Colonial Society Matures

1. Introduction
   1. The Late-Colonial Paradox
      1. Increasingly English, BUT
      2. Increasingly American as Well
   2. Increasing Diversity
      1. Thirteen Distinct Colonial Histories
      2. Internal Divisions
         1. Old Settlements vs. Back Country
         2. Town vs. Country
      3. Colonial Groupings
         1. New England (Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire)
         2. The "Middle Colonies" (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania)
         3. The Chesapeake Colonies (Maryland, Virginia)
         4. The Lower South (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia)
2. The Process of Maturation--The Chesapeake, a Case Study
   1. The Seventeenth Century--A Flashback
   2. The Eighteenth Century
      1. Settling Down
      2. Aping England
         1. A More Polished Culture
         2. An Imitation "Aristocracy," BUT
      3. Widespread Independence Among Whites--
3. The Root of American Distinctiveness--the Land-to-Labor Ratio
   1. Contrast with England
   2. Social Effect--Abundant Opportunity for Independence
4. American Cities--Exceptions to the Rule?
   1. The Process of Urbanization--The Rise of Philadelphia, A Case Study
   2. Urban Social Structure
      1. The Elite
      2. The "Working Class"
      3. The Poor
5. Economic Expansiveness and the Beginnings of American Character
   1. A New Ethos--The Idealization of the Ordinary
      1. Deprecation of Traditional Learning and Authority
      2. Exaltation of "Practicality"
   2. Obsession With Gaining, and Keeping, "Independence"