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History

History


Question 1: Chapter 17.

American West was a unique place where some groups dominated over the other, forming the situation which nonetheless inspired continuous progress.

Even before the whites have arrived, the West has been the place of great migrations. Thus, Native Americans have moved around and negotiated with each other and in the Southwest some tribes settled to form towns, farms and ranches. After the immigrants have arrived, the conflict between the two cultures became apparent: the American Indians placed little importance on the notions of private property or profit, while the white settlers viewed the land and water as something that should be used for economic gain.

Whites believed the seemingly uninhabited land and vast natural resources provided them with virtually unlimited capacity for economic success, the belief being grounded on the idea of the superiority of white people. Being among the first settlers of the West a white person would be motivated by the idea of easy economic gain and a seemingly unlimited opportunity to succeed since the living and economic conditions supported it, regardless of all the challenges and hardships which the immigrants faced.

The living conditions of Native Americans differed from tribe to tribe; hence, some lived in relatively permanent settlements while others lead the nomadic lifestyle. They fished (mostly salmon), raised crops (most popular was corn), grew livestock (sheep, horses), hunted (mainly buffalo) and traded with each other. Their economic system was well-balanced and relatively effective. Naturally, no tribe remained unaffected by the economic activity, social norms and also diseases the whites brought. For instance, immigrants desired to eliminate buffalos through elaborate mass hunting and also to get rid of Indians, so there would be no competition over the natural resources. They possessed significant technological advantage over the native population aiding the success of their plans (weapons, railroads, etc.). The image of Indians as savages was reinforced in numerous ways, in order to justify the mass killing of the native population. The governmental policies further aided whites in their efforts to extinguish the native population. Gradually, the early military ways subsided as the government decided to "civilize" Indians by the means of education (Indian school system of 1860-1870) and landholding. All of the reforms lead to the gradual assimilation of Native Americans, which has provided the white immigrants with additional benefits as the most western Indian groups became overwhelmed by political and ideological crises. They have lost control of the land and largely failed to retain their culture.

The life of the early white settlers where full of hardships and challenges, however, it held enormous opportunities for economic gain by the means of landholding or mining; the latter leading to the formation of large mining corporations which required corresponding technology and labor force. The West became a multicultural society consisting of Native Americans, native-born whites, Hispanics, African Americans, Asians. Mexican, European and Japanese immigrants moved around the mining and agricultural communities, workers taking short-term jobs as they appeared. African Americans gathered to form all-black communities growing into the large black towns of the West early survivor of which was ensured by the cooperation with Osage Indians.

The whites dominated labor and social relations, aiming at reserving all of the riches of the West for themselves. For the most of them the life in the West still was the matter of survival as the farm life was hard with the lack of mechanical tools, scarce natural resources and unpredictable weather. However, securing the dominance in the region and developing the economy, as well as reaching technological advancements such as developing railroads or making the land agriculturally productive through extensive irrigation, provided the white population with significant opportunity for economical and demographical growth.


Question 2: Chapter 18.

An industrial revolution swept through the United States in the nineteenth century, with most of the population switching to manufacturing and transportation for labor. The impact of the industrial revolution on the United States was tremendous. Hence, at descend of the twentieth century the country became the world’s largest producer of raw materials and food, and was the most productive industrial nation. The nature of economic relations within the society changed tremendously, the overall impact on the country’s economy and population being rather positive than negative.

At the end of the nineteenth century the new technology boomed with the juridical aid of the U.S. Patent Office, one of the most important inventions being the electrical light bulb and the electricity transmitting system. Another significant technological advantage was the success of assembly-line manufacturing adopted by important automobile industry agents such as Ford. The family which transformed the chemical industry were the du Ponts, developing the fertilizers, dyes and other chemical products.

The small factories grew into the larger ones, enabled by the further technological innovations, creating new jobs. As the technology developed the jobs became more specialized turning workers into a sort of "machines" which no longer had a power to decide when to begin or end the work-day, or what tools and approaches to use. The conflict of interest between the workers and the employers formed, with one side struggling to retain their independence, while the other was mainly concerned with maximizing profit and increasing production efficiency. There were additional changes to the labor force – women and children (as young as ten years of age) were frequently hired for the low-skilled jobs, with other women leaving the domestic service sector and moving to the retail and clerical sector which expanded dramatically. Union movement was soon formed in order to fight the labor violence and protect the rights of workers.

The living standards improved with the expansion of postal, railroad and telephone service. Relatively isolated communities were now fully drawn into the consumer-oriented society. New foods corrected the American diet. While majority of workers existed within the wage economy and could not afford the expensive food products, they never suffered form malnutrition as in other developing nations. Advertising became the one of the most important agents of the booming economy, promoting products and services, and serving as a means of emphasizing social standards, values and norms.

The government played crucial role in regulating the booming economy in the times of rapid changes and developments caused by industrialization. Numerous laws were adopted in order to regulate new inventions, register and protect new product names, and de-monopolize the economy. The growing corporate consolidation movement pressed government for the assistance, while admiring individual initiative. Many criticized the trusts and other forms of big businesses pointing out that their obvious aim was profit gain based on greed. The criticism grew stronger as the gap between the large number of poor people and a few that became fabulously wealthy became more evident. The people pressed government for anti-monopolistic regulations.

Overall, the industrialization, or the establishment of an economic and social system characterized by machine production, large industries and concentration of the large number of workers in the urban areas, turned the United States into one of the most technologically and economically advanced nations in the world. However, it has also raised numerous concerns as the gap between the poor laborers and rich factory owners grew. In addition, industrialization made new products and services available to the general public, and changed the composition of the labor force significantly causing women and children to enter labor in different sectors of the economy.

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Posted by: Helen P. Nash

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