The Influence Of The Reform Movements In The United States

Throughout the history of the United States there have been many reform movements that have molded the culture we live in today. The rights that we as Americans enjoy today can be credited to the people who fought for more rights and a better way of life. Two reform movements that have changed America for the better are the Abolitionist Movement and the Civil Rights Movement. Around the 1820’s the feeling of legal slavery was changing in the United States.

Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals from the quarter century time period of 1825-1850 also known as the Second Great Awakening. These democratic ideals included voting for everyone eighteen and older (with the exception of minors, women, insane, and criminals), freedom of expression, press, speech and religion, election of officials, property rights, free and public education, more than one political party, equal rights, equality before the law entitling a person to due process, separation of church and state, tolerance of diversity,

Women’s role in the family changed due to new religious ideas and education. Women before the nineteenth century immersed themselves in the home. Women had to live in a cult of domesticity where they dominated the household. However, the Second Great Awakening during the 1830s changed this system. During this revival period, people believed women should be pious and become better Christians (Document 1). In this way, they can better teach their children to become religious. Therefore, people started to understand the importance of women’s education and provided more education opportunities for women (Document

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 validity of the statement, “Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals” can be assessed regarding many reformations in the time period of 1825-1850 including the American temperance movement, the women’s rights movement, and the abolitionist reform. All of which very much expanded core democratic ideology, such as equality, liberty for all, and the pursuit of happiness. All these reforms share the qualities necessary to attempt to make the United States a more civilized, utopian society. Social reform was a necessity when it came to expanding democratic ideals.

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.

Throughout America's history, there have been numerous social and political movements that have had a profound and lasting impact on American culture. Movements such as the Civil Rights Movement and the Women's Suffrage Movement have influenced and shaped American ideals and beliefs. These movements were typically driven by a cause. From the 1890s to the 1920s, a period of social and political reform flourished in America. This was driven by the desire to eliminate corruption in the government. People wanted to have a positive impact on society and they wanted to speak up for what they believed in. This era was a pivotal turning point in the history of the United States. This era was known as the Progressive Era.

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.

Slavery in the United States of America started with the arrival of the first slaves from Africa in 1619. Slavery continued even after it was abolished; it greatly influenced the events in the country. From the very beginning, anti-slavery movement and slave resistance played a big role in the efforts to uphold the values of the new, rising nation and its belief that all men are equal. Advocates for the anti-slavery movement were not united from the start; some supported gradual emancipation of slaves, others were for immediate and radical abolishment, while free-soil activists argued for restriction of slavery to certain areas in order to prevent its spread across the country. Radical abolition movement was part of the reform movements related to religious revivals in an effort to create a righteous society that would fulfill the high ideals of America. These reforms were a response to economic and social changes which historians termed as “the market revolution” and the “transportation revolution”. After the 1812 war, a tremendous development occurred; improved roads improved transport and increased profits among many farm entrepreneurs, artisans, and manufacturers. In the eyes of many religious leaders, America was dominated and obsessed with materialism and greed and they started to question the fundamentals of human life, justice, and sinful motives. Before the 1930s, the anti-slavery movement was not what one would consider well-organized. However, at that time

American reform movements will start to take place in the 1790’s to the 1860’s. Reform movements were established because they were striving to improve their developing society. Since America was getting immense the population was starting to expand, and things like religious and social reforms will occur. Many ideas were starting to rise up so that led to conflicts which led to an Age of Reform, were things like abolition to women's rights will change moderately. These movements will result in the nation's self-determination and the interest of fixing the society.

Impact of Reformers on American Society Between 1800 and 1900 various types of reforms and reformers strived to make America a better country. Whereas a majority of the population experienced a good life, several contentious issues could not be hidden. These problems were flagged and raised by the then reformers in the 1800s who were of the belief that America could be a better society. Everyone living in America was attracted and motivated by the available opportunities which included employment, acquisition of wealth and living a quality life. Most of the population were not able to even o exercise their fundamental human rights while a majority of the privileged were the whites and the wealthy individuals.

The most urgent reform to be implemented is to have more women hold management positions, and train current employees to be understanding of cultural transformations within the company. We should increase the ethnic group, specifically African American and Hispanic, by educating Facebook 's Human Resources Department. Currently there are only 1 percent African Americans and 4 percent Hispanic that are working for Facebook. It is critical that more minority groups are hired, because bringing in individuals from different backgrounds and experiences could potentially make a business more effective. This will benefit Facebook, because Facebook will be meeting all of their consumers ' needs by having employees that come from different ethnic and racial backgrounds. However, the predominated race that is holding a management position is white, therefore Facebook will not be able to fulfill the needs of their consumers if this remains the same.

The new cult of domesticity gave women the ability to stand equal to their husband when it came to their household. Whereas before a wife job was solely to wait on the family. This only occurred because of the growth of the market economy, which took husbands away from their homes. With the father being gone so much, wives were considered to be the head of the household. Under the new cult of domesticity women weren’t looked at as submissive, housekeeper and one to only rise kids. Women were consider to be the matriarch and lawgivers within the household. The new cult of domesticity powers for a wife was limited to only within the household. A wife was not able to extend her interests outside of household affairs. They were only expected to control issues within the household. Wives were unable to start careers or think of doing anything outside of the house besides taking care of the family.

Men were still stuck with the idea of being the breadwinner and the only person that brings in income. Women wanted to use their newfound earnings to buy new things for themselves and especially their families. This naturally caused unrest within the family dynamics, because the husband would not be there to spend time with his family. He would be out working two or three jobs because he needed to keep up with the demands of his wife and family. When women were done working in the fields they came home and had earned a certain sexual respect from their husband. When their husband did not return the sexual favors women were allowed to look elsewhere. Women were gaining more and more power and challenging men’s authority. Women were in charge and they wanted it to be that way. They thought they deserved the right to have sex because they worked hard in the fields. It is mutually agreed upon that women should be treated with respect, but what is not agreed on is their right to cheat on their husband, just because he is not willing to return the favor. This again caused trouble within the family, because now women were not in the household taking care of their children. This could also potentially lead to men leaving their wives because they cheated on them, and it does not show respect to men.

It meant a new social life for women. It, consequently, affected every aspect of the family life.