Read the excerpt from "How We Entered World War I."Nothing that Wilson said about the danger to democracy could not have been said all along. For that cause we could have gone to war six months or a year or two years earlier, with incalculable effect on history. Except for the proof of hostility in the resumed submarine campaign and the Zimmermann telegram, our cause would have been as valid, but we would then have been fighting a preventive war—to prevent a victory by German militarism with its potential danger to our way of life—not a war of no choice. Instead, we waited for the overt acts of hostility which brought the war to us...The author's word choice gives the reader a sense that
Read the sentence from "Wilson's War Message to Congress."It was a war determined upon as wars used to be determined upon in the old, unhappy days when peoples were nowhere consulted by their rulers and wars were provoked and waged in the interest of dynasties or of little groups of ambitious men who were accustomed to use their fellow men as pawns and tools.In this sentence, Wilson compares the German government to governments of the past. What is he hoping to convey?
What key detail in "Wilson's War Message to Congress" supports his argument for entering the war?
How does the text structure of "Wilson's War Message to Congress" help to support his message?
Read the paragraph from "Wilson's War Message to Congress."On the 3rd of February last I officially laid before you the extraordinary announcement of the Imperial German Government that on and after the 1st day of February it was its purpose to put aside all restraints of law or of humanity and use its submarines to sink every vessel that sought to approach either the ports of Great Britain and Ireland or the western coasts of Europe or any of the ports controlled by the enemies of Germany within the Mediterranean.By using the full title of the German government, Wilson most likely hopes to
How does the author of "How We Entered World War I" organize the information in the text?
Read the excerpt from the final paragraph of "Wilson's War Message to Congress."But the right is more precious than peace, and we shall fight for the things which we have always carried nearest our hearts—for democracy, for the right of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own governments. . . The most likely purpose of including this in the last paragraph is to
Read the paragraph from "How We Entered World War I."As ships piled up in home ports, American commerce threatened to come to a standstill affecting the entire national economy. The Cabinet grew seriously alarmed. Although Wilson possessed the executive authority to arm ships, he was reluctant to take the step that would inevitably start the shooting. He preferred to ask Congress for authorization, thus touching off the great debate and filibuster on the Armed Ship Bill. How does the author organize the text to support her viewpoint in the paragraph?
What is the best summary of the first paragraph of "How We Entered World War I"?
Which statement best describes the main idea of paragraph 5, which begins “For Wilson,” in "How We Entered World War I"?
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