American Imperialism In The Gilded Age

The Gilded Age was a term used in the 1920s and 1930s derived from Mark Twain’s novel of the same name, which mocked an era of serious social problems. Mark Twain and Charles Darwin saw the corruption in the politics, the ineffectiveness of the politicians, the frenzy in the marketplace and the widespread greed among the people. The society showed a huge difference in regard to who had something and who didn’t. Most of the poor and lower middle-class

After the Civil War, the United States struggled to keep up with other countries in the world. While figuring out how fix the corruption in the American government, the other countries were practicing imperialism. Imperialism is a policy by which strong nations extend their political, military, and economic control over weaker territories. Realizing that we needed to make a change, the United States started working towards the goal of practicing imperialism as well. To do this, our first few targets were Hawaii and Alaska. In 1867, we sought to buy Alaska because they had resources that we wanted, such as lumber and minerals. This was known as Seward’s Folly after the Secretary of State William Seward. In 1898, our desire of Hawaii was fulfilled when they agreed to annexation. However, this was not without struggle. King Kalakaua of Hawaii wanted the white planters to vote, but when he died, his sister, Queen Liliuokalani reversed his decision. She took away the power of whites, which eventually led to her being overthrown with the help of the United States Marines. The Hawaiian people opposed annexation, but when Mckinley became president, Hawaii was declared American territory. Sanford B. Doyle, a white plantation owner who asked for the annexation, became the first governor of Hawaii. This addition into American territory drastically influenced our economy.

Josiah Strong, a reverend and famous Protestant clergyman, wrote in his book, Our Country, about why the United States should support imperialism. He himself is American, but where exactly in America is unknown. It is important that this established, as it makes it easier to understand his motivations for promoting what he thinks are best interests for America. The exact date of this publication is not given, but further research states it is from 1885. At around 1885 was a period of time where imperialism was a concept which was spreading quickly to many large countries, and there were many who supported it in the United States. His book, given the quote, appears to embrace American imperialism for spreading the ideals of the United

The late-nineteenth century was a turning point for American society, economics and politics. This era was an era of seeming prosperity and diversity. Nonetheless, there were many perspectives that were omitted from this prosperous and wealthy view shared among the few. As a result, the late 1800s was known as the Gilded Age, named by Mark Twain as an allusion to the concept of something that is seemingly pleasantly plated with gold on the outside, but rotten to the core. This Gilded Age, in essence, was a period of rapid growth of industry in the American North and West. This industrialization brought many benefits, however, along with the benefits for the select few, it also saw heavier persecution and exploitation against those who were

The post-Civil War era was an era filled with political corruption, economic industrialization, and social urbanization largely due to an great surplus budget. With this being the case, the industrial capitalists, such as Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and others, were leaders in this societal boom. However, it would be appropriate to say that most industrial capitalist could be accurately characterized as “robber barons” for they often unethical, self-interested, and corrupt.

Even though the United States Originally thought about the idea of expanding its economic, military, and culture beliefs on other countries during the 1840’s, known as the Manifest Destiny theory, it did not take foot until the Age of Imperialism during 1890’s. Reasons for this is because of the destructive forces from the Civil War, as well as the industrial revolution (Small Planet, n.d.). The United States was currently trying

America’s industrial growth during the period from 1870 to 1900 was greatly impacted by growth of large corporations that affected the economics and politics of our nation. As corporations began to grow, so did their power and influence. Their numbers grew to be so significant that they were known to be one of the major forces within the United States, with both a great amount of power and the ability to control much within the United States. Their power and influence expanded and impacted the economic and political aspects of our nation. These corporations dominated American business and defined the American culture. The Gilded Age, a term coined by Mark

The Gilded Age was a time in American history, from the 1870s to the 1890s, which ostensibly characterized the country based on its economic and technological advancements. However this era’s development served as a mere facade for the corruption and classism which occurred during the time. From economic manipulation to immorality in politics, the Gilded Age is best characterized by the unscrupulous nature of individuals who sought to attain superficial success.

Accurately established by many historians, the capitalists who shaped post-Civil War industrial America were regarded as corrupt “robber barons”. In a society in which there was a severe imbalance in the dynamics of the economy, these selfish individuals viewed this as an opportunity to advance in their financial status. Thus, they acquired fortunes for themselves while purposely overseeing the struggles of the people around them. Presented in Document A, “as liveried carriage appear; so do barefooted children”, proved to be a true description of life during the 19th century. In hopes of rebuilding America, the capitalists’ hunger for wealth only widened the gap between the rich and poor.

The Gilded Age was characterized by rapid industrialization, reconstruction, ruthless pursuit of profit, government, corruption, and vulgarity (Cashman 1). After the Civil War, America was beginning to regroup as a nation. There were many other changes developing in the country. Industrialization was taking over the formerly agricultural country. The nation’s government was also in great conflict (Foner 20). Many changes occurred during the Gilded Age. These changes affected farmers, labor, business, and politics.

Was it innovation or greed and corruption that played a pivotal role in making the United States the leading industrialized nation in the world during the late 19th Century and early 20th Century, also known as the Gilded Age? In the book, Isaac’s Storm by Erik Larson the author describes how greed and corruption by the United States government ultimately leads to poor decisions after a horrific disaster in 1900 [Larson]. In addition, well-researched essays by Henry Demarest Lloyd and Emma Goldman back up Larson’s theory that the Gilded Age was actually a very dark time for the United States.

The Gilded Age was the last three decades of the nineteenth century, when America’s industrial economy exploded generating opportunities for individuals but also left many workers struggling for survival. With the many immigrants, skilled and unskilled, coming to America the labor system is becoming flooded with new employees. During this period, the immigrants, including the Italians, were unskilled and the skilled workers were usually American-born. There was also a divide in the workers and the robber barons. Robber barons were American capitalist who acquired great fortunes in the last nineteenth century, usually ruthlessly. There was much turmoil throughout the business and labor community. Two major organizations, the Knights of

In the late nineteenth century, America was a country in its prime of industrialization and immigration influx. Known as the Gilded Age, this period defined the United States as the bustling powerhouse it is today, but at the cost of many social and political injustices that lay underneath the guise of the “American dream”. Among the urbanization and booming industry, there was national and racial discrimination, gender inequality, child exploitation and labor,

The Gilded Age will be remembered for the accomplishments of thousands of American thinkers, inventors, entrepreneurs, writers, and promoters of social justice. The Gilded Age and the first years of the twentieth century were a time of great social change and economic growth in the United States. Roughly spanning the years between Reconstruction and the dawn of the new century, the Gilded Age saw rapid industrialization, urbanization, the construction of great transcontinental railroads, innovations in science and technology, and the rise of big business. Afterward, the first years of the new century that followed were dominated by progressivism, a forward-looking political movement that attempted to redress some of the ills that had

Moving past the era of Civil War and Reconstruction, America was progressing towards the gilded age, where it was becoming wealthier and emerging as a world power. However, progress for some meant suffering for others due to corruption and inequality. The American economy was changing from a land-based economy to a capital based economy. In this capitalist economy, workers now worked for a wage, buying and selling of goods occurred with money, and the most powerful people in society were now the people who control the capital.1 Alongside capitalism, there was a growth in industrialization, which brought many new technologies such as the telegraph, railroads, factories, oil, and corporations. These technologies help speed up communication, production