The Destruction Of American Society In The 19th Century

As a nation coming out of a devastating war, America faced many changes in the 1920s. It was a decade of growth and improvements. As immigrants fled from Europe, the economy improved, and new machines offered convenience and luxury from the kitchen to the streets. However, with all change comes opposition. The 1920s revealed a conflict between traditional America and the new attitude and lifestyle through the changing role of women, continued dominance of Christian values, and racism.

During the years between 1920 and 1960, America saw change in many aspects of life. The United States was a part of two major wars and a crash of the banking system that crippled the economy greater than ever seen in this country’s history. Also the country had new insecurities to tackle such as immigration and poor treatment of workers. These events led to the change of America lives socially, economically, and politically. The people of America changed their ideas of what the country’s place in the world should be. The issues challenging America led the country to change from isolation to war, depression to prosperity, and social change. The threats to American way of life, foreign and domestic, were the changing forces to the

The stock market crash of 1929 sent the nation spiraling into a state of economic paralysis that became known as the Great Depression. As industries shrank and businesses collapsed or cut back, up to 25% of Americans were left unemployed. At the same time, the financial crisis destroyed the life savings of countless Americans (Modern American Poetry). Food, housing and other consumable goods were in short supply for most people (Zinn 282). This widespread state of poverty had serious social repercussions for the country.

The Depression changed social structure in America forever. “The real story of the 1930’s is how individual families endured and survived, whether battling the despair of hunger and unemployment in the city of the fear of unending drought and forced migration in the dust bowl of the Great plains.” (Press, Petra pg 6)

The industrial revolution introduced many new technology and improved our economic system. There have been a large increase in manufacture and machine tools since then. This led to better transportation, steam powered factories, consumer goods, a large workforce, and labour conditions. During the 1870’s , many financial issues had arise in the United States of America and in many European countries. Due to the financial crises that arise , it led to a major depressing era in history that is called the Panic of 1873. In “Standing at Armageddon” written by Nell Irvin Painter, the author discusses the progressive era and the United States economic crisis , as well as, social status during the ninetheeth century. Painter explains on how the high class white people owned most of the United States industry and due to their wealth, they owned fifty-one percent of the properties in America. They were the wealthiest one percent of the United States. There were different layers of wealth and social status which also integrates with race and ethnicity. Those who were wealthy in America weren’t the ones working hard and getting their hands dirty. Many low class were immigrants, women and blacks who worked in factories and were receiving low wages and poor work conditions. The low class owned only 1.2 percent of the properties in America. This caused major issues in the united states because the workers formed

* Document 2 indicates life of an English indentured servant could be difficult. In this letter to his parents, Richard Frethorne recounts the trials of the living in the 17th century Virginia and pleads to return to England.

The late 1800s were a time of great industrialization and economic development in America. But a look behind the gold plating of the “Gilded Age” reveals everything from ruthless imperialism to anti-competitive business practices hiding behind. Perhaps most importantly, the so-called Gilded Age saw the establishment of a strong capitalistic class system in America under the doctrines of Social Darwinism. While the era's technological and industrial advancements undoubtedly raised the U.S. economy to the level of a world power, the corrupt and unethical practices tolled an enormous cost on American society.

The time between the writing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787 and the financial depression, beginning in 1837, saw poverty as the most significant social pressure in the United States. There were many unanswered questions regarding society’s role in helping the poor and underprivileged during this time in the early Republic. It was debated whether or not society was responsible for helping find jobs for the unemployed, providing food and substance for starving families, and creating homes for those who were homeless. As the Republic matured, these circumstances brought about frequent discussions about what constitutes poverty and how to

The Progressive Era was an age of ambition and brutal competition between the people who are to this day credited with building the backbone of the American economic society. Although, even in the early years of industry, getting to the top comes with manipulation especially for the business titans of the time, Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller. Contrary to popular belief in those days, these men were not honourable business men. Yet, this wasn’t uncovered until reformers finally started exposing the lies buried behind the corporations in 1890 through 1920. The reason most people in Manhattan (the most common place

Thoreau and Douglass have both identified urgent problems within American culture during the mid 19th century. Thoreau feels the empathy of farmers as they are chained or enslaved to their own farms just as much as prisoners are chained in jails. He believes that the 4 necessities needed in American society is food, shelter, clothing, and fuel because nature provides all of these. That any luxury would be a hindrance to an individual’s lifestyle as it correlates to the American culture that lacks the Self-reliance in living as a American. Meanwhile Frederick Douglass sees the brutality of slavery and the heavy discrimination of African Americans in American society. He sees that America lacks key responsibilities as a nation for it doesn’t have support of mutual aid, reciprocity, and commitment to an ideal within America.

I enjoyed reading how American was revolutionized. It amazed me how people in the 1800s lived and paved the way in how we live in today’s society. In the 1800s there were nearly one million settlers in the United States. The Market Revolution was a time when citizens began to prosper and industries were developed. This was a time when people slowly began to migrate from countryside to live in cities in order to work in factories and to create a better lifestyle. The development of canals, roads and railroads were being developed which assisted with transporting goods at a much faster rate than previously. This was also an opportunity for famers to sell and trade merchandise that may have not been available in their region. The use of

This essay will examine the rise of “modern America”, there were economic, religious, and aspect of life changes took place and it was greatly changed the Americans society’s perceptions, specifically, the north and the south. The rise of “modern America” was greatly motivated immigrants to come to the United States for economic opportunity, industrialization in the North after the civil war created new businesses and job regulations, and the demand for social changes; all of these factors shaped America socially, politically, and economically.

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 1920s seemed to promise a future of a new and wonderful way of life for America and its citizens . Modern science, evolving cultural norms, industrialization, and even jazz music heralded exciting opportunities and a future that only pointed up toward a better life. However, cracks in the facade started to show, and beginning with the stock market crash of 1929 the wealth of the country, and with it the hopes and expectations of its people, began to slip away. The Great Depression left a quarter of the population unemployed and much of the rest destitute and uncertain of what the future held. Wealth vanished, people took their money out of banks, and plans were put on hold. The most significant way in which the Great Depression affected Americans’ everyday lives was through poverty because it tore relationships apart and damaged the spirit of society while unexpectedly bringing families together in unity.

According to Stephanie Smallwood, the commodification of people occurs when “[people] are turned into objects—when working, by selling their labor on the market to an employer.” Today, it is illegal and dehumanizing to sell people into the market of slave labor and view them as means of commodifying value. However, during the 19th century antebellum America, black bodies were commonly used as profitable objects of commodification. “Slave ownership is the most profitable investment in the nation next to land ownership, with 60% of the nation’s wealth invested in the agricultural south”(Rousseau 70). In account to the high demand of labor, dehumanizing was at its peak of acceptance. Black slaves were consequently deemed the lowest race in society. “Southern blacks, because of their helpless legal and inconsequential social positions, thus became prime candidates for inhumane treatment” (Savitt 120). A white owner’s was able to do what they wished with their purchase, no matter how brutal and inhumane. Slave owners wished to have the best workers on their plantations, so when purchasing a slave, many factors had to come in mind. Black slaves and their physical features represented, to a slave owner, what they were capable of. Commodification was primarily driven by economics where as Stephanie Smallwood states, “economic exchange transformed independent beings into human commodities whose most ‘socially relevant feature’ was their exchangeability.” The economic growth in the