History Repeats Itself
History repeats itself. This concept applies not only within the realm
of a single nation's history but throughout and between nations. That is to
say, that what one nation endures, throughout its economic and political history,
may be compared to and be strikingly similar to that of many other nations. As
we analyze social change thought the world we have noticed a cyclical pattern of
histories, both economic and political, in the countries of Spain, Holland,
Britain, and the United States.
I. Historical Periodization:
Throughout history and during alternating time periods, countries have
grown from feeble entities, defeated by or ruled by the governing structures of
foreign nations, to powerful nations. Between the fifteenth and the sixteenth
century, SPAIN ruled as a great power among other nations. Its empire began
when, in 1492, Spain financed Columbus's expeditions and explorations to conquer
territory in the New World. Once it held its new established territory, Spain
relied on the influx of gold and silver from the New World. Spain was the first
country to start an empire and consequently started a trend. Once HOLLAND
gained their independence from Spanish rule, at the beginning of the seventeenth
century, it moved on to become a great power. Holland had relied on seafaring
and the economic success of Amsterdam until around 1620. "By mid-century,
however, they had used their technical sophistication and control of vital raw
commodities to build successful industries . . . and supported by Holland's
bourgeois virtues, trading preeminence and credit, Dutch manufactures soon
dominated a number of European markets" (BP 198). Holland remained in power
until its decline began in the middle of the eighteenth century. In 1750, the
Dutch started losing European markets but continued as the number one market
country in Europe. The British moved in where the Dutch had been. GREAT
BRITAIN reached great heights in the middle of the eighteenth century. Starting
out as the home of the Industrial Revolution, Britain was considered the
workshop of the world. However, by the 1890's Britain was losing ground in the
global market of manufacturing, specifically to the United States and Germany.
The UNITED STATES, is the youngest of the nations studied in this essay, which
became a major power a...
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... decline again. In Great
Britain polarization was reversed by redistribution of income, socialism, and
welfarism. This benefited the middle and lower--middle class citizens but hurt
the elite. In the UNITED STATES at the end of the "Roaring Twenties", when the
stock market crashed, the major financial institutions were left to fail and die
out. When the bubble of the 1980's burst, however, the United States government
bailed out the companies and caused the country to go into economic decline,
deficit, and ruin the budget. The "Roaring Twenties", and the "Anxious 1980's"
are examples of rises and later declines of economic and political prosperity
and power. Decline in the United States is occurring on both an economic and
social level. America has witnessed a rapid centralization at the seat of
federal power and a capital more influenced by interest groups than by voters.
"Imperial capitals don't become notorious until they display wealth and develop
serious, parasitic elites, not true of Washington until it came of age in the
late 1960's and 1970's" (AC 29). "There is no point in mincing words. Aging
great-power capitals often become parasitic cultures"(AC xix).
During the period 1550-1800, the colonization of the Americas by European civilizations led to massive shifts in economic power from the West to East and vice-versa. An increase in global competition among western civilizations and against their asian counterparts drove Europeans to search for wealth elsewhere, and thus colonizing the Americas. One of the easiest ways to generate a profit, increase a civilizations wealth, and ultimately their military power was through the silver trade. In monopolizing said trade, Europe was able to establish a somewhat steady economic connection to the very wealthy Asian civilizations. However, european nations were struggling to keep control of the silver trade out of Asian hands, which caused major shifts
Slide 2 transition into slide 3- Once Cortes and his small army defeated Montezuma’s powerful Mexican Aztec warriors, which outnumbered the Spaniards 10-1. The riches in form of Gold started to flood into Spain.
Beginning in 1492, Spain had been the first European nation to sail westward across the Atlantic Ocean and colonize the Amerindian nations of the Western Hemisphere. The empire that came from this exploration extended from Virginia on the
During the sixteenth century, Spain had become the most powerful country in both Europe and the Americas through its successes in the New World. The Spanish throne funded Columbus’ exploration that eventually led to the discovery of what will be known as the Americas. The Spanish Empire created the model for the colonization of the Americas through their conquest of the two most powerful empires in the Americas--the Aztec and the Incan. These conquests also provided the Spanish with tons of riches, thus pushing them towards the seat of power.
The 1920’s were an age of dramatic changes. More and more people were moving into the cities, leaving the rural way of living behind. People were beginning to value independence, and fend for themselves. American society began to adopt the new desire to become rich and famous; and modernists were doing anything they could to achieve their dream of becoming very wealthy. Traditionalists were doing anything they could to preserve the old ways of American society without any of this new technology or city life. The traditionalists believed that it was best to keep things the way they were, while modernists felt it was important to try a new way of doing things. Traditionalist in the 1920’s
During the industrializing era in the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century, unskilled laborers and skilled blue-collar men struggled to even put food on their tables; the emerging middle class struggled greatly as well, but had little trouble feeding themselves in this time period. It was the wealthy elite who prospered in this period, dining and living lavishly. Labor leaders and reformers tried to used many tactics to persuade prosperous Americans to concern themselves with the issues of the day; the main tactic used was the manipulation of emotion to get others to join the reformers’ cause. This trend was part of a greater global pattern of economic insecurity in the United States, which only heightened during the Great Depression in the decades to come.
The post-Civil War years between 1865 and 1900 were a time of immense social change and economic growth in the United States. This time period, commonly referred to as “The Gilded Age,” saw an end to Reconstruction, rapid industrialization, and new wealth. Despite these achievements, however, the era between Reconstruction and the beginning of the twentieth century was plagued by political stalemate, a decline of human values, increased materialism, and widespread corruption.
Around the beginning of the sixteenth centruy, many countires had started to explore farther away and finding new territories. New products like sugar and taobacco began to emerge around the world in many places. Many countries in Europe were gaining power due to the control of colonies in the Americas. Asian countries did not explore as much, but still managed to remain large and powerful for a while. The global flow of silver had economic effects on inflating prices of goods and stimulating econimic policy of mercantilism, and social effects on negative effects on the lower class around the world during the mid-sixteenth century to the early eighteenth century.
The distribution of wealth in the 1920’s, “roaring twenties,” was done with despair between the very wealthy and the lower classes, between industry and agriculture within the United States, between the U.S. and Europe. This imbalance of wealth created an unstable economy. The excessive assumption in the late 20’s kept the stock markets artificially high, which eventually lead the large market crashes and the American economy to turn over.
In the late 1800's, American society began to burst with cultural activity. After the Civil War and the Reconstruction, Americans were eager to return to their normal lifestyles. The period that followed, however, was quite different from what the country was used to. During the war, many pushed hard for a rise in industry, leading to an explosive industrial revolution far beyond what people had expected. America's business and economy had boomed, and, as the new century approached, many had a new outlook on life. They were eager to escape the dull regiments of both the past Victorian era and the new urban lifestyle. This was easy for the upper and middle classes, both of which were growing due to the rapid increase in industry. It was great news for entrepreneurs and business people of the time, because there was money to be made in this desire for amusement. Of course, this was not the whole story of the new Gilded Age, but it was definitely an era of growing leisure time and the business that came along with it.
Gold was the resource that attracted Spaniards to the Island of Hispaniola, because it was also King Ferdinand's interest (De la Riva 2003 ). Thus it ended up becoming the ultimate goal of the Christian Spaniards sent to Hispaniola to acquire gold and swell themselves in riches. (Las Casas 1552).Trading was also the key to getting wealthy; the more resources available for trade the more wealth will be gained. Resources in the New World attracted the Spanish conquistadors to Latin America.... ... middle of paper ...
The 1920’s was a decade that changes American life. Frederick Lewis Allen describes the twenties as a “revolution in manners and morals.” The twenties has been named all types of nicknames, such as: “The Roaring Twenties”, “The Era of Wonderful Nonsense”, “The Decade of the Dollar”, “The Period of the Psyche”, “ Dry Decade” and the age of “Alcohol and Al Capone” (Gales Research, 1998). During the twenties, the way Americans lived had changed. The 1920’s was a time in history that has been remembered for its great prosperity but also for its great loss. The Great Depression is what ended the Roaring Twenties.
Wukovits, John F., ed. America's Decades: The 1920's. San Diego: Greehaven Press Inc., 2000. Print.
In the American Social Classes in the 1950s: Selections from Vance Packard’s The Status Seekers, which was edited with an introduction by Daniel Horowitz, Packard discusses the the social construction of America in the 1950s after the Cold War ended and McCarthyism began to diminish. There was much too cheer about during this time period, but also much to worry about Mccarthyism and the atomic bomb produced fear among millions of Americans. At the time there was much economic growth and prosperity in the United States, and the baby boom occurred. This was a time characterized by fear of communism. Many people were dissatisfied by society and unsure how to create a better one. It was widely believed that this time period created a classless society. It was an era of abundance and economic growth. Packard believed that in reality, there was a drift in society and social stratification. Page 45 in Horowitz’s book shows Packard’s view of the social structure of America at the time, The Diploma elite being higher socially, and the supporting, or working and lower classes being lower. Page 45-48 describes each class in detail, from the “real upper class”, being “people who are likely to be on the board of directors of local industries, banks, universities, and community chests to to lowest group of people on the totem pole, being the