It wasn't. It was mostly inspired by European stories and European art. The first time that a strictly American art movement began was with people like James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving who started building the national identity and writing about the US. The colonial period was usually either political or historical and related to Europe.
Answer: The American revolution lead to the rights that we have today.
Explanation: During the American Revolutionary war, events builds up the bill of rights, such as the seventh amendment, the right to the jury. During the Boston Massacur, the British soldiers salughter civilians, and while most wanted to hang them all, John Adams stepped in the way and gave them all a jury, which is the seventh amendment. We tests those rights by using the jury often in the court of law. (I don't know what materials you want, but if this is not good enough, you should talk about how we were given the rights to bear arms through the war since we're the militia.)
Answer:
The environment plays a role in where people live