Reform Movements in the United States Sought to Expand...

As Americans entered an era of transition and instability, they sought to expand democratic ideals in the society. In response to sudden changes occurring and traditional values being challenged, various reform movements during 1825-1850 began to focus on democratic ideals. The rise of religious revivals, movements for equal rights and protecting liberties of different social groups, want to advance society technologically, and desire to bring order and control helped reform the society to live up to the nation’s founding ideals. Teaching them (I don’t get who â€Å"them† is) the habits of thrift, orderliness, temperance and industry was a way to not only better their lives but a way to instill certain democratic values and advance the†¦show more content†¦The Transcendentalist movement, founded by Ralph Waldo Emerson was populated by his essay Nature, as well as other works such as Henry David Thoreau’s Nature. The increasing quality and afforda bility of such books as well as newspapers, with new perspectives and philosophies printed by new machines, allowed the common people access to new knowledge. Society was now exposed to knowledge such as: philosophy, current events, and political information which brought up the level of education of the common man. Not only were books made cheaper and more available, an abundance of higher quality goods and services such as better foods, clothes, and a better transportation system now became available to the society. As Horace Greenley of the New York Tribune accounts: â€Å"We have universalized all the beautiful and glorious results of industry and skill†¦ We have made them a common possession of the people†¦. We have democratized the means and appliances of a higher life (Art and Industry 58).† Greenley is saying that the Progress of the Age has brought high quality goods previously only for aristocrats down to the common people, raising the living standard of t he common people: a true democratic value. Out of all these technological breakthroughs, the railroad became the symbol of the Progress of the Age and the expansion of democratic ideals. Even artists of the HudsonShow MoreRelatedReform Movements in Second Great Awakening Essay1391 Words   |  6 Pages‘Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals. Assess the validity of this statement with specific reference to the years 1825-1850.’ Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals from the quarter century time period of 1825-1850 also known as the Second Great Awakening. These democratic ideals included voting for everyone eighteen and older (with the exception of minors, women, insane, and criminals), freedom of expression, press, speechRead MoreApush Dbqs Essay2248 Words   |  9 Pages2011 DBQ: (Form A) 1. Analyze the international and domestic challenges the United States faced between 1968 and 1974, and evaluate how President Richard Nixon’s administration responded to them. (Form B) 1. Explain the ways that participation in political campaigns and elections in the United States changed between 1815 and 1840, and analyze forces and events that led to these changes. 2010 DBQ: (Form A) 1. In what ways did ideas and values held by Puritans influence the politicalRead MoreAp Exam Essays1660 Words   |  7 Pages1660s? 2. Analyze the political, diplomatic, and military reasons for the United States victory in the Revolutionary War. Confine your answer to the period 1775–1783. 3. Analyze the ways in which controversy over the extension of slavery into western territories contributed to the coming of the Civil War. Confine your answer to the period 1845–1861. 4. Analyze the roles that women played in Progressive Era reforms from the 1880s through 1920. Focus your essay on TWO of the following.