Remembered as an era in American history characterized by great prosperity and industrial growth, the three decades following the Civil War have often been referred to as “The Gilded Age,” so called in part because of the 1873 novel by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner entitled The Gilded Age. The satirical novel, written in just a few months and intended as a caricature of the era, describes what the authors viewed as the greed and hypocrisy of American society and the folly of countless numbers of ordinary citizens who firmly believed that some magical scheme would lead them to riches. As articulated by Twain and Warner, the term “Gilded Age” refers primarily to the middle-class experience of the time, an experience typified by what author Thorstein Veblen called “conspicuous consumption”—of dress, home décor, and all material goods which were considered signs of “good taste.” Along with the increased aestheticism of the age, and perhaps in direct response to it, developed more self-conscious literary criticism and realism.
The Gilded Age was characterized most significantly by the rapid industrialization that transformed the country from a primarily rural and agriculturally-based republic whose citizens for the most part shared a belief in God, into an industrial and urbanized nation whose values were changing rapidly due, in part, to increased wealth and to the ramifications of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller and steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie—both of whom virtually monopolized their respective industries—symbolized both the “self-made man” and the spirit of acquisition that dominated the late nineteenth century. This “spirit” is what Twain and Warner criticized in The Gilded Age, drawing attention to the artificial standards of taste attributed to the growing American bourgeoisie. As individual income levels increased due to such factors as improved communications resulting from the introduction of the telephone, technological innovations such as electricity, and rapid transportation via the new transcontinental railroads, many individuals—the “new rich”—could afford to indulge in finer clothing (which had become cheaper and more accessible), home decorations (which were mass-produced), and leisure activities that would previously have been considered impractical. The steam engine, the railroads, and the industrial boom following the Civil War years produced the country's first moguls and monopolies and created a collective dream both at home and abroad of self-made fortunes and streets “lined with gold.”
But all that glittered was not gold. Economic change came unpredictably. In 1873-78, 1883-85, and again in 1893-97, the nation experienced serious economic depressions. African-Americans, betrayed by the false promises of Reconstruction, were subjugated in new and more subtle ways. Black Americans in the South were subject to Jim Crow laws (legal segregation sanctioned by the Supreme Court). These laws were often enforced with violent methods involving torture and lynchings. The North, too, was not entirely committed to racial equality: blacks there were typically relegated to subservient and subordinate roles. Critic James H. Dormon, studying the “coon song craze” of the late nineteenth century, has found that these immensely popular songs, which depicted stereotypical caricatures of black Americans, reflected the nationwide feeling that blacks should be held in subordinate and segregated positions in society. According to Dormon, these songs rationalized white America's perception of blacks not only as silly buffoons, but also as dangers to the existing social structure. Black Americans were not the only ones to suffer hardships during this period; many farmers lost their holdings as railroads and new machinery lowered their crop prices. Cities became crowded with immigrants eager to succeed but whose only real opportunity was to provide an endless supply of cheap labor. In
Gilded Age Americas coming of age A New Age - Mark Twain define age - Train huge change - Votes where bought brinks/food - Machines run the town - Immigration due to population explosion - Better medical care for population explosion, diet - Ag founded America - More people moving to the big cities - Western Movement Robber Barons - Define the age - Making money off the railroad, done in 1869 - A lot of people trying to make money off the railroad Jay Gould - Hated because…
US History Reaction Paper The Gilded Age Before even starting this project on the Gilded Age I decided to look up the actual definition of the Gilded Age to get a better understanding of what it was. What I found was that the Gilded Age was basically an era in time in which there was a great increase in economic and population growth. A Gilded Age also represents something that is very appealing on the outside but less than desirable when you take a closer look. With this in mind, and after…
The rise of the Gilded Age (1865-1900) in American History hurt the American economy long-term to the present day by giving rise to corporate greed and business control through child labor, poor administration of wealth and often in times slavery. Production in the Gilded Age for the United States was booming. However, this brought many problems with the rising of business competition and fight for power. Competition and production went hand in hand as the labor of the people were used to its fullest…
The Gilded Age Ashli Padilla HIS/120CA The Gilded Age Following the Civil War, from 1877 to 1893 Americans experienced the Gilded Age. Symbolic of this era of tremendous economic wealth was steel production and railroads. An article, written by Carl Swenson for “Model Railroader” in July of 2006, exemplifies, both the positive and negative aspects of the relationship formulated between the railroads and livestock shippers (Swenson, 2006). Railroads and livestock shippers have experienced…
Gilded Age Mark Twain coined the term Gilded Age in a book. Mark Twain wrote of the Gilded Age, a time of enormous wealth accumulated by a few. Their success spread a gleaming gold leaf over American society. Beneath that veneer, however, lay the pervasive misery of the working classes. Laissez-Faire government was the norm. This form of government favors individual self-interest and competition, and opposes the taxation and regulation of commerce. Laissez faire reached its apex in the 1870s…
Gilded Age- seems good on the outside but is bad on the inside (1869-1896) Boss Tweed: leader of Tammany Hall in NY, NY leader of the democratic political machine, political leaders depend on him for votes its not about how many votes you get its about who counts the votes, tampering with votes It is common with political elections in the Gilded age to “fix” elections to ensure their candidate wins the election, not only in NY but throughout the country Thomas Nast was the most famous political…
mask of a massive and powerful industrial giant, America held within it numerous problems that were caused by the influx of immigrants, urbanization and political corruptions. This is why Mark Twain has referred to this period in history as the "Gilded Age", a time that bears many ugly inadequacies albeit its magnificent appearance. In contrast to thousands of immigrants' misconceptions of having a better life in America, they all encountered much difficulty in adapting to the new language and…
In United States history, the time period from 1865 to 1900 is known as the Gilded Age, better known as the Industrial Revolution. Several industries such as oil, steel, and railroads rose during this time. Not only were new industries responsible for the development and growth of the American economy, but several dominant political figures of the day also had a close relationship with the industrial titans. One of the governing industrial titans was Andrew Carnegie and one of the biggest political…
HIS 2223 Risher 21 Gilded Age Politics “What you farmers need to do is raise less corn and more hell.” POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE LATE 1800s Toward the end of the 1800s, the two major political parties (Republican and Democrat), had almost equal support across the nation. While the Republican base seemed to be centered in the North and Midwest, Democrats drew most of their support from the South and West. Also a few small political parties like the People’s Party, Prohibition Party and…
States of America was going through the gilded age, an age in which America became the leading industrial nation in the world. However the gilded age was not just not a time of prosperity for America, the gilded age affected the politics culture and living conditions in America therefore the gilded age affected America in a negative way. The gilded age had affected America in many ways, one way the gilded age affected America was the politics. The gilded age was a time of corruption in the government…