shall be recognized as the true government of the State."	"Furthermore, if just 10% of the voters in a Southern state take this oath, they can set up a new state government. The U.S. will recognize that new government as real and allow the state back into the Union."

Source 2: Thaddeus Stevens, "The Punishment Plan" (Adapted Excerpt, 1865)

Original Text	Simplified Text
"The South is a conquered land... Dead States cannot restore their existence 'as it was.'... They must come in as new states or remain as conquered provinces."	"The South is a conquered enemy territory. The old states are dead and cannot just come back as they were. They must be treated like conquered provinces (territories ruled by the winner)."
"They must never be recognized as capable of acting in the Union... until the Constitution shall have been so amended... as to secure perpetual ascendancy to the party of the Union; and so as to render our republican Government firm and stable forever."	"They must never be allowed back into the Union until we change the Constitution to make sure the Union stays in power forever. We must make sure the government is stable before we let them back."

Analysis Questions

Directions: Answer questions 1-2 on your own.

Then, work with a partner to answer question 3.

1. Look at Source 1. Lincoln offered a "full pardon." What was the only requirement for a Southern state to be allowed back into the Union? Was this requirement hard or easy?

   
   

   Sentence Starter: According to Lincoln, a state could return to the Union if only... This requirement seems (easy/hard) because...

   
   

2. Look at Source 2. Thaddeus Stevens calls the South a "conquered land." How is his plan different from Lincoln's? What does he want to do to the Constitution before the South is allowed back?

   
   

   Sentence Starter: Unlike Lincoln, Stevens believes the South should be treated as... Before they are allowed back, he insists that the Constitution must be...

   
   

3. (Work with your partner) Lincoln's plan was fast and easy. Stevens' plan was slow and harsh. If you were a newly freed African American living in Mississippi in 1865, which plan would make you feel safer, and why?

   
   

   Sentence Starter: If I were a newly freed person, I would feel safer under (Lincoln's/Stevens') plan because... If the South was allowed back too quickly (like Lincoln wanted), I would be afraid that...

Part 3: Exit Ticket (5 minutes)

Directions: Answer the following prompt in a complete paragraph (5-8 sentences).

Prompt: Abraham Lincoln wanted "malice toward none" (forgiveness). Thaddeus Stevens wanted justice for the "conquered land." In a detailed paragraph, judge which plan was actually better for the future of the United States. Does healing require forgiveness, or does it require strict punishment?

Sentence Starter: I believe that (Lincoln's/Stevens') plan was better for the future of the United States. While Lincoln wanted to heal the nation by..., Stevens argued that... I think strict punishment was (necessary/unnecessary) because...