Monday, January 27, 2014
The Duel: Hamilton vs. Burr
In what may be the deadliest example of the early political disagreements facing our young nation, Aaron Burr shot and killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel in July 1804. Read this primary source, read this article and watch this video (which is supposed to be a mix of comedy and history) to learn more about this incident. In the comment section, discuss your reaction to this episode and whether and why dueling was a popular conflict-resolution strategy centuries ago but no longer is acceptable.
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After going over both articles and the video it seemed kind of strange that if you didnt say fire or whatever that you would lose your fire. the video was interresting seeing the thing go down was quite amusing. it was really nice to see what Alexander actually was trying to do unlike Aaron burr. i think that since Mr. Hamilton tried to save Burr's life he should basically be also known for that. and since Burr didnt really care, that seemed rather selfish. NO one wants to die. its a part of life though. i like how Hamilton did that. he showed more character that Burr. from the stand point i have. (113)
ReplyDeletei think that it was a good way to settle things. ike in an argument whomever wins the shooting or whatever whens the particular arguement. i like that. (21) (148)
ReplyDeleteAaron Burr and Hamilton's rivalry has been since 1791. The duel was on a height. They think that Hamilton fired first but the are not for sure. Hamilton probally fired up making burr go. Burr hit him in his abdomen. damaging his organs to. He died day later. making burr a murder. I really think that killing is not the way to go and now you could be charged with murder. THe death of Hamilton was not good for Ferdilist party. Burr's political standpoint was ruined which may be why he was never president.(102)
ReplyDelete'this is a test'
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ReplyDeleteOk, so I think people back then should have not dueled to settle their disagreements. Someone usually dies, which in this case was Alexander Hamilton. Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr had been enemies since 1791, and if you do the math, that’s 13 years. Hamilton was a Federalist and Burr was a Democratic-Republican which helps you understand why they hated each other. They had opposing beliefs. So when Burr had finally had enough, he challenged Hamilton to a duel. Hamilton accepted the challenge knowing that if he didn’t, he would look like a coward. It is believed that Hamilton fired first, intentionally missing. Burr fired right at Hamilton and hit him in the abdomen. Hamilton suffered until he died the next day. I think that dueling is insane and people should have realized there were other ways to solve the problem rather than killing it. (145)
ReplyDeleteIn the time period they lived in i guess it kind of makes sense, i mean it was pretty common everyone was pretty good at shooting then. I can think of two reasons why people don't do it now. The first is that it seems week and irrelevant. Now it would be like ok, i don't agree with you and you don't agree with me so lets try to kill each other and whoever doesn't die is basically right by default.81 The other reason i don't think we do it any more is because then sometimes your beliefs were all you had and they were worth fighting for. maybe now were just used to freedom and not having to fight for it, i think that's scary because what if one day we will have to fight for it will it seem worth dying for? these people knew what it felt like to not have freedom that's why they held it at such high value; to a lot of people now it just doesn't seem worth it. 186
ReplyDeleteI think dueling back then was stupid. People nowadays can settle their agreements for arguments. I kind of understand why they would do it back then because that is the way their culture was. But I do not think it is a good way to resolve political dispute among 2 people. Also during the duel I thought it was very noble of Alexander Hamilton to fire his gun in the air and not shoot his opponent. This is another reason why they were stupid because if someone did not want to duel they would still have to do it or be made a coward of.
ReplyDeleteI think that dueling is really dumb. If you are mad at someone it does not mean you can just challenge them and kill them. I think that dueling was just an excuse to shoot someone. I thought this was weird because Aaron Burr just killed him after he had said that he would not shoot Burr. I mean Burr was just mad because Alexander Hamilton was a better politician than he was. I can see why Burr was mad about Hamilton being the one that changed the mind of the voters for the election against Jefferson, but dueling and killing him wasn't his best choice.(106)
ReplyDeleteI definitely do not think that fighting in a duel is a good way to settle things! They were obviously enemies one was a DR and the other was a federalist. There were obviously going to be conflicts. Whenever there was a duel back then, some one normally died, or surrendered, or whatever. Unfortunately Alexander Hamilton was shot and he died. Fuelling is one of the stupidest things! If you have a problem with someone, and this sounds cliché, then go talk to them and sort it out! You do not have to kill someone just because you have problems with the person! I honestly think that Burr was probably just jealous of Alexander Hamilton and did not want him around anymore!(122)
ReplyDeleteEven though dueling seems pretty cool, I would not want to die so it is really dumb. You’re just asking to get shot. It is pretty much murder. Just think of Obama and some other guy that ran for president getting ready to shoot each other. That would be so dumb! We have so much security with secret service and stuff to protect the president and you’re just going to shoot him? Politics back then were clearly taken more seriously. Dueling should have been outlawed. But then again, back then, they thought different and were worried about “honor”. Honestly, I’d rather not get shot. (105)
ReplyDeleteFirst thoughts, wow. Dueling seems to have been a very popular way of settling things, but it probably wasn't the best way to. I think if they were true gentlemen they would have just worked it out peacefully. However, I do give Hamilton a hoorah because he actually didn't try to kill anyone. But, was this out of fear or kindness? I guess we will never know. Just because you don't like someone doesn't mean you need to kill or attempt to kill them! I mean, thins put Burr's political dreams down the drain! Almost everyone liked Hamilton, and for real, it's not cool to shoot someone. (107)
ReplyDeleteI have three words for you. Dueling is stupid. Why would you put your life at risk like that? If you're trying to prove something to someone, just do something else! Dueling is (or was) the stupidest way of settling a problem or conflict! And obviously we don't do it now because it would be considered 'murder.' I just can't believe that a man like Alexander Hamilton would throw his life away like that. He worked so hard to get where he was! He was a famous and important American who had a great job serving as the first Secretary of the Treasury. I think the whole dueling thing is crap. (108)
ReplyDeleteBack then dueling was good because it showed their manhood and retardity. Why would u risk your life to win a stupid duel that meant nothing? Now this act is considered a felony and for good reason but there is still one thing i don't understand: why would you throw away your life for a little manhood? Both men had a lot going for them and they could have thrown it all away. Honestly these guys were stupid and if they were real men we would put them in a ring and let em go at it with no rules and no help.(103)
ReplyDeleteThe video showed the duel with a contemporary slant. In the article of observation that was written by the Seconds and Dr. Hosack, it indicated that Hamilton did not intend to hit Burr, but to only shoot in his direction. Nevertheless, the outcome was bad for all. Hamilton died, the Federalist Party was hurt and Burr’s political life was doomed. Had Hamilton lived, the direction of our early government could have been very different. Dueling would not be possible today for many reasons. Public dueling is illegal. Shooting a gun in public is against the law. Then, even if self-defense could be claimed by the winner, there is the possibility the duel winner could be tried for murder. The way disputes are settled today, somebody gets sued. (127)
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