Discuss Sam Houstons statewide speaking tour in 1860 where he argued against secession and made ominous predictions of a Civil War. These slides conclude that Houston had lost his final battle – to keep Texas out of the Civil War. In Document # 5, pp. 233-236 (slides 43-49) Houston gives a pro union speech, explaining his support of the Union and pointing out lies of the Confederacy.
Prompt: Analyze, compare and contrast these sources. Include in your analysis the purpose of the sources, assertions made by Houston and the Secession Convention, evidence used to support their assertions, and conclusions reached in each document. Were the arguments based on emotion, logic, engrained racism or something else? Both of these sources were propaganda, deliberately biased opinions designed to win support. Who was the propaganda aimed at in each document, and how effective was it? Were Houstons predictions correct? Explain. For your conclusion, you might want to consider: What point of view is expressed by Houston and the Secession Convention and what were the consequences of each authors line of reasoning?
