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Changes in 1920 american society
19th century in America society
American society in 1920
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In the 1800’s and first half of the 1900’s the WASP was seen as unjust and cruel by many European immigrants in America. Every single one of those terms however was necessary for full acceptance into the American mainstream: white, Anglo-Saxon (from northern Europe although the Irish are the exception) and Protestant. In the nineteenth century America was undergoing a dramatic transformation; the rise of industrialization, a massive influx of immigrants and urbanization caused racism to become a powerful force in American culture, affecting all parts of the political spectrum. American culture became obsessed with crude and cruel racial and ethnic stereotypes in literature, the arts and in the press.
Political cartoons regarding the Irish immigrants were designed to question how and if they were fit for American democracy by representing them as apes, casting doubt on if they were capable of being good and loyal citizens and intelligent
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They were also depicted as a stupid servant race not loyal to America and not willing to assimilate into the culture. These images were portrayed in the daily east coast newspapers, photographs, and other media of the time. “The Mortar of Assimilation: And The One Element That Just Won’t Mix”, published in Puck magazine on June 26, 1889, cartoon was a perfect demonstration of the nativist American view of Irish immigration to the United States. In it, the drawing shows the American melting pot made up of different kinds of Americans, but the Irishman is standing on the edge of the pot holding a knife and a flag. As anti-Irish and anti-Catholic sentiment grew, newspaper advertisements for jobs and housing routinely ended with the statement: “No Irish need
These groups fought continuously against the restrictions imposed onto them, a discriminatory government, and the forced mixture of American culture and that of the minorities culture in which resulted in the “Melting Pot.” Additionally, Limerick used excerpts of documentations from several governments in which imposed these restrictions and acts on the afore discussed minorities in addition to personal experiences from both ends of the spectrum. Moreover, through the use of these personal statements, we are allotted the insight to the original discrimination minority Americans experienced in addition to explaining parts of history that most people do not often
In this class, the stereotypes that were discussed were the ones that the cartoon portrays: violent and considered as an inferior race. The stereotype violent mainly came from Bare Knuckle boxing though because it was the best job an Irish man could get and they were reinforcing it. The stereotype inferior race came from the fact that the WASPs said that the Irish were black on the inside. They considered them as “simian, low browed and brutish” comparing them to Africans and apes, and also said that they were apelike, lazy, immoral, and uneducated. These stereotypes connect with inferior race because the WASPs think that they could have proved that the Irish were not just like them.
the early American economy was described by littler, nearby markets, revolved around huge urban communities. The boundless extension of the railways in the late 1800s changed this, entwining the nation into one national business sector, in which merchandise could be transported available to be purchased the nation over. The railways likewise gave a gigantic force to financial development since they themselves gave such an enormous business sector to products steel and timber, for instance. In the late nineteenth century the railways spoke to the primary "enormous business." The railroad business was the biggest single boss of work in the U.S., and institutionalized America financially, socially, and socially.
Technology played an important role in the daily lives of Americans in the 1920s. Many inventions and new developments occurred during this time. A large number of items that are used today were invented by individuals and teams in research laboratories. This technology brought many conveniences such as electrical power and indoor plumbing into the home. Radios gave people access to the news and provided entertainment. Mass culture was also born and the automobile became the largest consumer product of the decade. By 1929, one in five Americans had an automobile on the road. America experienced a decade of economic growth due to the impact of technology in the 1920s.
Revivalism in nineteenth century America was primarily driven by the establishment of churches with the separation of styles denoting religious denominations. In part to the nineteenth century picturesque movement, the gothic revival style soon became a movement of nationalism. Best known for his gothic revival churches, Richard Upjohn quickly became a leader in the picturesque style; particularly seen in his most notable work, the Trinity Church in New York City. Similarly, H.H. Richardson applied his own style toward his Trinity Church located in Boston.
The 1920’s was a period of extremely economic growth and personal wealth. America was a striving nation and the American people had the potential to access products never manufactured before. Automobile were being made on an assembly line and were priced so that not just the rich had access to these vehicles, as well as, payment plans were made which gave the American people to purchase over time if they couldn't pay it all up front. Women during the First World War went to work in place of the men who went off to fight. When the men return the women did not give up their positions in the work force. Women being giving the responsibility outside the home gave them a more independent mindset, including the change of women's wardrobe, mainly in the shortening of their skirts.
In the sense of the nativist argument, the Irish were not too different from the current Americans. Other immigrant groups: Asian, Southern American, African, had sharp differences in their appearance and language. The Irish did not. Nativist arguments were still a strong point against the Irish, but instead of topical differences being the issue - culture was the issue. The Irish culture seemed to the people of the 1800s to be incompatible with the American culture. The political cartoon, “The Mortar of Assimilation” shows the image of a mortar filled with all kinds of people, except the Irish (Taylor 304). The image seeks to make the point that the Irish were simply too different to the rest of America. Taylor implies that the reason the Irishman is not mixable is due to his bestial nature, a trope depicted throughout the anti-irish media. The wild beast trope in “The Mortar of Assimilation” is included by showing an Irish man with a bloody knife to insinuate that he, unlike other Americans, has no morals. In 1880 the periodical Judy published “The Most Recently Discovered Wild Beast,” which showed the trope of the average Irishman being a wild beast. The semblance between an Irishman and a wild beast also suggests that the Irish had no culture nor social values worth adding to the American morter. The image instead suggests that the Irish do not have traits worth contributing, since they are “murderous thieves” and have “concession of violence”, suggesting that all their traits are immoral (Taylor). Alongside the stereotypical Irish hate cartoons were attacks towards the Irish’s religion, Catholicism. At the time there was a strong anti-catholicism movement, during which the very same anti-irish magazines published cartoons against Catholics (Thomas 214) . The issue with
Throughout the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, the United States economy changed dramatically as the country transformed from a rural agricultural nation to an urban industrial gian, becoming the leading manufacturing country in the world. The vast expansion of the railroads in the late 1800s’ changed the early American economy by tying the country together into one national market. The railroads provided tremendous economic growth because it provided a massive market for transporting goods such as steel, lumber, and oil. Although the first railroads were extremely successful, the attempt to finance new railroads originally failed. Perhaps the greatest physical feat late 19th century America was the creation of the transcontinental railroad. The Central Pacific Company, starting in San Francisco, and the new competitor, Union Pacific, starting in Omaha. The two companies slaved away crossing mountains, digging tunnels, and laying track the entire way. Both railroads met at Promontory, Utah on May 10, 1869, and drove one last golden spike into the completed railway. Of course the expansion of railroads wasn’t the only change being made. Another change in the economy was immigration.
...for the Irish Catholic immigrants as well as the others, “the old-stock drive for conformity and community represented attacks on their culture, religion and ethnicity. Repeatedly their stake in American society, their right to be American citizens, was denied” (Dumenil, 248). I agree that it was their right to become American citizens. Discriminating against Irish Catholic immigrants was unjust, especially for the reason that there is no rational or justifiable way to discriminate against which people are allowed to immigrate and which are not.
O'Connor, Thomas H. The Boston Irish: A Political History. Boston, MA. Northeastern University Press, 1995.
In the late 19th century America was grappling with who it was as a country. With African American's being freed with the end of the Civil War it did not make it any easier. Before the war America was predominately seen as a country run by Caucasians. While after the war African Americans were not necessarily treated any better. The war did not give America a sense of identity. African Americans were not treated any more equally. The search for an identity was not merely between black and white. It also involved the Native American culture. Alone each culture had there own identity. However, they were mixed together. This was confusing not only from the standpoint of one culture looking at another but, of the person that does not know they have a mixed heritage. Writers not only male and female but white and black wrote about the hardships of being the culture that was not liked. Through there stories George Washington Cable and Grace King are two writers of this era that depicted the hardships of searching for an identity.
If you could afford a magazine and could interpret and image, then the images were made to influence you. When it comes to “The Day We Celebrate” published in Harper’s Weekly, a political magazine, most Americans who bought the magazine felt the same resentment towards migrants as expressed by the cartoon. Many thought of the Irish immigrants as wild and rowdy which is exactly how the artist characterizes them. “The Immigrant” was published in Judge, another political magazine, but in this image it shows the more divided feelings Americans had towards migrants. The general public was now becoming more knowledgeable of the benefits and downsides that migrants brought to
Many people see history as a set of facts, or as a collection of stories. The reality, however, is that history is a fluid timeline. Each act of an individual or a group has an effect on others. Each moment in history is a building block that, good or bad, contributes to the stability of the next. This can be seen clearly in American history, as there have been several developments since the 1800’s that have played major roles on the growth of the nation.
It was more of a pride thing like some people have today. It was almost like how we have pride in our country and are proud to be here. They had the same aspect of living. (Wilson) In the decade of 1920's there was a big population drop due to the amount of deaths. From then on forward the population has been rising because of living conditions getting better and better ways to treat diseases. In 1996 the population of Ireland was just over 3.6 million people which was far better than before.
...ion. Saying even though Irish people are the enemy, it's best to have a few of them to help advance the economy and the countryside. This is also ironic because the writer doesn’t even accept that the concept of eating one-year olds is morally wrong.