The most crucial objective prerequisite for the liberation movement in the colonies was the progress made by the middle of the XVIII century in socio-economic relations, political and cultural life of American society. There were signs of forming a new nation, which was a powerful impetus in the struggle for independence. The settlers led a complex lifestyle, caused not only by hard work but also by social factors, such as tense relationships between representatives of different religions and ethnicities.
About half of the white settlers arrived in New England before the Revolutionary War to work under contract. Under this contract, which lasted from four to seven years, the workers provided roads, food, clothing, and housing to work in the fields and on the plantations or as domestic servants. White settlers had to deal with high mortality rates and challenging working conditions for freelance workers (Foner 59). Opportunities such as the financially favorable terms of the contract and a limited validity period partially compensated for these challenges. A person could dispose of themselves at their discretion.
Socially, the new nation could hardly be called homogeneous due to the close coexistence of different ethnicities and faiths. The Document Complaint of an Indentured Servant illustrates the situation with the African-American population (Buel and Buel 25). The question of whether a black slave should be considered the owners’ private property or a human person was still unresolved. Spiritual life was characterized by religious intolerance and mutual opposition of numerous sects. The young nation’s social life was particularly evident in the debates surrounding the organization of the central government body. Overall, New England was the quintessence of opposing political tendencies, cultural heterogeneity, and religious tensions.
It took a long time for the United States to become a single nation and state. If it took centuries for peoples of Europe to form a sense of national identity and the national idea, national community, and forms of government, the Americans achieved this within two or three generations. By the middle of the 18th century, a nation had formed in the colonies, connecting people of various ethnicities and religions, however, relations between them were increasingly strained due to unresolved racial problems.
Works Cited
Buel, Joy, and Richard Buel. The Way of Duty: A Woman and Her Family in Revolutionary America. W. W. Norton & Company, 1985.
Foner, Eric, editor. Voices of Freedom: A Documentary History. W. W. Norton & Company, 2004.