Guide to Reading Main Idea Industrialism and urbanization
Guide to Reading Main Idea Industrialism and urbanization changed American society’s ideas and culture in the late 1800 s. Key Terms and Names • Gilded Age • realism • Social Darwinism • vaudeville • Gospel of Wealth • ragtime • philanthropy
A Changing Culture • In 1873 Mark Twain and Charles Warner co-wrote the novel, The Gilded Age. • Historians use this term to refer to the time between 1870 and 1900. • The term “gilded” refers to something being gold on the outside while the inside is made of cheaper material.
• The authors tried to point out that although this was a time of growth, beneath the surface were corruption, poverty, and a huge difference between rich and poor.
A Changing Culture (cont. ) • Industrialization and urbanization caused Americans to look at society in a different way. • This gave way to new values, art, and forms of entertainment. • A strong belief during the Gilded Age was the idea of individualism. • This is the belief that regardless of your background, you could still rise in society.
A Changing Culture (cont. ) • Horatio Alger, a minister from Massachusetts, left the clergy and moved to New York where he wrote over 100 novels about rags-to-riches stories.
Social Darwinism • Herbert Spencer, an English philosopher, first proposed the idea of Social Darwinism. • Spencer took Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection and applied it to human society.
• Like Darwin’s theory–that a species that cannot adapt to the environment will eventually die out–Spencer felt that human society evolved through competition.
Social Darwinism (cont. ) • He concluded that society progressed and became better because only the fittest people survived. • Industrial leaders agreed with Social Darwinism. • Social Darwinism paralleled laissezfaire, an economic doctrine that was opposed to government interference with business.
Social Darwinism (cont. ) • Many devout Christians and some leading scientists opposed the idea of Darwin’s conclusions about the origin of new species. • They rejected theory of evolution because it went against the Bible’s account of creation.
• Andrew Carnegie, a wealthy business leader, believed in Social Darwinism and laissez-faire. • However, he also felt those who profited from society should give something back, so he softened Social Darwinism with his Gospel of Wealth. • This philosophy stated that wealthy Americans were responsible and should engage in philanthropy, using great fortunes to further social progress.
Realism • A new movement in art and literature, called realism, portrayed people in realistic situations instead of idealizing them as the romantic artists had done. • Writer and literary critic William Dean Howells wrote realistically about American life.
• He also recognized talent in several writers of this time, including Mark Twain, who wrote Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in 1884. • Twain is thought to have written the first true American novel. • Henry James, an English writer, portrayed the lives of the upper class in his 1881 novel, Portrait of a Lady.
Realism (cont. ) • Edith Wharton won a Pulitzer Prize for the novel The Age of Innocence, which portrayed the complicated lives of the upperclass in New York in the 1870 s.
Popular Culture • Popular culture changed in the late 1800 s. • People had more money to spend on entertainment and recreation. • Work became separate from home. • People looked to have fun by “going out” to public entertainment.
• During the 1800 s, the saloon acted like a community and political center for male workers. • It offered free toilets, water for horses, free newspapers, and free lunches.
Popular Culture (cont. ) • Coney Island in New York was an amusement park that attracted working class families and single adults. • It offered amusements such as water slides and railroad rides. • Watching sports became very popular in the late 1800 s. • Baseball began to appear in the United States in the early 1800 s.
• In 1869 the first salaried team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, was formed. • Football and basketball also became popular during this time. • In the early 1880 s, vaudeville became popular. • It was adapted from the French theater and combined animal acts, acrobats, gymnasts, and dancers in its performance.
• During this time, people began enjoying ragtime music. • The most famous African American ragtime composer was Scott Joplin, who became known as the King of Ragtime.
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