Democracy In America Dbq

The United States of America experienced several reform movements from 1825 to 1850. The reformers sought to improve religion, rehabilitation of criminals and mental patients, education, slavery, and women’s rights. Each demonstrated democratic ideals to the extent that the reformers sought to incorporate the values of liberty and equality into their reform movements to improve the quality of life but did so at the expense and dismay of others.

The Second Great Awakening revolved around the new concept of national reform through religious and moral changes. These changes and transitions occurred for the benefit of the country, by withdrawing the negative aspects of society such as alcohol overuse, low quality education and prisons, and most notably slavery. Religious leaders encouraged salvation and worshipping the Christian God to be best solution for successfully reforming and improving the nation’s predicaments. Religious ideas had a remarkable role constructing reform movements in the first half of the nineteenth century in behalf of religion offering the most moral and logical path towards a better society. People of the United States were in necessity of reforms, applying the religious ideas opened up new resolutions for all classes, races, and groups of people.

After 1815, a women’s status in society was shaped both by the “market revolution” and the “Second Great Awakening”. The “market revolution” was a drastic change in the nation's economy through transportation, education, legal reforms. Examples of these reforms would include the creation of canals, roads, railroads, and the technology needed to commute between places, an increase in teacher wages, school terms, and curriculum, and the spreading awareness of massive movements such as the temperance, abolitionist, and prison reform movement. The “Second Great Awakening” was a revival of religious spirit that attracted social minorities, such as women, African-Americans,and native Americans, that produced many new sects of Protestantism, such

The major changes in American religion that occurred in the early nineteenth century were the Second Great Awakening. The Second Great Awakening was a Christian Revival movement during the early nineteenth century. The movement began around 1800, it had begun to gain momentum from the 1820. With the Second Great Awakening; new religions were established, there were different academic curriculums, a change from the trinity to just one deity and they would touch on American culture and reform.

Between the years 1825 and 1850, the US underwent a series of social and political reforms which attempted to democratize American life. Reform movements during this period of Jacksonian Democracy attempted to dissolve disunity in the social ladder and pushed for equal rights among all citizens. Stemming from the Second Great Awakening in the early 19th century, many of these reforms were backed by religious ideals over democratic principles. At the forefront of the cause, however, was the hope for a more democratic system in which there was not only popular sovereignty, but a sense of social leveling.

In the years leading up to the Civil war, many anti-slavery abolitionists spoke out on their feelings against slavery. New Christian views, and new ideas about human rights are what prompted this anti-slavery movement. Abolitionist literature began to appear around 1820. Abolitionist literature included newspapers, sermons, speeches and memoirs of slaves. Harriet Beecher Stowe and Frederick Douglass were two abolitionist writers. They were similar in some ways and different in others (“Abolition”).

Before the nineteenth century, Christianity dominated the lives of its followers. But in the first half of the nineteenth century, there was an enormous divide that broke that previous stronghold - the Second Great Awakening - where new religious denominations came about. Following these new ideals were both reform movements that took to heart the newfound beliefs of said religious sects and a revival of antiquated religions, such as Christianity. The religious ideals of the Second Great Awakening influenced the emergence of religious reform movements that emphasized how its followers should take their religion and adapt it to their lives, social reform movements that addressed the unfair conditions numerous American citizens were forced to

The Second Great Awakening and the reform movements developed America’s morality and mainly religious faith of the nation. As long as the second great awakening was a religious movement, reform movements had to occur since education, alcohol, women’s rights, and abolition were closed connected to religions at that time and today so far. In the late of 1820s, a small number of reformers that time created the Temperance Movement, which was a fight against alcohol abuse in society. Essentially, some people got to know that the production and consumption of people for alcohol must be regulated completely because it was against their religious perspectives and principles. In spite of that religion was the most important factor to make decisions during that time, some political views were necessary to be considered, also.

Spearheaded by Horace Mann, the movement sought to make free public schools much more effective and longer in terms, to offer teacher training and higher pay, and to expand into a more challenging curriculum. Mann’s philosophy revolved around the concept that education is the most necessary part in a democracy because it is the only way to protect it. The people vote for the various positions in government and in order for the United States to have great leadership and to become a great and powerful nation, the people must be educated. Textbooks, like Reader and those by Noah Webster, exposed children to lessons of patriotism, morality, and idealism. William H. McGuffey, the writer of Reader, believed that public schools made education accessible and affordable for all people in the country (Doc. E).

During the Second Great Awakening from 1825-1850, people in the United States came to aspire for a more democratic country. There were several reform movements throughout the awakening that sought to expand democratic ideals. Reform was attempted in several different areas of American life. Attempts to improve and refine women's’ rights, abolitionism, education, religion, immigration, and utopianism in the United States were made.

The democratic values of the united states can be described most commonly as “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” In 1825 to 1850 several reform movements came to light, the abolitionist movement, the women’s rights movement, and the reformation of the naturalization law. Were these core ideas held by reformers during 1825-1850? The statement, ““Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals”” can be assesed by studying the three aformentioned reform movements.

The 1830s marked a drastic change in character in activists, when instances went from being small and ineffective, to great, nation-changing campaigns. The abolitionists’ movements after the 1830s irrefutably had huge impacts in the United States in various aspects, aspects such as politics, society/equality, and even in culture. The abolitionists were more fervent in their expression of disproval with slavery, and many abolitionist icons expressed themselves through literature. William Lloyd Garrison and Fredrick Douglass along with their publications in the newspaper, the Liberator, sparked a flame against slavery in the hearts of many Americans that may have had either a neutral position or even a proslavery opinion thus turning the tides towards abolition. Another person who, through literacy, aided in the strengthening of the abolitionist party was Harriet Beacher Stowe with her publication of the illustrious novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” This book not only changed the views of countless people but also influenced the literary aspect of the nation, for to

The Reform Movement started in the early 1800’s because many people in America were being treated poorly and unfair. The Second Great Awakening is a big factor in starting the reform. The Second Great Awakening was a religious revival that began in New England and moved throughout the rest of the United States during the end of the 1700’s. Revivals were held outdoors and all people were welcome to attend, including African-Americans, whites, men, and women. This awakening brought about new ideas of equality, individualism, and the right to control one's own destiny. Though these ideas were spreading quickly, (mostly in the Northern states) many Americans still did not embrace this Second Awakening. Some who were moved by the outdoor events tried to act upon their new ideas and start reform movements. However, their actions were rarely successful until the 1830’s.

A democracy is a form of government in which everyone is treated equally has equal rights and vote to choose a leader; Absolutism is a government by an absolute ruler who has unlimited and total power. A democracy would have been the most effective form of government for the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in Europe. A Democracy fulfills the purpose of government and would have helped nations avoid the problems that led them to decline. Absolutism proved to be ineffective during the reign of absolute monarchs from the 1600s and 1700s. Although monarchs can force their subjects to conform, revolts and rebellions cannot be avoided. Absolutism is ineffective compared to a democracy.

We live in this country for the land, and the for the free as Americans we rely on many attributes in this world in order for us to live our lives. Our government has supplied us with many great things for us to be proud of. Our government is “the institutions and processes though which public policies are made for society.” (Edwards, Wattenberg, and Lineberry, p. 7). With all these institutions which includes the President, Congress, the courts and all the federal administrative agencies. These are the institutions that make up public policies for us, and to shape the way we live as Americans. The way this system has been operating through all the years has been