Unit+1+Review

H.W: 1 Theme/Topic for Unit 1

American Identity:

What is American Identity and what does it mean to be an American? Throughout the history of this nation, the people have gone through several changes, some major, some minor. Starting as early as the 1860s during and after the Civil War, is when Americans truly took shape and started turning into the country people would most closely recognize today. The first step was aboloshing slavery. Preaching that all men are created equal and being the worldwide symbol of liberty and opportunity the United States could no longer support slavery. A civil war was fought over the issue with the eventual victory from the north thus beginning the era known as Reconstruction. This was a time when A.A began to hold political office, and finally, the right to vote with the passing of the 15th Amendment. Although changes weren't major yet, it was a start and set the basis for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. At the same time Americans were expanding out west in their journey with the idea of Manifest Destiny. Americans now became more culturally diverse as they encountered new people and cultures out west. America not only expanded but grew in terms of population. As time progressed Americans transitioned themselves from urban areas into bigger more complex cities and so, the birth of Industrialization in the U.S came about. Things were now easier, faster, and better than ever before. The introduction of machinery as labor workers changed the nation forever. America now became known as an industrial nation and attracted countless immigrants. As immigration flourished so did the problems associated with it. People were living in slums and tenants, and although the idea of the "self made man" was certainly an achievable dream, very few managed to drastically change their social class. Cities grew, opportunities rose, America became known as the Land of Liberty and opportunity. Aside from political bosses and the corruption going on at the time, Tycoons nearly took over the nation. Andrew Carnegie with steel, John Rockefeller with standard oil, J. P. Morgan with banks, and Cornelius Vanderbilt with railroads. Four of the most powerful and influential entrepreneurs the nation has ever seen. Labor Unions were formed, assembly lines were made, and the federal government passed laws in order to protect the people from big businesses and keep them from monopolizing. The outside world quickly recognized America as an industrialized, imperialistic nation, who later became the greatest superpower the world had ever seen, which, arguably, is still true to this day.

H.W: Bullet and expand on subtopics

__**1860-1900**__

Reconstruction

a) Presidential and Radical Reconstruction b) Southern state governments: aspirations, achievements, failures c) Role of African Americans in politics, education, and the economy d) Compromise of 1877 e) Impact of Reconstruction
 * Lincoln assassinated --> Johnson president. Radical Reconstruction: When Congress took over to make new laws/policies.
 * failed in its attempts to succed and forced to comply with Norths demands.
 * Gained some political power, nothing major. Began to get educated through Freedmans Bureau. Could now vote and own property. Small but steady advancements in the lives of A.A
 * Downfall of Reconstruction - and the end. Federal troops out of the South Rutherford B. Hayes as president.
 * A.A gains, "oppressed" angered South and government turmoil.

The Origins of the New South

a) Reconfiguration of southern agriculture: sharecropping and crop lien system b) Expansion of manufacturing and industrialization c) The politics of segregation: Jim Crow and disfranchisement
 * Created a lot of debt. ?
 * Things were now easier, faster, and better than ever before.
 * Continued racism in the South. Lynching, separate but equal, and overall unjust inequality between people.

Development of the West in the Late Nineteenth Century

a) Expansion and development of western railroads b) Competitors for the West: miners, ranchers, homesteaders, and American Indians c) Government policy toward American Indians
 * Created jobs, made transportation easier, and places/things more accessible.

d) Gender, race, and ethnicity in the far West e) Environmental impacts of western settlement
 * Vast variety

Industrial America in the Late Nineteenth Century

a) Corporate consolidation of industry

b) Effects of technological development on the worker and workplace c) Labor and unions d) National politics and influence of corporate power e) Migration and immigration: the changing face of the nation f) Proponents and opponents of the new order, e.g., Social Darwinism and Social Gospel
 * Things were more productive and efficient. ex: The assembly line.
 * Call for rights to better the workday. shorter hours, minimum wage, and organized unions by the masses.
 * Political Tycoons were becoming too powerful, like the standard oil company. Government needed to regulate and stop from spiraling out of control and monopolizing.
 * Millions of immigrants to America from around the world - too many. A problem we have even today.
 * The idea of survival of the fittest and competition. Healthy for American Capitalism.

Urban Society in the Late Nineteenth Century

a) Urbanization and the lure of the city b) City problems and machine politics c) Intellectual and cultural movements and popular entertainment
 * Mythical Utopia for immigrants and the myth of great opportunities and rags to riches stories.
 * Political bosses = corruption
 * Things such as sports, theaters, restaurants ect. Pop culture for Americans.