HIST 615: Problems in American History

HIST 615-007: The Political Economy of the Gilded Age
(Spring 2012)

07:20 PM to 10:00 PM R

Section Information for Spring 2012

The era Mark Twain sarcastically dubbed “The Gilded Age,” witnessed a thorough and complete transformation of American society and economy. In the three decades following the Civil War, an economy driven by small, independent producers was replaced by one dominated by large-scale industrial corporations. Captains of industry and a rising middle class benefited mightily from rapidly rising incomes. Meanwhile, laborers who had carefully nurtured dreams of economic independence more often found themselves trapped in a lifetime of wage labor as members of a new and permanently proletarian working class. In the countryside, American farmers watched helplessly as their wealth and status declined under the weight of increasingly competitive world markets. At the same time, America became urban, and the nation's growing cities filled with millions of immigrants. In short during the Gilded Age, America became modern. In this course we will trace the wrenching economic and social upheaval Americans faced in the aftermath of the Civil War, and the strategies they developed to deal with them. We will pay particular attention to those strategies that exposed the fundamental tension between demands for economic liberty and desires for political equality. Readings will range from David Montgomery's Citizen Worker and Sven Beckert's The Monied Metropolis to Rebecca Edwards' Angels in the Machinery and Barbara Young Welke's Recasting American Liberty. This course will satisfy the “1861-1914” distribution requirement in U.S. history.

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 1-6

Readings and discussion of bibliographies, interpretations, and research trends in topics selected by instructor. Notes: May be repeated for credit when topic is different. May be repeated within the term.
Specialized Designation: Green Leaf Related Course, Topic Varies
Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate, Non-Degree or Undergraduate level students.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Lec/Sem #1, Lec/Sem #2, Lec/Sem #3, Lec/Sem #4, Lec/Sem #5, Lec/Sem #6, Lec/Sem #7, Lec/Sem #8, Lec/Sem #9, Lecture, Sem/Lec #10, Sem/Lec #11, Sem/Lec #12, Sem/Lec #13, Sem/Lec #14, Sem/Lec #15, Sem/Lec #16, Sem/Lec #17, Sem/Lec #18
Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.

The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes.