The Artificial River
When I started to reading this book, I do not imagine what it was about .I am an international student, and I have been living in the U.S for a short time , so many of the issues regarding of American history are new for me. The Erie Canal was part of the unknown subjects. It has been interesting to know, and learned that the Americans have had intension of shaping and preserve its history. And great historians, they would give out even the smallest details that helped make this nation what it is today.
The Artificial River is one of them, and In my opinion the book is very important. One of them is simply the fact that its author has done extensive research as something that brought change impact on ordinary American lives. This canal would promoting the development of the area, helping to growth, and a new way of desarroLLando faster , efficient and inexpensive transport between the residents and merchants of the neighbors towns. Even the American alimentation was impacted by this. Not only because its author causlidad book begins on the words “Oysters! Oysters! Beautiful oysters! "
Another aspect that caught my attention was the simply idea that could change the direction of a country. It is undisputed that when someone has an idea, the only way to see it is simply atreviendoce realizer to carry it out. In this case, the governor of New York State Ell was quie he promoted the construction of this canal.
At the beginning, may be the intentions were changing through its construction process. But it certainly the canal had the support of workers and opposition on top of this many people. A interesting aspect I could say it is that The Erie cans was financed by the New York Stated and...
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... discover . God created man multipique leg and sfructifique earth. And I can say that this work of human ingenuity obeyed the divine command .
I come from a country where so you see the desarrollno not been as acerelado like I'm enscuentro me , usa. but I can alo very important to note in this book , which is that when you have an idea, you can have a plan ejcucion , but many people are needed to support and believe in this plan to succeed . THE Canal, was supplanted by other means of faster transportation , and in winter could work. "If the Erie Canal compressed distance and time , the railroads annihilated them , or so it Appeared to the amazed observer in the mid - nineteenth century" . (173 ) which leaves clear view that the human mind is infinite, and the steady progress reflects an organized nation that thinks about the welfare of their society.
I was able to better understand how easy it was for English laws to change on a case-by-case basis and see how Virginia changed so many of the English laws not long after the first settlers arrived. Also, reading this book helped me understand the reasons behind the changes. Life in Virginia differed than life in England, giving them a need for different laws in certain situations. Not everything in Virginia could be the same as it was in England. Another thing this book helped me to see was how different things were then, than they are now. Laws have changed so much and we have an organized system of keeping the laws. Also, it seems as if a lot of the laws and court cases back then were corresponding to labor and economy. Lastly, each section helped me understand how men and women were treated differently. Initially, men and women were punished just as much for having sex out of wedlock, but later in the book, women were held responsible and men got away with
The Erie Canal was a man made water way that stretched to be three hundred sixty three miles long. The canal started construction in1817, and took nine years to completely finish the building process. People during this time had many positive, and negative opinions about the fact that this expensive canal was being built. The idea of the Erie Canal originates with Jesse Hawley, the idea was to connect the great lakes to the Atlantic ocean making an easy path to the west from the east without having to pass Niagara Falls. The canal was mostly built by Irish immigrants who were hated, or disliked, by most people. People had ideas and predictions about what would come of this canal. Let's just see which of the predictions were more accurate to
George Washington Plunkitt worked his way as a young boy in the New York city politics to become one of the most well know statesman that city has ever now. As a young boy, he became an “apprenticeship of the business “(RIORDON, Chapter, 1) of politics by “working around the district headquarters and hustling about the polls on Election Day” (RIORDON, Chapter, 1). He steadily built a following and became very clever in the political game. Plunkitt had definite idea’s as to what characteristics where needed to thrive in the political arena. If one understood that there could be personal benefits in being in politics, then one could succeed greatly, he was fond of the saying “I seen my opportunities and I took ‘en” (RIORDON, Chapter, 1). In order to make it in the political game, one must distinguish between an honest graft and a dishonest graft. Plunkitt idea’s of an honest graft was to basically find opportunities and take action on them before someone else could benefit from them. While working in city government, Plunkitt used his position to benefit himself and his friend, for example, he would “go to that place and I buy up all the land I can in the neighborhood. Then the board of this or that makes its plan public, and there is a rush to get my land, which nobody cared, particular for before. Ain’t it perfectly honest to charge a good price and make a profit on my investment and foresight? Of course, it is. Well, that’s honest graft. Or supposin’ it’s a new bridge they’re goin’ to build. I get tipped off and I buy, as much property as I can that has to be taken for approaches. I sell at my own price later on and drop some more money in the bank. Wouldn’t you? It’s just like lookin’ ahead in Wall Street or in the cof...
William Hogeland did a great job at finding hidden stories that the majority didn’t know about. I wish it was a easier read but the information was told correctly. He indeed completed his point of the book because sometimes the past is lost to us future readers and we need to know all the events our founding Americans did to give us the country we have today. Also the book show the reader where exactly the federal government started taking control and how the people tried to fight for what they thought was an unjust law.
took a man of great vision and ambition to make the changes the American public sought to
The drive to expand westward, fueled by Manifest Destiny, lead to the colonization and connections that make up the America of today, influenced by the Doctrine of Discovery, industrialization, and the outcome of court cases like Johnson v. M’Intosh. Without this, the unification and might of the United States would be significantly smaller and less influential on the world. As for the novel itself, the book was actually really enjoyable and easy to read. The authors opinion came through with sufficient evidence to back up his claim.
The most meaningful part of the book for me, was the sit-ins, a form of protest in which demonstrators occupy a place, refusing to leave until their demands are met. The reason the sit-ins were so meaningful is that it really brought attention to how Americans were segregating the African Americas. Just as if you do nothing when a bully, whites, is picking on you, blacks, they will continue picking on you until you fight back. The sit-ins were a nonviolent way to show that they no longer will or have to take the abuse.
When reflecting and writing on Eiseley’s essay and the “magical element”, I balk. I think to myself, “What magic?”, and then put pen to page. I dubiously choose a kiddie pool to draw inspiration from, and unexpectedly, inspiration flows into me. As I sit here in this little 10x30 foot backyard, the sky is filled with the flowing gaseous form of water, dark patches of moist earth speckle the yard, the plants soak up their scattered watering, and the leaves of bushes and trees imbue the space with a sense of dampness from their foliage. As my senses tune into the moisture that surrounds me, I fill Braedon’s artificial pond with water. I stare at the shimmering surface, contemplating Eiseley’s narrative, and the little bit of life’s wellspring caught in Brae’s pool. I see why Eiseley thought the most abundant compound on the earth’s surface is mystical.
The first event of importance discussed in chapter ten was the transportation revolution. As the country was growing and expanding westward the American’s were faced with the dilemma of how to best transport goods far from where they were produced for as little money as possible. The introduction of innovative ways to move goods and people were being introduced into the United States such as roads, the Erie Canal, and railroads were readily adopted as a way to address the issue. The reason I feel this was important is because the transportation revolution provided new and cost-effective ways to
In many lives, change is constantly happening. The economics, cultural values, and social ideals are different today from many years ago. For example, men many years ago rely on literature, libraries, and endless hours of searching for sources in order to make speeches and write stories, and they also had different modes of transportations such as trains. On the other hand, in today’s society, it is easier to find sources and to do research because of the advanced technology, and it is also unchallenging to travel due to the innovations of cars and airplanes. With this being said, it is idealistic that change has a positive impact on society due to the advancement of technology and new methods of transportations, and those changes attribute
Professor’s Comments: This is a good example of a book review typically required in history classes. It is unbiased and thoughtful. The Student explains the book and the time in which it was written in great detail, without retelling the entire story… a pitfall that many first time reviewers may experience.
The role of relationship you have with other people often has direct influence on the individual choices and belief in the life. In the short story “on the rainy river”, the author Tim O’Brien inform us about his experiences and how his interacted with a single person had effected his life so could understand himself. It is hard for anyone to be dependent on just his believes and own personal experience, when there are so many people with different belief to influence you choices and have the right choices for you self. Occasionally taking experience and knowledge of other people to help you understand and build from them your own identity and choices in life.
In The Artificial River, Carol Sheriff describes how when the digging of the Erie Canal began on July 4, 1817, no one would have been able to predict that the canal would even be considered a paradox of progress. One of the major contradictions of progress was whether or not triumphing art over nature was even considered progress. People were not sure during the nineteenth century if changing the environment for industrialization was necessarily a good thing. Another contradiction to progress that resulted from the Erie Canal was when people started holding the state government responsible for all their financial misfortunes. An additional contradiction to progress that the Erie Canal displayed was how many of its workers were either children, or men that lived lives that were intemperate and disrespectful to women. As American history students look back at the Erie Canal today, they generally only imagine how the canal was extraordinary for the residents of New York, but not all the issues and problems it also produced.
... line the canal today. The development of the railroad in the 19th century and the automobile in the 20th century sealed the fate of the Erie Canal.
At first, we were a nation of immigrants that prospered in a way that people have never seen. America is known as the land of opportunity, we have innovativeness, and when you really work hard you can definitely make a change for yourself. Turner coins American development by the westward movement. Moving west, and tapping the resources given to us is what made us different. Turner’s thesis is, “The existence of an area of free land, its continuous recession, and the advance of American settlement westward, explain[s] American development. The idea that success came from moving west. This idea wraps up how America became the nation to be.