Study Questions
1. How did William Byrd’s life in Virginia reflect British influences? How did it reflect American characteristics? (Mention pertinent customs, interests, institutions, and objects.)
2. In view of William Byrd’s great wealth and influence in Virginia, why didn’t he simply stay in America?
3. In what respects was colonial Virginia an aristocratic society? In what respects was it democratic?
4. The author suggests that in England, William Byrd was something of a gadabout, whereas in America his life was more stable and constructive. In what ways do Byrd’s vocational, intellectual, and sexual activities support this argument?
5. This chapter describes several levels of authority in colonial Virginia. Describe the distribution of power in each of these relationships: husbands and wives, masters and slaves, local gentry and average colonists, Virginia and England.
6. William Byrd’s career reveals both the satisfaction and the frustration of being a British American. In what ways were the two identities compatible? In what ways did they come into conflict?
1. How did William Byrd’s life in Virginia reflect British influences? How did it reflect American characteristics? (Mention pertinent customs, interests, institutions, and objects.)
2. In view of William Byrd’s great wealth and influence in Virginia, why didn’t he simply stay in America?
3. In what respects was colonial Virginia an aristocratic society? In what respects was it democratic?
4. The author suggests that in England, William Byrd was something of a gadabout, whereas in America his life was more stable and constructive. In what ways do Byrd’s vocational, intellectual, and sexual activities support this argument?
5. This chapter describes several levels of authority in colonial Virginia. Describe the distribution of power in each of these relationships: husbands and wives, masters and slaves, local gentry and average colonists, Virginia and England.
6. William Byrd’s career reveals both the satisfaction and the frustration of being a British American. In what ways were the two identities compatible? In what ways did they come into conflict?