Throughout history freedom has had many different meanings and definitions; based on race, gender, and ethnicity. According to the dictionary freedom means the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint (“freedom” def. 1). Freedom may seem like something given to everyone however it was something workers had to fight for. Not everyone believed that workers’ rights needed to be changed, which led to a long battle between workers, employers and the government. To the working class people freedom meant making higher wages, having regulated hours, workable conditions and the right to free speech. The fight for equal working rights can be tracked back to the time of reconstruction with the institution of sharecropping. Sharecropping is a type of farm tenancy that developed after the Civil War in which landless workers farmed land in exchange for farm supplies and a share of the crop (Foner A-63). This system seemed like a decent thing to many blacks because now they could own their own land and work without supervision. Not all aspects of sharecropping were good though, blacks had to provide clothing, medicine and pay for medical bills all on their own. Also the working conditions were not the greatest. Blacks were expected to labor ten hours a day on average in the winter and summer and any time that was lost would be at the cost of one dollar per day (“A Sharecropping” 12). This was just the beginning of harsh working conditions and low wages which would continue to be a concern for workers throughout the years. In a time where jobs were scarce and the economy was suffering, the second industrial revolution brought about new changes to the work force and the economy. Du... ... middle of paper ... ... they were able to receive shorter work hours, the right to free speech and overall better working conditions. These changes were just the beginning of what would be a whole new sense of freedom for the working American people. Works Cited “A Sharecropping Contract,” in Voices of Freedom. Ed by Eric Foner Definitions. Web. 08 Mar. 2011. . Elizabeth Flynn, “The Industrial Workers of the World and the Free Speech Fights,” in Voices of Freedom. Ed. By Eric Foner "Freedom | Define Freedom at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Free Online Dictionary for English Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty. 3rd ed. Vol. Two. New York: Norton &, 2011. Print. John Ryan, “A Living Wage,” in Voices of Freedom. Ed. By Eric Foner William Sumner, “William Graham Sumner on Social Darwinism,” in Voices of Freedom. Ed. By Eric Foner
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty!: An American History. Fourth ed. Vol. 1. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. 247-316. Print.
In the words of President Abraham Lincoln during his Gettysburg Address (Doc. A), the Civil War itself, gave to our Nation, “a new birth of freedom”. The Civil War had ended and the South was in rack and ruin. Bodies of Confederate soldiers lay lifeless on the grounds they fought so hard to protect. Entire plantations that once graced the South were merely smoldering ash. The end of the Civil War and the abolishment of slavery, stirred together issues and dilemmas that Americans, in the North and South, had to process, in hopes of finding the true meaning of freedom.
Beginning in the late 1700’s and growing rapidly even today, labor unions form the backbone for the American workforce and continue to fight for the common interests of workers around the country. As we look at the history of these unions, we see powerful individuals such as Terrence Powderly, Samuel Gompers, and Eugene Debs rise up as leaders in a newfound movement that protected the rights of the common worker and ensured better wages, more reasonable hours, and safer working conditions for those people (History). The rise of these labor unions also warranted new legislation that would protect against child labor in factories and give health benefits to workers who were either retired or injured, but everyone was not on board with the idea of foundations working to protect the interests of the common worker. Conflict with their industries lead to many strikes across the country in the coal, steel, and railroad industries, and several of these would ultimately end up leading to bloodshed. However, the existence of labor unions in the United States and their influence on their respective industries still resonates today, and many of our modern ideals that we have today carry over from what these labor unions fought for during through the Industrial Revolution.
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! An American History. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2007.
Foner, E. (2013). Give me liberty! an american history. (Seagull 4th ed., Vol. 2, p. 708).
Foner, E. (2012). Give Me Liberty! An American History. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company
Eric Foner, Give Me Liberty: An American History (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2009), 323.
According to Dictionary.com freedom means “the state of being uncontrolled by another, or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint.” Freedom. What does freedom mean to you? Even though freedom means the state of being uncontrolled by another, or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint, I believe that freedom means being able to accomplish what you desire and when you desire it without anyone saying anything, by reason of the comparison and contrast of our society and the society in the book Anthem by Ayn Rand, the negation of the word freedom, and synonyms of the word freedom. I believe that you should accept the consequences of the actions you take when you have your “freedom” as well.
Foner, Eric. Give me liberty!: an American history. Seagull fourth ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2014. Print.
Freedom can be defined in many ways, but a definition is nothing but a vague description. Freedom simply cannot be described in a few brief sentences but rather by actions. Freedom allows Americans and outsiders, wishing to achieve the American Dream, the opportunity to do so. Freedom is shown in multiple chapters throughout When We Are Free. One chapter that stood out the most, proving that we are free to do as we wish, if it complies with laws is called, A Human Action Taxonomy, written by Dale M. Haywood. This chapter discusses that as free humans, we have certain choices we can make to remain free. The choices are whether to give up some freedoms for benefits. This means is that by giving up actions such as murder and by paying taxes, the government will protect us. As free humans, we can also choose different paths instead of being forced to do what the public believes is right. We could live off the land and not interact with others or do illegal
In Give Me Liberty by Eric Foner, freedom is described as the ability for one to enjoy the fruits of their own labor. It was considered a universal idea of society in America between 1790 and 1860. Many worked hard so they can create an easier and peaceful life for their family. Although this was the case for whites, it was completely the opposite for slaves and Indians. America was slowly if not already becoming a less free place for slaves and Indians due to white oppression over their kind. Slaves and Indians worked hard but were unable to enjoy their fruits of labor because of white oppression and westward expansion.
Freedom is the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. In America there is numerous of choices that someone may make on a daily basis. If someone were allowed to make their own choices and were being told what to do; then they would not be free. When someone is allowed to speak when they want to, and say what they want; such as their opinion or view of something. Being allowed to have a right to speak is one of the most important characteristics of being an American. Thinking and stating your opinion in any predicament it a strong part in being a citizen because people in the United States are known for being able to think in their own ways. Freedom can stretch too many things such as being able to do as they please, they are not forced into doing anything that someone may want. The citizens of the United States are not made to do anything that one may not want to do; like
How does one define freedom? The OED gives about a dozen useful definitions that each pertain to one of a variety of the aspects of the human state. One referred specifically to the political freedoms of an individual: “Exemption from arbitrary, despotic, or autocratic control; independence; civil liberty” (def. 2). Another definition concerned the spiritual freedom found in Christianity: “fig. Liberation from the bondage of sin” (def. 1.b). There was another that defined freedom as “Physics. Capability of motion. degree of freedom: an independent mode in which a body may be displaced” (def. 10.a). The word liberty was used in one of the preceding examples and it is virtually interchangeable with freedom. In fact, the OED definition of liberty contains a number of the same definitions that freedom does. Obviously,since humanity is capable to being free in so many different ways it is difficult to come up with one definition of freedom. Milton addresses the freedom of the mind; God gives man the freedom of choice; Donne mentions spiritual freedom found from faith in God; Mary Wroth discusses the lack of freedom in love. Each of these writers used their ideas of freedom to make a point about how people are affected by freedom.
Freedom is often spoken of in what can be referred to as a loose sense of the word. One country has more freedom than another; a twenty-one year old has more freedom than a fifteen year old. What exactly does this word mean? For different people it may mean different things, but there has to be an equilibrium that can be reached in order to determine the meaning of freedom itself. In one form, freedom can mean that a person has "exemption from an obligation."* If only the root (free) is looked at, it can be interpreted that one is "not under the control or power of another."*
Foner, Eric. (2009). Give Me Liberty!: an American History. 2nd Seagull Ed. New York, NY: W.W. Norton and Company.