Moral ambiguity and political paralysis are two phrases that perfectly describe the confusing time of the Gilded Age. Cornered by big business, the United States was beginning to feel the effects, good and bad, of this domination from Trusts and Monopolies. Yet a conclusion must be met, did theses Monopolies hurt or help society as a whole, and history has decided that these gargantuan Enterprises were the bane of the late 1800’s. Now this may be dismissed as an opinion, yet one thing was certain, every aspect of one’s life was altered at the whim of the corporations. The way history is perceived is decided by the victors, and, in this case, the victors were the laborers. After years of suffering and striking, governmental reforms such as the Sherman Anti-Trust act finally allowed the Federal Government to break up the behemoths of industry. Yet, in reality, the Monopolies did aid society in many ways. The population of the U.S. was growing and people needed jobs. These Monopolies were there to hold the torch. Although offering only long hours and low wages, they allowed their employees to feed their families. If Big Business had not produced so many jobs many would be without work and unable to support their families …show more content…
whatsoever. The American population was not only growing from domestic sources but from massive levels of immigration. Immigrants fleeing troubles in Europe caught word of the amazing opportunities that businesses in the U.S. were offering. Other accommodations such as indoor plumbing, telephones, and railroads drove foreigners into the country. Andrew Carnegie, one of the Gilded Age’s richest men was the perfector of the mass manufacturing of steel, an extremely valuable commodity for railroads, buildings, and other ventures. After earning his large fortune, Andrew Carnegie ended up donating a total of 350 million dollars to social programs such as libraries and the famous Carnegie Hall. Before the Gilded Age, the U.S. manufacturing world’s output was pitiful compared to that of Europe. Though, once Big Business began to boom, the U.S. was exporting more Steel and Oil than all of the major powers of Europe combined, and the Monopolies gave us that name in the manufacturing world. Although all of what the Monopolies and Trusts gave to the U.S. is true, there were a far greater number of victims of their actions than recipients of their aid. Working conditions were horrible; unhygienic workspaces, long hours, unhygienic products, and often dangerous areas made working for the Monopolies a terrible thing. Not only did Big Business give long hours for tedious, dangerous work, but they barely paid their workers for their sacrifice. This mistreatment created large slums and ghettos in cities were the people would live in lean-to’s against other buildings that would often blow over killing those inside. And those who populated these areas of cities were often the poor and the immigrants working for the Monopolies. Social classes had never been so far apart. One example of the horrible conditions of working for a big business is the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire. One day during work at this garment factory, a fire broke out on the sewing floor. Being on the ninth floor, the firefighters of the time could not make it to the fire, and the people could not jump out without perishing, yet some took their chances. The owners of the factory had locked their doors so employees could not steal. Out of all of the workers there that day, 25% of them passed away. This circumstance is far from the worst of it, many men working for these behemoths of industry lost their jobs to women, who the companies believed they could pay less. These women did not often last long for these same companies would then get the idea to hire children, 14 and under, for they saw this as an opportunity to pay their workers next to nothing. Such disrespect for the safety of those working for the Tycoons was a mainstay in the Gilded Age. Often, the actions of the Monopolies and Trusts of the Gilded Age were not so savory.
After all, these corporations had to acquire their power and extensive business from somewhere, and that place is usually the vicious and ruthless cornering of competition. These companies would either attempt to buy out all of the competition as John D. Rockefeller did or corner and dominate a market with vertical integration as Andrew Carnegie. Vertical integration being one company owning every step of their products process, and John D. Rockefellers version called horizontal integration, where he owned all companies doing one step of his products process. Though John D. Rockefeller did incorporate vertical integration later into his own
business. Such massive companies saw it fit that they have a hand in politics. Bribing congressmen to vote in favor of your company or Monopolies, in general, was commonplace in the Gilded Age. John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie had the idea that God had gifted them their riches, and that the poor were poor for a reason. This Social Darwinist idea was a way to justify the massive and ever-expanding class gap their corporations were creating and the exploitation of millions. Many other Robber Barons of the time had similar ideas to the one of Cornelius Vanderbilt who believed that for it was his company over which he had full control, he should be allowed to decide his workers conditions, hours, and pay. Such a sense of disregard and contempt for the public characterized the Gilded Age, the ugly side of it. Perhaps, the Gilded Age brought along good in the long run as opposed to immediately. This is a quite fair possibility for many social and economic restrictions and changes have come out of this troubled past. The suffering of laborers brought along work condition regulations. Child labor was outlawed, and the underpayment and long hours of these same laborers brought along regulation there as well. Not to mention, this flexed muscle of American Industry showed U.S. citizens and the world alike what they were capable of in the world of mass manufacturing. Maybe all of the corruption, exploitation, and suffering of the Gilded Age aided in the sculpture of society today.
During the Gilded Age—a period that began in the 1870s wherein the United States experienced tremendous economic growth—affluent industrialists such as John D. Rockefeller, Andrew W. Mellon, Cornelius Vanderbilt, J.P. Morgan, and Andrew Carnegie exercised, owing in large part to their wealth, enormous influence over the direction of American politics. Though left unaddressed during the Gilded Age, the issue of corporate involvement in political affairs was eventually identified as a corrosive problem in President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1904 State of the Union address. In his address, Roosevelt asserted that corporate spending in federal elections had the potential to engender corruption—or the appear...
The winners and losers are clearly demonstrated in the cases Ryan v. New York Central Railroad (1866) and Farwell v. Boston and Worcester Railroad (1842). In Ryan v. New York Central Railroad, a fire broke out on a railroad train and eventually spread to Ryan’s house where it burned to the ground. It was found that the train company was not at fault because it could not control how the fire would spread or foresee the damages of their negligence. (Hall 211) In Farwell v. Boston and Worcester Railroad, Farwell was suing because his hand was crushed by a train accident when another employee did not switch the train to the correct track. It was found that the employer was not responsible for the actions of their employee, moving away from the master and servant doctrine that was precedent. It also found that employees had to assume the risk of their work prior to taking the job, so they should ensure that they get paid enough money in order to assume the risk. This put the burden of injury on the the employee, and put making a safe working environment on the employee.(Hall 184). From these cases it became clear that the “winners” in the nineteenth century were those growing the economy, or the companies. In both cases it was found that the companies were not at fault and the burden of proof shifted to the employees and those affected by the
The Gilded Age refers to a period in which things were fraudulent and deceitful; the surface was clinquant while underneath that lustrous coat laid corruption. During the Gilded Age companies recruited to corrupt methods to further increase profits, leading to an increase in power, rapid economic prosperity, and domination of industries, leading to monopolistic corporations. As a result, antitrust laws to regulate business began to emerge in the late 19th and early 20th century known as the Progressive Era. Among these companies was Standard Oil, which was founded in 1870 by John D. Rockefeller; in 1880, Standard Oil was responsible for refining 90 percent of America’s oil and between 1880-1910, dominating the oil industry (Marshall). The lack of intervention from the government and regulations impeding monopolistic practices allowed Standard Oil to
During the 1800’s, business leaders who built their affluence by stealing and bribing public officials to propose laws in their favor were known as “robber barons”. J.P. Morgan, a banker, financed the restructuring of railroads, insurance companies, and banks. In addition, Andrew Carnegie, the steel king, disliked monopolistic trusts. Nonetheless, ruthlessly destroying the businesses and lives of many people merely for personal profit; Carnegie attained a level of dominance and wealth never before seen in American history, but was only able to obtain this through acts that were dishonest and oftentimes, illicit. Document D resentfully emphasizes the alleged capacity of the corrupt industrialists. In the picture illustrated, panic-stricken people pay acknowledgment to the lordly tycoons. Correlating to this political cartoon, in 1900, Carnegie was willing to sell his holdings of his company. During the time Morgan was manufacturing
James B. Weaver illustrates the true damage of monopolies on the public in “A Call to Action” (Document 4). Weaver, a two-time candidate for president of the United States, addresses the meticulous tactics which trusts and monopolies use to increase their profit at the expense of the public and asserts that their main weapons are, ”threats, intimidation, bribery, fraud, wreck, and pillage.” Arguments such as Weaver’s, suggest and end to the end of the laissez-faire capitalism that monopolies are sustained upon. Laissez-faire capitalism is essentially a system where the government takes no position in the affairs of businesses and does not interfere, no matter what harm is being done. This ideology dominated the business world of the century and allowed for vast unemployment, low wages, and impoverishment. Soon, laborers also begin to express their dismay with the way that such businesses are run and the treatment of workers in the railroad industry. An instance of this being the Pullman Strike of 1894. In 1894, laborers went on a nationwide strike against the Pullman Company; they issued a statement regarding their strike in June (Document 6). Workers are repulsed by Pullman’s exertion of power over several institutions and how his greed affects his competitors, who must reduce their wages to keep up with his businesses. This incident inspires many to take
Have you ever wondered what it would have been like to live in this world and country during the transition from a rural; agriculture society to an economic nation rise of an industrialized society? Well that is exactly what the people of the Gilded Age experienced. It was a time of a dramatic business and political practice. In order for the business’s to rise there soon became a great amount of separation towards the people and the country. This caused our society to experience a stressful time and made it very difficult for ideas and concepts to equal out. Throughout this specific document there are four sources that were written by different individuals. Each and every source has an explanation and an overview of the times in the Gilded Age.
The Transportation Revolution in the 1800s, sparked up industrialization and the building of railroads that stimulated every other industry causing an economic boom known as the Gilded Age. From the outside, America seemed like the place to go to make all your dreams come true. But in reality, in was an era of serious social problems mainly caused by an economy with a free market policy, low tariffs, low taxes, less spending, and a hands-off government. This type of economy would eventually lead to the development of monopolies. These monopolies would then, in turn, lead to worker uprisings ‒caused by the suppression of unions created mostly by unskilled workers‒ that would contribute to the rapid rise and downfall of America. An example of this suppression is the Homestead Strike of 1892; due to hostility created by the unions, the employer fired all the workers, and rehired them on the basis that there would not be any more unions. After the workers started working again, the conditions were still unbearable, so the workers shut down the facility. The police got involved, the workers were pushed back, and the facility was reopened union free.
The organized labor movement from 1875 to 1900 is to blame for the problems unions face today as early labor unions crucified themselves politically, alienated themselves socially and failed to increase the socio-economic position of the worker, and in many cases only succeeded in worsening such positions. The political crucifixion of the early blue-collar industrial worker was directly caused by organized labor. Before such ‘organization, existed, workers flew under the political radar in the best of ways. They were allowed to live peaceful lives and given the unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In fact, the commodore Andrew Carnegie had achieved the American dream in his rags to riches advancement and he offered the same opportunity to each of his workers.
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.
... J. P. Morgan and Company to reflect his power. Morgan also got a stranglehold on several other industries by buying out Carnegie Steel, oil companies, and railroads. Morgan soon went back to his roots and started acquiring more banks, financial firms, and insurance providers. (Moritz 35-39) Today, J. P. Morgan and Company is known as JPMorgan Chase, easily the world's largest global financial services firm.
The social and economic developments of the last quarter of the nineteenth century drastically changed the United States. The business world changed once industrialization was introduced to the world. Opportunities grew as people heard about the boundless American opportunities. Immigrants from all races flooded the cities which doubled in population from 1860-1900 (Barnes and Bowles, 2014, p. 34). However, as industries grew, owners prospered off the hard work of others. People started to feel they were not being treated fairly. People had to work harder and longer for their money. Barnes and Bowles (2014) noted “In the era of industrialization, millions of workers fought to simply have the right to work in safe conditions, and earn a fair wage” (p. 45). Many Americans feared that giant corporations would one day seek to restrict the ability of common people to get ahead and curtail individual freedoms. These fears were particularly strong among farmers, laborers, an...
The life of an immigrant in the United States during the Gilded Age was a rough life. During this time period the U.S. went through a dramatic change in dealing with changing infrastructure and masses of people coming over from different countries for a chance at a better life. This time period was characterized by small wage jobs, poor working conditions and the struggle to survive. The Jungle embodies the themes of the Gilded Age with first hand experiences of an immigrant's hardships of life.
Expansive growth was the moniker which expressly defined the Gilded Age. Industry in all sectors, witnessed massive growth leading to the creation of an American economy. Due to the rapidly changing nature of industrialization important men of both the public and private sectors attempted to institute their own controls over it. However this transforming landscape integrated both economic and political changes, but also cultural and social interactions. In turn, those who controlled the flow of business would also steadily impact the American social scene by extension. Alan Trachtenberg, professor of American studies at Yale and author of The Incorporation of America, argues that the system of incorporation unhinged the idea of national identity that all American’s had previously shared. As a result incorporation became the catalyst for the great debate about what it meant to actually be American, and who was capable of labeling themselves as such. Throughout his work Trachtenberg consistently tackles the ideas of cultural identity and how those ideas struggled against one another to be the supreme definition of Americanism. This work not only brings to life the issue of identity but it attempts to synthesize various scholarly works into a cohesive work on the Gilded Age and demonstrates that concepts developed during the incorporation of the time period have formed the basis for the American cultural, economic, and political superstructure. The Incorporation of America sets a high standard for itself one in which it doesn’t necessarily meet; however the work is still expansive and masterful at describing the arguments of the Gilded Age.
Mark Twain collaborated with Charles Dudley Warner on The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today. Published in 1973, as Twain’s earliest work of extended fiction, The Gilded Age gives a name to the period of opulence and corruption at the end of the 19th century. Portraying the superficial luxury of Washington and high society, the authors describe “The general laxity of the time, and the absence of a sense of duty toward any part of the community but the individual himself” (Twain 203). Twain’s The Gilded Age, like Wharton’s The Age of Innocence focuses on high society. Yet, the imperfections in the gilding betray the dramatic change of the period. Forces of corporatization, unionization, immigration, urbanization, populism, post-reconstruction racism and machine politics were among the drastic changes in American lifestyle churning beneath the brittle “gilded” surface.
During the nineteenth and twentieth century monopolizing corporations reigned over territories, natural resources, and material goods. They dominated banks, railroads, factories, mills, steel, and politics. With companies and industrial giants like Andrew Carnegies’ Steel Company, John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company and J.P. Morgan in which he reigned over banks and financing. Carnegie and Rockefeller both used vertical integration meaning they owned everything from the natural resources (mines/oil rigs), transportation of those goods (railroads), making of those goods (factories/mills), and the selling of those goods (stores). This ultimately led to monopolizing of corporations. Although provided vast amount of jobs and goods, also provided ba...