Dorothea Dix's Remarks On Prison Dbq

In the mid 19th century, there are so many irregularities , they created a unit of of it. At that time, tensions were rising politically, so between that strain and the increasing pressure from reformers, America was a boiling pot. Presidents such as Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, and John Tyler were in office at this time, and their dismissal of these social changes only allowed them unrestrained and undirected growth. This was seen with the popularity of Christian ministers like Charles Grandison Finney, Lyman Beecher, and Henry Ward Beecher who cause an uprising of American Presbyterians in the northeast and midwest. This caused almost radical revivals of religion, that stressed societal change to reach salvation. Thus, religion

However, not only were popular reforms used, but also lesser known ones, as shown in George Ripley’s letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson that talks about his experimental community, Brook Farm, and reasons that the hard work necessary at his community allows for further internal though, leading to personal religious revelation(Doc 5). Furthermore, a somewhat smaller reform, the cause for rights for people in mental institutions and prisons which is demonstrated in Dorothea Dix’s “Remarks on Prisons and Prison Discipline in the United States” and she talks about how workers in the aforementioned practices should be of a high moral standard and have good Christian values(Doc 6). These traits would exponentially increase the standard of living in the hospitals/prisons. This was a very intelligent method, as it played on people’s pride, and it ended up working as conditions did end up improving from her efforts. While movements that were small did use this method often, it’s also seen in famous ones as well. David Walker actually criticized Christianity, calling them hypocrites and angrily calling for slaves to rise up and to do their best to escape forced servitude and go north(Doc 3). As it came from a man who was colored, albeit never a slave, he had an interesting perspective and somewhat convinced slaves that there was a chance of freedom in the north. With the added umph of religion, small movements were able to get the kickstart they needed to gain popularity, from small churches, to meetings with thousands of