The Transformation of 1850s California: The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt

With the discovery of gold in 1848 the west saw an enormous surge of migrants coming to excavate gold. Excavating gold however comes with its own risks and challenges that the prospectors would have to face if they wanted to find gold, one of these challenges being that men left their families in search of gold. “Then the people commenced rushing up from San Francisco and other parts of California, in May, 1848: in the former village only five men were left to take care of the women and

I. Introduction: Introduce and provide information on the book Brothers and Keepers by John Edgar Wideman.

During the 1800’s, lives changed for many people. The Klondike Gold Rush began. In the article Klondike Gold Rush written by the Public Domain, the passage from A Women Who Went to Alaska written by May Kellogg Sullivan, and the video City of Gold made by the National Film Board of Canada and narrated Pierre Berton, the points of view of each show the miners’ lives. Each piece has a point of view, which helps the reader understand the miners’ lives through the word choice, and the tone

With all these travelers from the east and different country made California a “melting pot” of different people and culture. When news that California that had gold began to spread outside of the United State it first hit Mexico and Hawaii lead to the first wave of immigrants with the purpose of mining. Then, news the quickly across the world from South America to Europe and from Australian to Asian, the impact was so big that the text said, “Irish immigration to the United States, already at 100,000 a year in 1847, more than double to 220,000 by 1851” (Gillon, 297). With all these people mining towns would quickly pop up across California, and these towns with every race you could think such as Black, French, Irish, Chinese, Mexican, and etc. The towns were constantly busy with people moving to and from mine and rivers. With a day or a week of work could make you a nice amount of profit, you could entertain yourself for a while before you had to go back to mining with bars, gambling parlors, and whore house. Prostitutes made good money because in text said that, “ One prostitute in California Boasted of making more than $50000in a year.” (Gillon, 297). I could imagine myself being there if I made it there.

In the late 1800’s, a lot of change was being brought upon the United States, especially on the west of America. New things were established and found in west states, such as Nevada and California. Many of these new establishments helped freed slaves find living as the gold mines were a huge ideal to foreigners traveling from the south and midwest. The Gold Rush was found in Sierra Nevada during 1848, when gold was found in a mine. This completely changed the popularity and population of California. Although, for many people who wanted to travel to mine for gold during the Gold Rush, it was a tough journey as there was no true railroad nor steamboats yet to be taken to the west. With the rise of exposure for the Chinese population in San Francisco,

Prior to the Gold Rush of 1849, California was a meagerly populated, an irrelevant area of the United States for the most part possessed by the general population of Mexico. In any case, that all changed when on January 24, 1848; woodworker and little time sawmill administrator James W. Marshall found a gold piece in the American River that would always show signs of change the historical backdrop of California and America1. Not exclusively did the Gold Rush prompt California 's permission into the Union in 1850, it additionally revived the possibility of the American Dream. Hundred 's of thousands of individuals filled the state by the draw of brisk and unending wealth. Because of the Gold Rush, California in the end turned into a

The California Gold Rush was a very tough time for many cultures. The gold searching included many people like, Native Americans, gangs, and Foreigners. Native Americans were the first victims, Foreigners were treated to contempt, and many gangs stole until they were caught and forcibly stopped. There were many challenges individuals faced such as harsh punishments for claiming a miner’s gold, there wasn’t any police or guards to protect the gold, and many individuals who dug for gold struggled from Xenophobia.

The author focuses on Alfred Doten, John Dobly, Timothy Osborn exemplify prevalent “vices” that men struggled with working in the California Gold Rush. Alfred Doten represents the man who is flexible with his sexuality because of his drive for intimacy. He openly flirted and indulged in Native women. He took part in “homosocial behavior,” and the article indicated he may have slept with several men. Yet, he continued to write to an Anglo white woman back at home. John Dobly represents the man who tried to uphold his Anglo Protestant

The Gold Rush of California was a “shot heard” round the world that caught the ears of many individuals who were seeking the golden opportunities of the West. (Chan & Olin 1992). With the dreams of wealth on the horizon, the Gold Rush brought on a drastic change in American society. For the women of this period, their lives would be altered in ways that would change the Western frontier. With an eagerness for wealth and equality women now found themselves struggling to survive in a society that was mainly male dominant and branch out from the normalcy of womanhood, which would transform occupational drive, prostitution and marital status.

Set against the backdrop of the Californian Gold Rush of the 1850s, The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt follows the lives of two brothers, Eli and Charlie Sisters. The Sisters Brothers tells the story of these infamous assassins who are on a journey to San Francisco to kill a man named Hermann Kermit Warm. Warm appears to be a subtle man, who is accused of stealing from their boss, a formidable figured named the Commodore. As the brothers continue on with their journey, they come across many people from all walks of life: a weeping man, gold-digging prospectors, a young-naïve boy, and a dentist. Although the brothers don’t realize it, these individuals help the brothers perceive the world in a completely different way. Not to mention, they change the way the novel is bestowed. The brothers eventually end up at their final destination in San Francisco from Oregon City, where they realize that their adventure has actually just begun. After several eye-opening incidents, the brothers begin to question their jobs, and the true meaning of their lives.

The California Gold Rush was an event that lasted from January 24th, 1848 to 1855. The event was driven mainly by the large quantities of gold reserves that were discovered in the soon to be US state of California. This event caused many Americans to move from the eastern states and middle states to California with the hopes of finding gold. In this paper, I will analyze the economy at the time the gold rush started and attempt to answer the question of why individuals found it necessary or advantageous to move out to California in pursuit of gold. I will also consider personal accounts and editorials written to gain a more personal narrative of the conditions people were experiencing as well as their mindsets in deciding whether to move to California for the gold or not.

The Gold Rush was one of the most influential times in California History. During the four years from 1848-1852, 400,000 new people flooded into the state. People from many countries and social classes moved to California, and many of them settled in San Francisco. All this diversity in one place created a very interesting dynamic. California during the Gold Rush, was a place of colliding ideals. The 49ers came from a very structured kind of life to a place where one was free to make up her own rules.

     The California Gold Rush of 1849 is one of the most interesting and exiting events of the United States. From the wild stories of men striking it big, to the heart wrenching tales of people losing everything, these are what make it so alluring. There are many aspects of the California Gold Rush; effects on California; individual stories of struggle; and effects on the United States as a young country looking for stability.

In the story of “The Rich Brother”, from the author Tobias Wolff, and “Sonny’s Blues” by writer James Baldwin, both stories have brothers that succeed and failed. In “The Rich Brother” Pete is the oldest and Donald the youngest, Pete has his life put together, a family, and while the youngest is trying to find himself his lost. In “Sonny’s Blues” the narrator is the oldest brother and Sonny is the youngest, the unnamed narrator is an English teacher who was in the army and has a family, Sonny is a musician that makes bad decisions. Both brothers have an age gap therefore, they view life in different ways, but they only have each other.

The discovery of the California Gold Rush took place by chance. Mainly the amount of the world’s gold is deep underground and embedded in hard rock. Unlike anywhere else in the world at that time the gold in California was simple to dig up, free for the taking and required little tools to acquire any gold. Only things required: a pick or shovel and a pan to shift out the gold from the rock, sand and debris. The Gold Rush affected not only California, but the outcome of the nation. Creating the expansion of our nation into Western America and California. Hundreds of thousand Americans and foreigners moved toward the Sierra Nevada’s, with the hopes of sticking it rich. Which impacted the social life and the economy, while effected the rest of the country. Producing a number of diverse people seeking to make a fortune, influenced California and the American life.