Ethical Issues In The Gilded Age

During the post-Civil War period, an era commonly referred to as the Gilded Age, the United States faced a rapid expansion of industrialization and simultaneous economic growth. Despite the comprehensive surge of economic production, this period was also an era of abject poverty and inequality as wealth became highly concentrated. The development of industry was driven by a small number of capitalists who have been portrayed as either ingenious and industrious leaders who transformed the American economy, or as avaricious and callous businessmen who would neglect the conditions of his/her workers and competitors to accumulate wealth. The labeling of such capitalists as either captains of industry or robber barons, or both, purely mirrors the

The steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie started out from a humbling beginning as poor immigrate working his way up the corporate ladder (). Until the day came when Andrew Carnegie decided he would strike out on his own, and Carnegie Steel was born. Now, Carnegie new that his steel mills most valuable assets was the workers. Consequently, Carnegie encouraged the workers to participate in collective bargaining for wages (). As a result, the factory workers were able to bargain their way to a truly livable wage.

The Gilded Age has been often portrayed as one of those dark periods in American history—a period of greed and corruption, of brutal industrial competition and harsh exploitation of

New Spirits: Americans in the Gilded Age, 1865-1905 written by Rebecca Edwards provides readers with many different individual accounts to illustrate the transformative time of America during the Gilded Age. The work shows the cultural, social, political and economical elements of the age that aided in forming the America we have today. Edwards’s purpose in writing New Spirits is to offer readers new insights on the era by eliminating predetermined stereotypes one may have established before reading the work. Edwards wants readers to put aside their prior knowledge to understand just what it was like to live in the Gilded Age by providing readers with the consequences and achievements of people during the time.

The Civil War and Reconstruction period, Gilded Age, Imperialism, and World War I all brought challenges, expansion, and transformation to this nation and it’s people. These periods would change the nation, “In the years following the Civil War, formed and their white allies, North and South, would seek to redefine the meaning and boundaries of American freedom” (Give Me Liberty 555). The Civil War split apart the nation due to slavery differences between the North and South. The historical narrative from 1865 through World War I involves the challenges faced with inequality and violence resulting in the transformation of geographical space, cultural landscape, and political institutions. The Civil War exacerbated existing racial discrimination

“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

Andrew Carnegie Essay If I told you Andrew Carnegie was two-faced, would you believe me? He is the all powerful, self-made hero right? Well this “hero” was born in November 1835, in a Scotland settlement, living in the attic of a small cottage. He attended a one-room school with 150 people crammed into it.

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.

The 19th century was the era of the Gilded Age, where the economy was booming, bringing great changes that affected the lives of workers and entrepreneurs. During this period, there was a large influx of immigrants that were coming to America to look for job opportunities. The migration of immigrants proved useful as a source for cheap labor, allowing an even higher rise in the U.S. economy. While American industrialization may have benefited the upper class of the American society, the effects were opposite to the workers of the lower classes. This problem was especially worse for immigrant workers as their belief in the so-called American dream has been worn down due to the misery they had to endure.

The saying that history repeats itself has been proven to be true time and time again. History seems to be doomed to repeat itself as if lessons were never learned from past mistakes. The Gilded Age is a unique period in American history that is undoubtedly repeating itself in the modern day. Corruption, unprecedented immigration, and the massing of wealth by the top 1% of the population are just a few of the things that characterize this period of American history. The same issues that plagued America over 100 years ago are re-emerging in todays’ society leading scholars to say that America has arrived in “The Second Gilded Age”.

Corporate greedy and corrupt politicians were specific problems and injustices that were present in American life during the late 1800s and early 1900s however these were addressed during the progressive era with laws and regulations. Throughout the gilded era corrupt politicians and corporate greedy allowed the upper class and businessmen to take advantage of the working class. This means that a majority of the population were hurt during the gilded age whereas a small percentage benefitted. As seen in document 1, living conditions were crowded, dirty, and unsafe.

The Gilded Age lasted from 1870 to World War 1, “1900s.” The Gilded Age was a period of fast economic development, but also much social struggle. Mark Twain in the late nineteenth century founded the “Gilded” Age, which means covered with gold on the outside, but not really golden on the inside, for example, tin. This period of time was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath. In other words, the outside looked beautiful, but the inside looked old and trashy.

In a time when America was coming out of the bloodiest war that was ever fought, against themselves, The Civil War, and when America looked overseas for a new frontier with Imperialism. It is in this context that America started to grow westward with farm land and in industry with the million of workers, but America still felt growing pains. Two significant ways in which farmers and industrial workers responded to industrialization in the Gilded Age (1865-1900) were the formation of organizations to protect farmers, and the creation of labor unions and the use of strikes to protect the workers. One significant way in which farmers responded to industrialization in the Gilded Age (1865 - 1900) was the formation of organizations to protect farmers. During Westward Expansion farmers fell victims to the low pricing of the crops.

Between 1870 and 1900, an estimated 25 million immigrants had made their way to the United States. This era, titled the Gilded Age, played an extremely important role in the shaping of American society. The United States saw great economic growth and social changes; however, as the name suggested, the Gilded Ages hid a profound number of problems. During this period of urbanization, the publicizing of wealth and prosperity hid the high rates of poverty, crime, and corruption. European immigrants who had come to the United States in search of jobs and new opportunities had fallen into poverty as well as poor working and living conditions.

Farmers and Industrial Workers in the Gilded Age In a time when industrialization was booming, immigrants were racing towards the “American Dream”, and cities were growing towards the sky, the United States was thriving. As a country, the United States went from rural, to mostly urban, which made America “the world’s largest industrial power” as stated by John Green. Since the U.S. had become mostly urban, this left the very few rural workers (farmers), and even some of the industrial workers unhappy. This period of industrialization is called the Gilded Age than spans from 1865 to 1900.The farmers and industrial workers responded to the Gilded Age in significantly negative ways including unions against their authority, strikes and political