Final answer:
The debates over slavery significantly influenced the American Civil War, a major historical event, to a great extent. They fueled the sectional divide and played a central role in shaping public discourse and policy, eventually leading to conflict.
Step-by-step explanation:
The debates over slavery had a profound impact on several historical events, particularly the American Civil War. To evaluate the extent to which debates over slavery influenced a specific historical event, we can argue that influence was to a great extent (d). Notably, events like the Lincoln-Douglas debates and the rise of abolitionist sentiment were crucial in bringing the issue of slavery to the forefront of national politics, further polarizing the country. Economic disparities between the North and the South, as well as differing opinions on moral and ethical grounds, contributed to the tensions that eventually boiled over into war.
It's clear that the debates on slavery greatly influenced the direction and nature of critical events of that era, from the heightened tensions preceding the Civil War to the framing of public discourse on human rights and economics. The Missouri Crisis, the abolitionist movement, and the irrepressible conflict theory are all testament to the deep-rooted influence of slavery on America's development.
One cannot overlook the significance of the abolition movement, led by figures like William Lloyd Garrison and John Brown, which placed the evils of slavery in the public consciousness. The stark economic contrasts between the industrial North and the agrarian South, exacerbated by the reliance of the latter on slavery, also played a central role in solidifying sectional divides.