History of the Progressive Era (Research Paper Sample)

History of the Progressive Era Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation History of the Progressive Era Part 1: Evaluating Stakes of the Book “Standing at Armageddon: A Grassroots History of the Progressive Era” is a book written by Nell Irvine Painter providing comprehensive and lively historical account of America’s transition from a rural and farming society to an urbanized and industrial center. The themes that the author includes in the book regard power and resistance as the employees and elite managers struggle over basic matters of economic justice. In this case, workers demanded for decent pay and handling with dignity, while the management got more concerned with sustenance of status quo. The author looks at the period from a bottom up perspective, assessing the average American employee in various occupational sections. The aim is to make the reader comprehend the way that the struggles between labor and management of the time molded the relationships in the present. It is clear that Painter writes about the events during the time through the political, social, and cultural lenses. By using a wide range of information from primary and secondary sources including government statistics, newspapers, journals, and court records among others, Painter depicts how events during the time would frame the association between labor and management during a big part of the 20th century. One of the best ways Painter engages with readers is by following the money route and depicting how trusts, taxes, as well as tariffs influenced the common person. From an analytical point of view, Painter does well in her narration and use of primary and secondary sources as she concisely explains the vital political as well as social events during the time and the way they influenced the everyday employee. Part II: Analyzing the Sources The Use of Secondary Sources Painter succeeds in the application of secondary sources in depicting the transition period of the United States from an agrarian to an industrialized country. She considers various occupational areas including farmers, train employees, and steel personnel among others (Painter, 2008, p. 31). The aim is to show the changes as ones that emanated from political, social, as well as cultural sources. A good illustration is given by Alexander Keyssar in an article titled “Out of Work: The First Century of Unemployment in Massachusetts”. Keyssar (1986) indicates that in industrialized states such as Massachusetts, more than 30% of the workforce had been forced out of their working places for a period of four months in a year during the worst periods (p. 4). Adam Przeworski also appears in the secondary source section with an excerpt titled “Capitalism and Social Democracy”. Przeworski (1985) illustrates that children of Europeans that had moved in the late 19th century had emerged to be teachers for the black migrants although their mobility was only restricted within the working class. Indeed, this was seen as discrimination during such a transitioning period. Beginning at the termination of the Reconstruction period in 1877, the author depicts the way the upper-class elite got dominance over those in the lower statuses. In this regard, it becomes clear that the upper class used race, gender, as well as ethnicity to sustain labor. A good example was in the way that black workers that worked in the train department were only permitted to execute duties as porters. Moreover, the women were maintained at the lowest wages in plants. Violence was seen in strikes as a way for their voices to be listened to by their managers (Painter, 2008, p. 121). Painter does well in explaining such challenges during the era through secondary sources, such as that by Steven Dubnoff titled “A Method for Estimating the Economic Welfare of American Families of Any Composition”. Here, Dubnoff (1980) illustrates that throughout the period many heads of households including servants and agricultural and factory laborers used to make even less than the required threshold of between $506 and $660 in order to maintain their families and keep them out of poverty (p. 177). In a book titled “Historical Statistics of the United States” Susan Carter and friends depict the change in the workforce during the era. In this case, in 1880 almost one-half of the workforces in the United States was in farming, but the progressive era led to just a little more than a quarter remaining on the land (Carter et al., 2006, p. 164). Ideally, the sources play a significant role in depicting the transitions during the hard situations at the time. From analysis, Painter (2008) does well in illustrating that what happened during the period would have significant impact on labor management relations in the years that followed. Alan Trachtenberg wrote an article titled “The Incorporation of America: Culture and Society in the Gilded Age”, which has also been used as a secondary source by Painter to illustrate the progressive era. Trachtenberg (1982) illustrates that a Wall Street panic that occurred in 1873 had introduced an atmosphere where businesses went bankrupt and many of them failed (p. 39). Indeed, this shows how the situation was getting worse at the time before the progressive era. Obviously, this affected labor significantly as many workers had to be laid off. Eric Foner’s article “Politics and Ideology in the Age of the Civil War” illustrates the politics of deference brought about by the 1867 constitutional convention obligated by Congress (Foner, 1980, p. 114). Another secondary source is one by James M. McPherson titled “Ordeal by Fire: The Civil War and Reconstruction”. In this one, McPherson (1984) depicts that a majority of people were then ready during the era to condemn any form of interference on the part of the government (p. 594). From such secondary sources, it becomes evident that much happened that affected the events that followed, especially in the labor sector through political and social pressures. The Use of Primary Sources Painter has also done quite well in applying primary sources in explaining the transitioning process during the progressive era. Through such primary sources it becomes evident that workers were the mainstay of the society in the United States. In this case, they were able to influence the political system and led to the change. Painter (2008) does so by illustrating the critical political and social occurrences during the era and the manner in which they impacted on the employees (p. 13). She does so by depicting different political parties and the way they eventually led to labor reforms (Painter, 2008, p. 275). In these illustrations, the author uses various primary sources including one by W. H. Orr titled “Report of the Committee of the Senate Upon the Relations Between Labor and Capital”. Orr (1885) illustrates that men were viewed as parts of the machinery that they used to work on at the time (p. 219). The political and social reforms had been noted to influence changes even in the factories. The monotonous jobs did not need extensive training since the managers made most of the decisions. Walter A. Wy...