American History Homework Seven Answers - Student Seven

Ruth L 10/23/2008 American History Andrew Schlafly

1\. What was the "Gilded Age"? The “Gilded Age” was a phrase coined by Samuel Clemens (his pen name was Mark Twain). The phrase came out of his book The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today. This book said (or some people would say “exposed”) that even though everything in America seemed to be going well, at the base of it all was corruption and greed; underneath the golden prosperity was plain dishonesty.

Correct.

2\. What do you like about Thomas Edison, and do you think homeschooling him created enormous wealth? I like that even though Edison was amazingly brilliant and innovative, he still stayed humble and understood that it was God who was in control. “Until man duplicates a blade of grass, nature can laugh at his so-called scientific knowledge....” “I believe that the science of chemistry alone almost proves the existence of an intelligent creator.” His being homeschooled may have indirectly caused his wealth. Since his mother homeschooled him and instilled in him self-assurance, he became confident enough to do things and create things that had never been tried before. The inventions that he created gave him enormous wealth. However, he might have gone on to invent even if he had stayed in public school. We’ll never know for sure.

Great quote, and superb analysis ... except you seem to miss the point that homeschooling Edison created enormous wealth for everyone. His inventions did more than make him wealthy; they made all of society wealthier than it had been.

3\. How do you think the frontier might have affected the views of Americans? The frontier gave Americans who were down on their luck another chance. It gave them a new feeling of hope that they could start all over again in a new place.

Good, but you might relate the frontier to more influential views, such as politics or religion. We'll see if the Model Answers develop something insightful.

4\. What do you think is special about the United States that has made it the world leader in inventions? The United States was founded by people who thought differently than others. Americans thought they could defeat the most powerful nation in the world. They thought they could establish a kind of government that had had little or no success before. They thought that people should have freedom of religion. These were all very new ideas. And the people who had them created an environment of ingenuity in America.

Excellent points.

5\. How influential do you think political cartoons really are? Give an example or two. Political cartoons can be very influential. For example, in the late 1800s, a democratic party called “Tammany Hall” literally controlled New York City. The party was the most corrupt political party in America in decades, perhaps even the most corrupt political party in America ever. From manipulating the elections to make their people get elected, to outright stealing from the government, this party gave a whole new meaning to the word “dishonest.” They were finally stopped by a cartoon by Thomas Nast. This cartoon ridiculed Tammany Hall for its deceitfulness and rallied the people against it. Disgusted by what they saw in Nast’s cartoon, the demanded that Tammany Hall be stopped. Another example of the influence of political cartoons is the cartoon of Uncle Sam pointing his finger and saying “I want you.” This picture has become the face of Uncle Sam and America.

Excellent examples that fully support your position. Will use your second example as a model answer!

6\. Other than Thomas Edison, who do you think was the most influential person between 1877 and 1896? I think that John Rockefeller was the most influential person between 1877 and 1896 other than Thomas Edison because Rockefeller began the first large oil company.

Good, though it's not clear why starting the first "large" oil company would be so influential.

7\. Please interpret the cartoon below, with special emphasis on explaining the images used and including a description of the point of view of the cartoonist. This cartoon shows Uncle Sam (America) sinking in “quicksand gold” with mountains of silver nearby. The sun is rising, radiating prosperity over the gold and leaving America in the dark, stuck in gold. The view of the cartoonist is that America should not have a gold standard, as having it will only cause America to sink.

Great, but mention how the sinking is like deflation. (Minus 1).

Great work. Score: 69/70.--Aschlafly 17:48, 31 October 2008 (EDT)