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How Did Jacob Riis Impact Society

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The mid-1820s to 1980s was known as the Progressive Era. In this era, many economic and social changes transformed America. Progressives are people who sought for these changes by documenting, taking pictures, or even radically getting their point across. One such person was a man named Jacob Riis. In this essay we will travel through the life of Jacob Riis; from his birth to his death, his works and impact on society then and now. Jacob Riis was born on May 3, 1849 in Ribe, Denmark and died on May 26, 1914 at the age of 65. He was the third of fifteen children in his family. His father, Niels Edward Riis, was a schoolteacher and sometimes wrote for the town newspaper. His mother, Carolina Riis, was a homemaker (stay at home mom). Out of his …show more content…

The ways in which he attempted to aid these immigrants was publishing a book called How the Other Half Lives. This book was read by thousands and released the awful conditions for living and work. This book was an awakening for society on basically how immigrants and the poor live and work. Theodore Roosevelt, who read Riis’ book, called Riis “ the best American I ever knew”. He also gave lectures to raise awareness along with newspapers, and books. Riis wrote many other books such as The Battle with the Slums and Children of the Tenements. Both these books mainly focused on life in tenements, but also on work condition and living in this time as a child. Jacob Riis is classified as a Progressive because he sought to change what he though was wrong. In Riis’s case he thought having more than one family in tenements was wrong. Or the fact that working in extremely unsafe working conditions was wrong. Jacob Riis has left a large imprint on today’s environment. For one he helped start the progressives fight for what they believed in and some had more effects than others. Some of his authentic newspaper articles and photographs are in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C. Jacob Riis was and is a prominent figure in our society

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In 1870, Riis emigrated to the United States and spent the next years wandering the northeastern part of the country. He didn 't have a stable job so when he obtained a job as a police reporter for the New York Tribune his life turned around. He took a position with the Evening Sun, then through his newspaper work he became closely familiar with New York 's poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods. In the 19th century, he started exposing the life of the lower class in New York city. In How the other half lives by Jacob Riis, he discusses how the half that was on top really didn 't care much about other than themselves and how the poor suffer.

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To do so, I will begin with a general overview of the “Gilded Age” and the immigrants’ situation during this era. Afterwards, I will examine the characteristics of Riis’ work. Following this, I will show the immediate impact Riis’ publication had.

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In How the Other Half Lives Riis describes the system of tenement housing that had failed, as he claims, due to greed and neglect from wealthier people. He claims a correlation between the high crime rate, drunkenness and reckless behaviour of the poor and their lack of a proper home. Chapter by chapter he uses his words and photographs to expose the conditions inhabited by the poor in a manner that “spoke directly to people's

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693 Words | 3 Pages

With more widespread access to magazines, news, movies, and other “luxuries”, the containment of individuality and shared opinions of those not in the upper status became increasingly hard. In short, the political leaders of this time tried too hard to control population, cultural assimilation, and force of growth of industry. He uses the historical facts about important public figures of the time such as Theodore Roosevelt, W.E.B Du Bois, and the Rockefellers while explaining and aligning the movements themes and events in relation to the rebels and the Progressives during the particular period of the era he was outlining. He uses these characters of time

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996 Words | 4 Pages

Reforming the Government During the years 1890 to 1920, there was a group of people called the Progressives they identified many problems that they saw in the city at the time. The Progressives were a diverse group of people from every work of life for example: journalists, Democratic politicians, Republican politicians, industry leaders, and many more. They agreed to use scientific principles in order to identify problems, offer solutions, and then in a rational ways solve these problems. For example, a group of journalists who utilized the Progressive ideals were called, “ the Muckrakers,” which helped spread knowledge about political and social problems. The Progressive’s believed society had these problems because of industrialization and organization, however, that is not completely correct.

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In the time between the 1890s and 1920s, America experienced a massive amount of growth. People in poverty-stricken, overcrowded cities suffered greatly. In big cities, politicians kept power using several political machines. Companies created monopolies and controlled the nation’s economy. Many Americans were concerned about this, and believed that great change was needed in society to protect everyday people.

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Though both authors wrote based on their own personal experiences. Upton Sinclair went undercover as a worker in these factories and wrote of what he saw, while Jacob Riis went to tenements, wrote or took pictures of what he saw. These two authors were trying to create change. They knew that the workers and the poor living in these tenements couldn’t go anything. So who else to help besides the public?

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John F Kennedy was a level headed, determined and well accomplished person. During his short-lived presidency, he had to take on challenges like no other and did it with sophistication and grace. From conflicts involving other countries, like Vietnam, to the Civil Rights Movement that directly affected our own country, Kennedy continued to take each problem day by day until there was an overall improvement or resolution. It would be safe to say that he is one of the more progressive presidents our country has ever seen. David Burner’s John F. Kennedy and a New Generation was written with the sole purpose of giving an insight into Kennedys upbringing and presidency in an entirely unbiased approach.

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The Progressive era became an iconic time that would not exist if the U.S. was not a democracy. Individuals became empowered to change after seeing all the problems that industrialization created. Progressive era reformers in the late 19th to the early 20th century believed in constructing a new order to improve American welfare. During the progressive movement many progressives such as Robert F. La Follete and Jane Addams sought to generate reform for fairness and to enhance moral values. As a civic duty, progressives such as W.E.B Du Bois fought against the racial injustice in America as well as establish a new order to create a more virtuous society.

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During the first two decades of the twentieth century, a large and diverse number of Americans claimed the political label “Progressive.” Progressives all shared a common fundamental belief of developing methods to counteract against the political and social issues of the time. They thrived in tackling some of the most crucial issues of society, as they were able to improve the conditions of the urban environment, increase the democratic influence of citizens, and sap most corruption out of the government. However, as the Progressive Movement successfully managed to cover those areas, it was limited to solving the issues of only white Americans, failing to represent the minorities, especially African Americans.

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674 Words | 3 Pages

The Progressive Era, from 1890- 1920 was an influential time in American history. There was political reform in an effort to bring about social justice, but it was also a time when big businesses thrived. However, in the past their prominence and power went unchecked, now liberal radicals started fighting for justice, making the government control the corporations before they destroyed the country. With big businesses growing at a quick pace, they needed more management, known as middle management, to control it. Alfred Chandler, a business professor, specifically a economist, analyzes this in chapter eight, “Mass Production” from his book, The Visible Hand: The Managerial Revolution in American Business.

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America experienced a sudden disregard of Victorian values following World War I, causing the generation of the 1920s to dramatically contrast the previous. This severe degree of change produced three major manifestations of the contradictions in the twenties. There were massive conflicts to the Jazz Age, technological advancements, and Black Migration. The contradictions of the 1920s reflect America’s conflicted state between advancement and convention, as the cultural and technological developments of the era coincide with the inability of individuals to stray from traditional norms and racist attitudes.

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Michael McGerr notes how these changes affected the American people. From the fast changing ideas of individualism, class differences, labor issues, and immigration to women’s rights and the always-controversial issue of racial discrimination, the Progressive Era shook the entire nation and its citizens to its core. The main theme presented in A Fierce Discontent is the metamorphosis of the concept of individualism. The upper ten were in control of virtually everything during the

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1091 Words | 5 Pages

The progressive era which lasted from 1890-1920 in American society was the institution of radical reforms brought about by the millions of Americans involved in volunteer organizations across the country. During this time Americans worked to create solutions to the problems caused by the rapid industrialization and urbanization of the country. The progressive era was not a single movement, but rather a collection of movements all of which were intended to improve the lives of Americans. This was a truly remarkable time for women and the end of the era would see almost universal women’s suffrage with the passing of the nineteenth amendment in 1920.

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The “Progressive Movement was an early-20th century reform movement seeking to return control of the government to the people, to restore economic opportunity, and to correct injustices in American life.” (Danzer R54). The Progressive Era marked the end of the “Gilded Ages” and a start of a new era. The Progressive Era started in 1901 in the United States (Fagnilli 26). There were many major reforms in the Progressive Era that altered and advanced American society.

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