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Society during the gilded age
Economic change brought by the gilded age
Social problems in the gilded age
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Imagine working sixteen hours a day in an unsanitary, dangerous, place for a big business gaining two dollars. This is what laboring-class Americans had to go through during the Gilded age. Politically, the first largest American labor union was formed during the Gilded age and many other organizations formed as well as violent strikes. Socially, different ethnics joined together to share their thoughts and realize the evils of big business and of the federal government. Mentally, most we 're losing their personal life while some were financially stable and glad.
People of different wealth classes were all able to live in adequate
The Gilded Age was an age of rapid economic growth. Railroads, factories, and mines were slowly popping up across the country, creating a variety of new opportunities for entrepreneurs and laborers alike. These new inventions and opportunities created “...an unprecedented accumulation of wealth” (GML, 601). But the transition of America from a small farming based nation to a powerful industrial one created a huge rift between social classes. Most people were either filthy rich or dirt poor, with workers being the latter.
There were no major party differences in the Gilded age. Democrats were mainly Lutheran and Catholic. They promoted education and opposed prohibition. Republicans were politically more successful. They believed in social issues like having moral standards and no regulation.
Very wealthy people could afford to go to banquets and feast, but on the other hand, the non wealthy could not afford going to them. At the banquets and feast, it was important that the food was served for nobility. Also, still to this day, people still engage in banquets like the people in the Elizabethan Era. At
Others who could not pay rent lived on the streets. The urban decay of these apartment buildings along with the overcrowding on the streets led to the lower classes’ unhappiness. Meanwhile, the wealthy continued to live lavishly. The text states, “Because the rich did not have to pay for labor, many spent their riches on luxury goods.” They purchased paintings and fine art at auctions and bought expensive and rare items such as pearls and silk brought in from Rome’s trade routes and sold at markets.
Life must have been stressed and troublesome for the lower class citizens. They worked so much and for what exactly? , they were rewarded with such little time to themselves. Having nothing to do except the same routine day after day without having nothing exciting or different happen must have been boring and sad. The people were constantly living in fear for their lives because they did not want to get killed, on top of working they had to watch out for their lives too.
The political and social injustices that were present in the Gilded Age inspired several reformists to change society through social changes and reforms. These activists sought to reform against political corruption, labor conditions, women's suffrage, and ideologies. Most of these reforms helped to improve the social issues of America's corrupt society. For instance, many people of the middle class were against the theory of Social Darwinism, the idea that some people were genetically predisposed to be better than others through natural selection and that the government shouldn't be involved in private businesses or free-markets (laissez-faire). Reform Darwinists believed that the government should be able to interfere with private businesses
On the opposite scale of classes, the aristocracy had the opportunity to lounge around, wasting away the day in luxury. Monseigneur
Politically, economically and socially the Gilded Age was truly a “Gilded Age”. Noteverything added to the “Gilded” effect of the time period. The “robber barons”, two major de-pressions and the labor unions (though not originally a bad thing) did add to the age. The Gilded Age saw the rise of Andrew Carnegie, John
Although society today may often times recognize this time as a prosperous time that allowed growth and improvements in techniques of everyday life. Many forget to examine what everyday life, then really consisted of. Studying this time and the struggles faced can allow people to perceive events during the Gilded Age with a different
The Rich people were able to live in luxury houses built of sun-dried brick. Their homes were coated of whitewash to make their house shine. The rich had built-in steam baths. They took a steam bath every day. Their clothes had “special features”on them..
The Gilded age was a period in the late 1800s (1865-1900) that showed tremendous increase of wealth caused by the industrial age. The lifestyle of the rich during this period hid the many problems of the time that eventually brought about the progressive era movement. This was a movement for reform between 1900-1920s. Progressives typically held that the irresponsible actions of the rich were corrupting both public and private life. Forces such as immigration, the Populist Party and industrialization that led to the progressive era also impacted the American government both in its activeness and its democracy.
However, what was supposed to be a prosperous time for all would become only a period of deception to many. The Gilded Age was the post-civil war period from 1878-1889. During this period of history, there
America was lush and prosperous. One of the reasons why historians called this the “Gilded Age” is, the fact, that average Americans enjoyed fairs that displayed industrial machines, the latest creations and other American progress. Americans attended circuses, vaudeville shows and sporting events. Baseball became so popular after 1900. America detonated with playing popular songs from sheet music on parlor pianos, played records on phonographs, and bought cheap books that accentuated adventure and the value of hard work and courage.