ipl-logo

American Childhood Allusions

670 Words3 Pages

Many of the allusions used by Annie Dillard in An American Childhood are put into the story to provide a clear cultural picture of Pittsburgh in the 1950’s. By using made of the references that she does, Dillard is able to “paint a picture” of society in the 1950’s, because she is referencing objects, places, or people that are familiar to some today, but mostly those who were alive around the 50’s or later. As well as 50’s culture references, Dillard also uses some classic American references. The first major allusions seen in the book are examples of the latter. Dillard brings up Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson in the prologue of the book while writing of pre-settled Pennsylvania, about its wildness and vast expanse …show more content…

Some of the first allusions of this kind are of popular musicians at the time, Jimmy Ryan and Zutty Singleton, and their songs. Dillard mentions that jazz music was just becoming popular at the time, and that these names were common in her household, and with her family being a very average family, these names were most likely household throughout most of the heavily inhabited parts of the United states. Another musician, even more well-known that he others she mentioned, is Frank Sinatra. He is brought up by Dillard , most likely to achieve the same effect of creating a picture in her reader's mind of what society was like at the …show more content…

The Panama Canal was a major achievement for the United States in the early 1900’s, and even during the 50’s people were still very infatuated with its existence. It was a symbol of political power for the U.S. and showed the vastness of its reach and influence. By adding a mention of Henry Frick Park, Dillard showed how the industrial captains of the time did anything they could to show their power and flaunt their money, especially in Pittsburgh, a city famous for its involvement in the industrial

Show More
Related

  • Summary Of Sorting Out The New South City By Thomas W. Hanchett

    537 Words  | 3 Pages

    In fact, everyone in American society has to read this book, because it allows the reader to understand the segregated American society throughout the history of Charlotte. Hatchett’s book is a type of book that gives an “aha moment” for the reader to understand why history is important. It lets the reader to make connections between the past and the present and makes us think how we become what we are right now. The author allows to do so by sharing his insightful analysis of the change of Charlotte from 1875 to 1975. His information not only helps to learn about history of Charlotte at that specific time but also the notion of the “segregated” social structure of our

    Read More

  • How Did Theodore Roosevelt Become A Grand Navy

    732 Words  | 3 Pages

    From what we learned about the determination to build a great Navy, Roosevelt wanted the Navy to move from ocean to ocean with ease. This gave him the chance to continue the dreams of American naval leaders by building a canal in the heart of Central America to connect the two major oceans. Thus began Roosevelt’s leg work of garnering a deal to control the supposed canal. Within his very first term, Roosevelt was able to negotiate with Britain that if a canal were to be built, that America would be in control of it. Then through meetings of the back handed type, Congress approved the canal to be built in Panama with the support of Columbia, whom owned the proposed area.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of The Devil Take Tomorrow

    730 Words  | 3 Pages

    This style immersed the reader into the story, allowing them to walk the filthy Pennsylvania streets right along with Matlock, and smell the freedom on the wind as if they were standing beside General Travis. I also thoroughly enjoyed the historical accuracy and key themes that the author skillfully wove into the plot. To illustrate, Jeannette tied in the concepts of the British East India Company and the West Indies slave trade. She also touched on the idea of indentured serevants coming accords the ocean, fleeing persecution in England, working the lowest jobs in America. An important theme with which the author correlated into the story was the idea of social darwinsim.

    Read More

  • Captain Of Industry Dbq Analysis

    925 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Much of the blame heaped on the captains of industry in the late 19th century is unwarranted.” (Document F). The Gilded Age was a time where the U.S. economy grew very quickly and rapidly, due to the inventive minds and entrepreneurs of that time; but it has different perspectives of opinions in history today. This era led the U.S. to its state and place in the present world, thanks to its important contributors, (who are involved in the main debate of whether they were robber barons, unethical men who yearn for money, or captains of industry, leaders who add positive ideas and methods to benefit their country.) The industrial leaders of the Gilded Age are captains of industry, worthy of some gratitude and credit for how our society’s structure

    Read More

  • Industrialization Dbq

    612 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the years of 1870-1916 the U.S. went through an industrial boom that manifested the country we live in today. At the time, the nation was rebuilding it’s connections back up once again making the south and the north together as one union. In between all of the changes happening nationally, there were major developments in booming cities like inventions including new forms of industrial idealization, transportation, and the uprising of electricity and along with these inventions came users who would take advantage. As for transportation, one of the major effects of industrialization in the U.S. was the creation of the steamboat.

    Read More

  • Rock Bottom: A Narrative History Of America

    220 Words  | 1 Pages

    There are two volumes of this book which the author called a narrative history of America. It comprises the information about the years from 1932 to 1972. And, unlike other typical (and boring) history books where the information is usually jumbled in decades, each of the 37 chapters of this book covers only one year. Here, I want to dwell upon The Part 1 (Prologue) and the years from 1932-1941.

    Read More

  • Teddy Roosevelt's Influence On Foreign Trade

    866 Words  | 4 Pages

    With the building of the Panama Canal Teddy Roosevelt changed how the United States and the rest of the world would trade forever. The importance of foreign trade has been apparent throughout the entire history of the

    Read More

  • How Did The Monroe Doctrine Influence Manifest Destiny

    1327 Words  | 6 Pages

    There was uprising in Panama and the United States intervened while the United States blocked Columbia’s attempt to defend and protect Panama from American interests. Thus, Panama became a de facto to a U.S. colony. The Panama Canal represented how Imperialism was to be achieved by naval power and access to other economic resources in Asia by the justification of Manifest Destiny and the Monroe

    Read More

  • D Roosevelt's Influence On Social Reform

    1199 Words  | 5 Pages

    during his time as president. When the Great White Fleet’s world tour started it was to show America’s strength and to promote goodwill (Fraser 612). This lead to more tension from China and eventually there was a massive boycott of U.S. goods in 1905 (Fraser). Then there was the Panama Canal that connected the Pacific to the Atlantic; this gave us an advantage in economic trade and gave our military an easier and faster way to countries that we are at war with. The Panama took 10 years to build and is still one of the biggest american projects with the top engineer being John F. Stevens.

    Read More

  • Transportation DBQ Essay

    551 Words  | 3 Pages

    The US went through revolutionary advancements in transportation from 1800 to 1840. The transportation improvements had substantial effects on the economy and also individual development. People could now buy goods that were made in places faraway because access was easier to towns and cities and people’s experiences grew as they were able to be more mobile (309). The roads were inadequate in 1800, so the federal government funded the National Road in 1808 to establish its dedication to improve the roads in the nation and so then by 1839 the East and West would be tied together (309). Commerce was still inadequate even with the National Road funded which improved transportation.

    Read More

  • Essay On Hawaii Imperialism

    738 Words  | 3 Pages

    As we saw in Hawaii, the United States jumped into the sugar farming and tourisms, removing the voice and votes, since the corporate businessman came first. This was also without fair consent, and was to be investigated by President Cleveland. Yet in Panama, we witnessed a major change occur with United States interaction; we saw the decline of yellow fever. With the aid of Doctor Gorgas, the village people were given a sanitary sweep, wiping out most mosquitos and dropping the infection rate heavily. With Panama’s approval, the Panama Canal was also constructed, creating an economic opportunity for Panama as well as making travel and trade between the United States and Asian nations quicker.

    Read More

  • The Erie Canal And The Paradox Of Progress Sparknotes

    578 Words  | 3 Pages

    In her book, “The Artificial River: The Erie Canal and the Paradox of Progress, 1817-1862”, author Carol Sheriff reveals that the creation of the Erie Canal fostered both pride in American republicanism and an underlining start to class tensions. Sheriff backs her discussion by highlighting in the chapter, “The Triumph of Art over Nature”, how higher class citizens cherished the idea of republicanism being represented in the Canal, yet the people who constructed this feat had no characteristic of this idea. The author’s purpose is to educate the reader so they understand that class tension stem from the fact that canal workers were seen as an oversight in credit for building this Canal and contributing to the progression of America. The Erie Canal represented not only American’s optimistic vision for progress but inequality between men of different classes. This inequality would ultimately be contradictory to the republicanism idea of freedom and citizenship in America.

    Read More

  • How Did The Erie Canal Affect New York City

    115 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Erie Canal turned New York City into a very significant epicenter for business, manufacturing, and investments. It also unlocked the western parts of America for settling and moved the Midwest 's agrarian and manufacturing products to domestic and international markets. The Erie Canal directly transformed trade and shipping by shortening a two-week wagon trip from Albany to Buffalo into a five day trip. It also became a channel for new philosophies such as abolitionism, women 's rights, utopianism, and religious movements. It generated the establishment of other canal systems across the eastern United States, and Canada as well.

    Read More

  • Ethical Dilemmas In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1399 Words  | 6 Pages

    Humans live in a world where moral values are very clearly set determining what is good and what is bad. We know what scares us and how racism should be treated. Nevertheless, this was not the case back in Alabama during the 1950s. In the famous novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee narrates the lives of the people of Maycomb, Alabama, focusing on the story of Scout and Jem Finch, and the case of a said to be rape. In this emotion filled narrative, readers learn how life was back then not only in general, but for the separate social statuses that there was.

    Read More

  • Big Stick Diplomacy Case Study

    1309 Words  | 6 Pages

    1. Analyze the success and failures of the following types of diplomacy: Big Stick, Dollar and Moral Diplomacy. The end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century was known as the Progressive Era in the United States. Inside the country, social and economic reforms would come to define the period, but outside the country, America’s economic and military powers were being used in diplomatic negotiations to expand the country’s influence.

    Read More

More about American Childhood Allusions

Open Document