HIS 132 Midterm

What was Taylorism? 

Scientific management broke down tasks to increase efficiency and made workers interchangeable

What is a corporation?

type of business where the company is considered a separate entity from the owners/institution

Describe the arguments of Social Darwinism. 

The fittest would demonstrate their superiority through economic success

State welfare and charity would lead to social degradation

Inequality is natural

What techniques did labor unions use? 

Strikes, bargained with management 

What did the Populists propose?

National railroad and telegraph, postal savings bank, government warehouses, use of silver for currency, direct election of senators, secret ballot

What opportunities drew migrants to the West? 

Gold and silver rushes, the bison hides they could extract for profit, land (Homestead Act)

Describe American policies toward Native Americans during the West era. 

Indian Removal

Christianized American Indian Policy: The Reservation system was left to Protestant churches to find managers to handle life

Dawes General Allotment Act: 160-acre allotment that split Native tribes into patriarchal families, land cannot be sold for 25 years

What was the purpose of the Dawes General Allotment Act? 

To break up Native tribes into traditional families and encourage their assimilation into American society.

What was the Ghost Dance? 

A spiritual movement that promised renewal and a return to Natives’ traditional life

What was Frederick Jackson Turner’s “Frontier Thesis?” 

The continuous reinvention of civilization out on the Frontier created the traits associated with Americans: hustle, democracy, individualism

How did railroads transform the American economy? 

Created one national integrated economy

Describe the new immigrants of the Gilded Age

The newer immigrants were from Southern and Eastern Europe, like Czech, Poles, Italians

What changes occurred in the New South? 

The South experienced increased industrialization, Lost Cause movement happened, Jim Crow laws were introduced, as well as the prevalence of the lynching of Black Americans. 

What was the Lost Cause? 

It was a movement created by reformers of the South to rewrite the war, celebrate Confederate soldiers, and romanticize the South

Describe social changes during the Gilded Age. 

The difference between the rich and the poor drastically widened, a rise in the working middle class, rising labor protests, changes in a women’s and men’s expression of gender, a lot of reform work 

What was the Open Door Policy? 

All civilizations have a right to trade in Chinese ports; only the Chinese government could collect tariffs and taxes, and foreign powers were to respect China’s sovereignty.

What occurred after the Spanish-American War? 

The U.S. bought the Philippines and ruled over them until the Filipino people revolted and the countries went to war.

What were the arguments for imperialism? 

Helping people become civilized, keeping the peace, and good business opportunities 

What were the arguments against imperialism? 

We should not subjugate people, compromise racial purity, let people self-govern 

How did President Theodore Roosevelt transform the American Navy? 

Updating the ships and weaponry, laying groundwork for new shipyards, and overseeing construction of new battleships, new technology

How did the Roosevelt Corollary modify the Monroe Doctrine? 

The Monroe Doctrine stated that European countries could not interfere in the Western Hemisphere. However, the Roosevelt Corollary allowed the U.S to interfere and act as a police force 

What did muckrakers do? 

They exposed the truth about the conditions in businesses or their shady practices 

What was the social gospel? 

Social movement within protestant Christianity that encouraged Christians to get involved with their community, help the less fortunate, and act as Jesus would 

How did women obtain suffrage? 

Granted right to vote in 19th Amendment

Through a dual strategy of local state voting laws and pushing for ratification of the U.S Constitution 

What is trustbusting? 

Breaking up monopolies into multiple smaller companies to promote fair competition and protect consumers 

What changes did the southern reformers institute in the South? 

Disenfranchisement of Black voters and segregation

Describe American diplomacy prior to WWI. 

Isolationism and neutrality in European conflicts.

What was the Zimmerman Telegram?

An encoded telegram sent by a German diplomat to Mexico, trying to convince them to go to war with the U.S to regain lost land with German support

How did women assist in WWI? 

Through clerical work, nursing or being doctors, and volunteering in organizations such as the American Red Cross, and Salvation Army 

What was the Red Summer of 1919? 

It was a summer when a bunch of riots broke out in at least 25 American cities due to White veterans fighting the new Black Americans living in their old neighborhoods.

Describe the Presidents of the 1920s 

Warren G. Harding: Return to normalcy, less government involvement, more big business 

Calvin Coolidge “Silent Cal”: Continued Harding’s economic approach 

Herbert Hoover: Focused on economic growth and prosperity

How did consumerism shape the 1920s? 

Shifted the culture and economy toward mass consumption, created widespread advertising, and made credit more available. 

What changes occurred for women in the 1920s? 

Gaining the right to vote, increased presence in the workforce, higher standards for housekeeping

What was the Harlem Renaissance? 

A flourishing of African American culture in Harlem, New York

What changes occurred in immigration policy? 

Immigration has been heavily limited by the Emergency Quota Act and the National Origins Act which put a permanent limit on immigration