Which best describes the critical period (1781–1789)?

refers to the 1780's, a time right after the American Revolution where the future of the newly formed nation was in the balance; large amounts of debt, high taxes, foreign affairs, domestic issues, and military concerns were some of the problems Americans faced shortly after the Revolution; these concerns prompted calls for a more vigorous national government that eventually resulted in the Constitution in 1787

The term America's Critical Period, popularized by John Fiske in 1888 with his book The Critical Period of American History, refers to the period of United States history in the 1780s, right after the American Revolution, where the future of the newly formed nation was in the balance.