19th Century American Workers Dbq

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Recommended: American history 1800-1830

In the late 19th century, the United States experienced a period of extreme growth. Industries dotted the country, and aspiring entrepreneurs strove to accumulate as much wealth as possible. However, for the working class of America, life was not as promising. The ones who powered the industries of the rising rich bosses labored in dangerous conditions. Along with the actual workers, many average Americans expressed concern that the rush to gain more wealth would cause people to lose out on being human. Although the period after the Civil War generally resulted in a better economy due to the minimal political restrictions on businesses, the American public was largely unhappy with their situation compared to the rich industrialists. During …show more content…

Many other Americans outside of politics were critical, as well. Economists were quick to point out the instability of rising businesses at the expense of common people. For example, David A. Wells, an engineer and economist, said that “[t]he modern manufacturing system has been brought into a condition analogous to that of a military organization” (Doc. C). Long gone are the days in which each American took pride for his individual accomplishments because he is now just another commodity. In fact, this vision of Americans as losing the human side of work was captured by pictures of workers performing mundane duties in one place. In 1902, a time in which rapid changes prompted women to start working, a picture was taken of many typists situated in one room (Doc. J). They all looked and dressed the same way, which supports the case of the deindividuation of common people in a country founded upon the principles of individualism. All the while, authors were eager to condemn this deviation of morals in a society based on rapid production and consumption. In Theodore Dreiser’s Sister Carrie, the author presents a department store that has lead Carrie to feel “the claim of each trinket and valuable upon her personally” (Doc. I). Because the title of the story presents her as a “sister,” the scene highlights how the dazzling consumer culture has corrupted someone of faith into falling into the traps of materialism. Not only have workers suffered from the Gilded Age with their terrible pay and conditions, the greed of corporations have seeped into all parts of America in Dreiser’s

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