Analysis Of The Gilded Age

The gilded age was an age of industrial revolution. With inventions of machines and the major social problems, it was an era of great change for the United States.

The years after the American Civil War have been characterized by Mark Twain and others as “The Gilded Age.” Generally, historians have emphasized the decline of human values, the low state of public morality, greed, corruption and crass materialism. Do you feel this characterization presents an accurate overall picture of the years 1865-1890? If so, what caused this marked departure from the past in a nation with such strong religious and moral cultural traditions? Use the documents and your knowledge of U S History to answer the question.

Whether or not the politics of the Gilded Age failed in dealing with social and economic issues has long been debated by historians. Peeling away streaks of gold plastered on the deficiencies of the time, the cause of such problems can be unveiled. In finding a blame for the corruption within the growing economy and its demands on a wavering society, all fingers point to the politics of 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

The Gilded Age is a brief time in American history in which the United States experienced a population and rapid economic expansion. Mark Twain named it the “Gilded Age” as this was after the Civil War, lasting from 1870 - 1900. Although, this name was ironic as “gilded” is a term used to describe something that was covered in gold, by this he meant that the Gilded Age was whitewashed but was full of corruption. It shows how the social factors (as seen in documents A,B,C and D), economic factors (as seen in documents G), and political factors (as seen in documents E, H and I)

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 concept of sharecropping states that a sharecropper could farm a piece of land and in return, they would have to give the landowner a share of the crop that is produced. In the Black Codes, it stated that “Every person may, arrest and carry back his or her legal employer any freedman…who shall have quit the service of his or her employer before the expiration of his or her term of service without good cause”(Document 7). In many ways, the Mississippi Black Codes were another form of slavery in that it treated African Americans as property and allowed them to be taken back to their landowners. In 1881, Frederick Douglass said that “When you turned us loose, you have us no acres. You turned us loose to the sky… and worst of all, your turned us loose to the wrath of our infuriated masters”(Document 9).

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.

The Gilded Age was a very special time for our nation that took place from the 1870s to around 1900. During this time, economic growth was at a rapid increase, politics were corrupted yet had high turnouts, and urbanization flourished. Every aspect of the life of an American changed drastically throughout this time of the Gilded Age. The entire era was focused on the enormous changes that each aspect of America was going through. As this is brought to attention, if we are to look into the way that America is in our time of today, we can find that there are many similarities to that of the original Gilded Age. The United States of America have currently found themselves to be experiencing the second era of the Gilded Age throughout the areas of economic, politic and social transformation.

One of the most notable times during the late 19th century was the Gilded Age. This is a term often used to describe this time period since from the outside looking in urban life in America seemed perfect, but in reality, many citizens did not like the changes that were occurring. Since the verb gild means to cover with or as if with a thin coating of gold[1], historians often refer to this time period as “the Gilded Age”. New ideals about poverty, social reforms, different political approaches, and a new women’s culture brought forth political, economic, social, and cultural changes in urban growth during the

"Carnegie, Andrew." Gilded Age and Progressive Era Reference Library. Ed. Lawrence W. Baker and Rebecca Valentine. Vol. 3: Primary Source. Detroit: UXL, 2007. 51-59. Gale U.S. History In Context. Web. 25 Oct. 2012

After the Civil War, the north and the south were facing many problems like short in supplies and resources.

The era after the Reconstruction, in the late 1800s, was referred as the Gilded Age. The Gilded Age was an ironic term coined by Mark Twain. Mark Twain, an American author and humorist, used the expression term Gilded Age to describe how the society was like a cheap metal that is gold plated, it look shiny and beautiful on the outside but deep inside it was all rotten and fake. The Gilded Age occurred in the United States, it lasted from the late 1870s to the 1900s. It was an era full of tremendous growth, wealth and innovation. All over the world, people saw America as a thriving country and a land full of endless opportunities. Although America was seen as a flourish country, beneath all, it was a country full of political crisis, economical

The Gilded Age Served as an era that was characterized by rapid growth of the economy, though significant social conflict was also prevalent. Railroads were regarded as the major industry, as well as mining, factory and

Railroads were the linchpin in the new industrialized economy. The railroad industry enabled raw materials, finished products, food, and people to travel cross-country in a matter of days, as opposed to the months or years that it took just prior to the Civil War. By the end of the war, the United States boasted some 35,000 miles of track, mostly in the industrialized North. By the turn of the century, that number had jumped to almost 200,000 miles, linking the North, South, and West. With these railroads making travel easier, millions of rural Americans flocked to the cities, and by 1900, nearly 40 percent of the population lived in urban areas.