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John Pierpont Morgan:
The turn of the century in American, when E.L. Doctorow’s novel Ragtime is set, was a time marked by rapid technological developments and industrialization. These years also brought a heavy flood of immigrants as well as an increasingly urban American landscape. Technological advancements enabled increased efficiency and mass production. However, Doctorow clearly brings into question the consequences of this new technology for the average American worker. J.P. Morgan's discussion with Henry Ford about the assembly line’s innovations brings this debate to the front. Doctorow writes, "From these principles Ford established the final proposition of the theory of industrial manufacture - not only that the parts of the finished product be interchangeable, but that the men who build the products be themselves interchangeable parts" (113). Here Doctorow clearly addresses the potential for technology to undermine the value of the individual and his abilities.
Banker and industrialist John Pierpont Morgan was one of the world's foremost financial figures in the decades before World War I. He organized railroads and formed the United States Steel Corporation. His wealth and financial management skills were so considerable that he was able to steer the United States Treasury from the brink of disaster.
Morgan was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1837, and educated at the University of Gottingen in Germany. In 1871, with members of the Drexel family of Philadelphia, he organized the New York banking firm of Drexel, Morgan & Company. It began lending vast sums to railroad builders and industrial corporations in the 1880s and was later reorganized as J.P. Morgan and Company.
As noted by Erin Arvedlund, he was a “natural born financier [and] loved spreading his bank account among dozens of different foreign currencies.” John Pierpont Morgan and his father established a firm that was later to be known as J.P. Morgan & Co. Throughout Ragtime, E.L. Doctorow constantly refers to the economic status of the families and immigrants. J.P. Morgan’s companies and firms were large employers of these immigrants. His achievements in finance and business greatly affected the families in this novel. Money was something that could break a family apart if it was nonexistent.
In 1857, John Pierpont Morgan’s father, Junius Morgan, decided to broaden...
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...d genius that man possessed” (Lindstrom). John Pierpont Morgan is considered one of the founding fathers of the modern United States economy.
Despite conflicting opinion on his persona, his influence and character shaped the business world more so than any other person at the turn of the century. Morgan was “a banker, railroad czar, industrialist, financier, philanthropist, yachtsman, and ladies' man” (Jones). He was an industrial genius that is accredited with the founding of many companies including General Electric and AT&T. However, Morgan is looked upon as “a saint and demon the same” (Arvedlund). He received a honorary degree from Harvard university that read: Public citizen, patron of literature and art, prince among merchants, who by his skill, wisdom and courage, has twice in times of stress repelled a national danger of financial panic.
Arvedlund, Erin. Unmasking J.P. Morgan. 2000. 9 Apr. 2003
Doctorow, E.L. Ragtime. New York: Plume, 2003.
“John Pierpont Morgan.” Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2001 Standard. 2003.
Jones, Lisa L. A Collector’s Portait: John Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913). 2003. 9 Apr. 2003
Lindstrom, Diane. John Pierpont Morgan. 2003. 9 Apr. 2003
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