Enjoy
- Justin
Monday, December 1, 2008
Religion, Reform and Renaissance in Antebellum America
Alright guys, the next topic we'll reflect upon is reform, specifically domesticity. I'd like feedback on how you all see domesticity has evolved. Consider the basic starting time period to be around colonial to directly post colonial era, up through the years directly preceding the civil war.
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I don't quite understand what we're getting at on this one. From what I gathered, are we supposed to explain how religion, reform, and renaissance affected America?
Just looking for some clarification!
what type of reform? i'm with jerome on this one this question is quite vague.
for one domesticity isthe condition of or pertaining to one's own or a particular country as apart from other countries
and it can also mean something produced or manufactured in one's own country. And it can also be associated with something pertaining to ones household.
Are you asking us to discuss the way religion and reform in general have changed since there production in Antebellum America during that time period?
Well, consider the evolving economy and continental expansion, what sort of effects did these factors have on the average family life in America, and how were they changed by these factors?
With westward expansion came the expansion of democracy, wealth, and the United States power in the world. The Mexican war proved the United States to be a strong military country and showed that the United States could conquer without help from the European countries (The U.S. was becoming extremely powerful). Wealth came from the buying and selling of new land in the west as well as the expansion of railroads which, although expensive to build, made an immense profit. Another source of income for settlers, although very minimal, was the California gold rush which allowed people of all social and economic status to try their luck at fortune. As the country expanded, there was also an expansion on culture and religion. For example, the Mormons expanded into Utah and formed a religion different from the Catholics who were beginning to see their religion prosper in the North-East cities. Democracy came through the issue of slavery most of all, I believe. For example, in the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Compromise of 1850, popular sovereignty was requested as the slavery solution in Utah, New Mexico and Kansas. Popular sovereignty allowed the state to vote whether it wanted to be entered into the Union as a free or slave state. This showed democracy because the people were given a voice, even before they were fully admitted into the Union as states.
Well, kudos to Alex for saying pretty much everything under the sun about improvement during that period, I'm impressed =P.
Of course, I'd like to mention that reforms also affected America in a large way. People were actually giving more thought to education, and thus allowed to expand their mind more to such improvements. For example, the reform on alcohol definitly was based off logical reasons, such as bad behavior, and the want to rid of such "vulgar" actions. With less people getting drunk, wouldn't that make people able to think more? more thinking is equal to more reforms. the chain goes on and on.
Domesticity improved in the U.S. because of all the things alex stated.Gowing off on what she said....i don't really understand exactly how westward expansion was democratic. In my opinion the expansion westward isn't democratic. It wasn't even performed. The people had the freedom of wanting to expand and move westward but they weren't able to do this because of all the compromises as well as the states rights to popular soverignty. The only factor of westward expansion that could be considered to be democratic in my opinion would be the popular soverigntey part of it.The peoplewere given the opportunity to vote for what they wanted.
Westward expansion was democratic because of popular sovereignty and the fact that spreading the "goodness" of democratic ideals was a major part of manifest destiny (which played a highly significant role in Westward Expansion). Once America had acquired the Western territories, the land would form states to be admitted into the Union and would thus be ruled by a democratic government, "by the people, for the people". It’s not one of the most significant results of westward expansion but it came with it and had an important effect on the states later. That’s all I really meant by bringing democracy.
there was some democracy that came with westward expansion; popular sovereignty...but not all people agreed with it and not all states had the rights of popular soveriegnty and the ones who did have the choice always had some kind of issue, for instance Bleeding Kansas, they had a civil war because people from out of state came in to help their side of the issue of slavery and it never became a fair vote for them...although there was some democracy in the slavery issue, it brought much violence and it really didn't help much without some act of violence being added to the scene
American culture of this period seem to showed the same "hunger, confidence, and sense of adventure that characterized the westward migration." While there were people exploring the west lands, people like Eli Whitney created the cotton gin in 1793, Samuel B. Morse's telegraph in 1844, and Elias Howe's "sewing jenny" in 1846. These inventions made the jobs more efficient. Dramatic changes took place in American society, such social reformers as educators Horace Mann and Catharine Beecher, prison reformer Dorothea Dix, women's advocate Lucretia Mott, and abolitionists Frederick Douglass, John Brown, and William Lloyd Garrison. "This was also the age of temperance societies and utopian communities, including New Harmony and Brook Farm." Also Americans were reading more than ever.
I agree with what Alexendra said because the westward expansion is the major contributer toward the growth of domestic things. But up til the civil war everything is rely on the slaves to do all the hard labor and things. Which is why the slaves are on of the main factors in contributing the growth of domestically.
Manifest Destiny expanded the diversity of the American economy, because there was no longer just the northern way and the southern way (of economics), but also the western way, and the more the U.S expanded, the more the definition of western changed. As the country grew, a positive effect was transportation improvements, such as railroads like the one built connecting California and Texas in the land from the Gadsen Purchase.
Withot westward expansion, slavery may never had ended because the slavery issue could have just been ignored. Thanks to westward expansion, it couldnt be ignored, because it was the main issue being considered before admitting states. Westward expansion also sprouted up the idea of popular sovereignty, which was a major display of democracy, when not too interfered with
I agree with Femi because the manifest destiny expanded the diversity of the American Economy. And like how Alex said, the Mexican-American War really showed that United States are on top with power. Popular sovereignty was also something major too because it allow people to vote into the Union as a free or slave state
Popular sovereignty as Jimmy said was major part of the development of the nation people could now wheter or not to be a free or slave state. It also affected politics because popular soverignty could have affected the balance in the senate.
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