Cultural Aspirations In The New Nation: The Rise Of Cultural Nationalism

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• Thomas Jefferson assumed control of the national government in 1801. He wanted a nation of independent farmers and a system of universal education. He wanted a nation with a weak central government and more power in the state. • American economy was becoming more diverse and complex. • Jefferson dismantled the Federalist government. I. The Rise of Cultural Nationalism • Republican vision was to increase education and adjust American religion. A. Patterns of Education 1. Importance of a Virtuous Citizenry • Republicans wanted a system of public schools • All white males should receive free education 2. Private Schooling • Schooling became the responsibility of private institutions • South-religious, New England- secular 3. New Educational …show more content…

1. Benjamin Rush • Advocate of the new technique of bleeding and purging; which killed many patients. 2. Decline of Midwifery • The medical profession also used its newfound commitment to the “scientific” method to justify expanding its own control to kind of care that had traditionally been outside its domain. C. Cultural Aspirations in the New Nation 1. Establishment of National Culture • America wanted their own form of cultural independence 2. Noah Webster • Noah Webster’s speller and dictionary established a national standard of words and usages. • A growing number of American authors struggled to create a strong native literature. 3. Washington Irving • Acclaimed for his satirical histories of early American life and his powerful tables of society in the New World. D. Religious Skepticism • American revolution caused a decline in piety 1. Deism • Accepted the existence of God but considered him a remote being that withdrew after creation • Thomas Paine’s The Age of Reason. • New England Congregational Church rejected predestination and the idea of the Trinity. • James Murray founded the Universalist Church • 1779- The Unitarian Church in Boston was