Living In The Gilded Age

Businesses could not afford to slow downproduction during the Panic, so they continued to keep their prices high, but the people didn’thave access to the scarce money. Not only were businesses charging high prices, but also thePhiladelphia and Reading Railroad went bankrupt, causing less modes of transportation for work-ers and farmers. In total, over 15,000 companies went bankrupt during the Panic and the unem-ployment was the highest in history.Labor Unions were also created during the Gilded Age, which added to the idea of theGilded Age being truly “gilded”. The American Federation of Labor was one of the first laborunions created in the United States. The AF of L wanted “unionism” and opposed socialism.

Gentrification can bring many things to a city, such as renovation and shifts in an urban community lifestyle and an increasing share of wealthier residents and/or businesses and increasing property values. The bad things it brings would be leaving longtime home owners out of a home because taxes on their property have sky rocketed and can no longer afford to pay. Not only this but in the process of gentrifying a community it kicks out the poorer residents and sends them to other neighborhoods which are just as poor and now overpopulated. If having to choose a side on this topic, I would have to say I am for gentrification. Despite its negative affects, I believe renovation is a huge part of life and that is how cities show economical strength and wealth, which then brings in jobs for many people all

The rich and the poor were well separated and the government was extremely corrupt. Political machine was being used for votes and workers had no rights. Despite all the negative effects that the Gilded Age brought to the United States, several positive things came out of it, such as, the growth of unions and developed fair railroads. The development of unions was important because of the terrible conditions workers had to work in. Both men and women had to work in order to be able to survive.

No one had any money and depended on the factories and businesses that they worked for to raise the wages, which most of the time, they did not. Due to the fact that people were desperate for money, stealing became a frequent thing. People were hungry and needing food so they stole it from other more wealthy people and businesses. Although stealing was common, it was often times overlooked by the enforcement authorities. A state that was really struggling in particular was Arkansas.

Modern day America is an economic superpower. However, one and a half centuries ago, this was not the case. In the late 1800’s there was a large boom in terms of population and industrialization in the United States. From this stemmed many new technological innovations, innovations which could be applied to the creation of alluring products for the masses. This led to the rise of a prominent American consumer culture, which was a driving force in the great economic growth of the Gilded Age.

The tension between the upper class and the lower class is caused by the pure fact of jealousy and not being nearly close financially. The tension of the Gilded Age influenced/molded America by opening jobs for immigrants, the creation of the middle class, the expansion of cities, and it also shifted the population for the countryside to the inner

Chicago was not a rich city to begin with, and the harsh conditions of weather, crime, and just living conditions took a serious toll on the inhabitants. It was an area on the rush of becoming what it is today, but during the time it was no place to live peacefully. The Fair in was built primarily by people who needed work desperately; however, once the Fair was built, the work was gone and the conditions of these laborers remained the same. The contrast is between the extravagant White City which the world came to see and the city around it which was still dirty and miserable. All the glorious innovations displayed at the Fair promised a bright future; in contrast was the deprivation of the then current

America is at an impasse with itself over the current unemployment rate and questions about where all the jobs are going. According to Elizabeth Dwoskin, most of these job positions, considered dirty, are being filled by immigrants and not Americans. Americans have found themselves in an uproar about migrant workers taking jobs away from them, but it seems they are hypocritical as they refuse to fill these jobs themselves. In her article “Why Americans Won 't Do Dirty Jobs,” Dwoskin implies that Americans are too lazy to do hard work but complain when immigrants fill these positions. It seems that even when Americans are faced with the threat of homelessness they claim they cannot find any jobs, or rather, they refuse to do the dirty ones.

During the Progressive Era, most employers were not concerned with workers rights and focused more on profit than human rights or safety. The poor working class, as well as immigrants who had worked in the United States for a while, became infuriated over the unfair treatment and working conditions of which they suffered. Hugh Rockoff explains, “…industrialization had alienated the workingman…” (Rockoff 747). Workers felt unappreciated and that without rising up against their employers, they would be left starving,homeless, or dead. Workers wanted more money, an eight hour workday, safe working conditions, and protection against wage cutting.

“When interviewed a woman was asked, how is working in a factory? She said that it was better than farming”(Immigration during the industrial revolution). “The conditions in the factories were bad with no windows making it stuffy and the gas from the machines slowly killing the workers”(Immigration article). Even though the working conditions were atrocious, some people found the good side to working in factories. Starting a new life in a new country is not as easy as people think it is.