Main themes of Chapter Fifteen, Reconstruction

and the New South:

Radical Reconstruction changed the South in many significant ways, but ultimately fell short of the full
transformation needed to secure equality for the freedmen.
White society and the federal government lacked the will to effectively enforce most of the
constitutional and legal guarantees acquired by blacks during Reconstruction.
The policies of the Grant administration moved beyond Reconstruction matters to foreshadow issues
of the late nineteenth century, such as political corruption and currency reform.
White leaders reestablished economic and political control of the South and sought to modernize the
region through industrialization while redrawing the color line of racial discrimination in public life.
The race question continued to dominate Southern life well past Reconstruction into modern times.

A thorough study of Chapter Fifteen should enable the student to understand the following:

The competing notions of freedom that arose in the years immediately after the Civil War, and the
attempt by the Freedmen's Bureau to negotiate them
The Reconstruction strategy begun by Abraham Lincoln before his death, and Andrew Johnson's
response to it
The differences between Presidential and Congressional Reconstruction, and the reasons for the
transition to the latter set of policies
The meanings of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments for civil rights in the South
The Reconstruction governments in practice, and Southern (black and white) reaction to them
The growth and impact of sharecropping and the crop-lien system on the economic development of
the South and the economic independence of former slaves
The debate among historians concerning the nature of Reconstruction, its accomplishments, and its
ultimate effects on the South
The national problems faced by President Ulysses S. Grant, and the reasons for his lack of success as
chief executive in the domestic arena
The diplomatic successes of Grant's administrations, including the purchase of Alaska and the settling
of the Alabama claims
The critical greenback question, and how it reflected the postwar financial problems of the nation
The alternatives available to address the crisis spawned by the election of 1876, and the effects of the
so-called Compromise of 1877 on Reconstruction
The methods used by "Redeemers" in the South to achieve "home rule," and the social, economic, and
racial decisions made by Southern whites in fashioning the New South
The reasons for the failure of the South to develop a strong industrial economy after Reconstruction
The ways in which Southerners decided to handle the race question, and the origin of the system of
racial discrimination identified with "Jim Crow"
The response of blacks to conditions in the South following Reconstruction



Main themes of Chapter Sixteen, The Conquest of
the Far West:

The varied and vibrant ethnic and racial cultures that characterized the American West and how
Anglo-European whites enforced their dominant role by the latter part of the nineteenth century
The transformation of the Far West from a sparsely populated region of Indians, and various early
settlers of European and Asian background into a part of the nation's capitalistic economy
The closing of the frontier as Indian resistance was eliminated, miners and cowboys spearheaded
settlements, and government-subsidized railroads opened the area for intensive development
The development of mining, ranching, and commercial farming as the three major industries of the
West
The problems faced by farmers as the agricultural sector entered a relative decline

A thorough study of Chapter Sixteen should enable the student to understand the following:

The cultural characteristics of the varied populations of the region
The pattern of settlement of the last American frontier, and the significance of the frontier in
American history
The growth of the American cultural romance with the West, as reflected by the Rocky Mountain
school, the writings of Mark Twain, and the shows of Buffalo Bill Cody
The impact of the discovery of gold and silver in the West both on the region and on the nation as a
whole
The development of the cattle industry in the American Southwest after 1860
The methods used by the federal government to reduce the threat of the Plains Indians, and the
Indians' ultimate fate
The reasons for the transition from subsistence farming to commercial farming, the effect of the
change on the West, and the growing agrarian malaise affecting farmers in the wake of urban
industrialization

Main themes of Chapter Seventeen, Industrial
Supremacy:

How various factors (raw materials, labor supply, new technology, business organization, growing
markets, and friendly governments) combined to thrust the United States into worldwide industrial
leadership
How this explosion of industrial capitalism was both extolled for its accomplishments and attacked for
its excesses
How American workers, who on the average benefited, reacted to the physical and psychological
realities of the new economic order

A thorough study of Chapter Seventeen should enable the student to understand the following:

The reasons for the rapid industrial development of the United States in the late nineteenth century
The impact of individual entrepreneurship and technological innovations in promoting industrial
expansion, and the development of new industries such as steel, oil, automobiles, and aviation
The changes that were taking place in the incorporation, organization, and management of American
business
The ways in which older notions of individualism and the newer concept of Social Darwinism combined
to preach the gospel of wealth and to justify the social consequences of the new industrial capitalism
The critics of the new industrial capitalism, and the solutions they proposed
The conditions of immigrants, women, and children in the work force
The attempt by organized labor to form national associations, and the reasons why craft-based labor
organizations became the norm
The reasons that organized labor generally failed in its efforts to achieve its objectives

Main themes of Chapter Eighteen, The Age of the
City:

The social and economic lure of the city attracted both foreign and domestic migrations, and these
newcomers adjusted to city life in ways that transformed their new urban homes.
Rapid urban growth forced adaptations to severe problems of government mismanagement, poverty,
crime, inadequate housing, and precarious health and safety conditions.
The urban environment served as the locus for new philosophical ideas, expanded leisure
opportunities, fresh approaches to education, rapid expansion in journalism, and a new consumerism.
The new order of "high" urban culture inspired both serious writers and artists to render realistic
portrayals of the seamy side of city life, while many middle- and upper-class Americans were engaging in
expanded forms of leisure and entertainment.

A thorough study of Chapter Eighteen should enable the student to understand the following:

The patterns and processes of urbanization in late-nineteenth-century America
The changes in the pattern of immigration in the late nineteenth century, and the native response to
these changing patterns
The new economic and social problems created by urbanization, and the technological responses to
these problems
The relationships of both urbanization and immigration to the rise of boss rule
The early rise of mass consumption and its impact on American life and leisure
The changes in leisure and entertainment and the growth of mass-culture opportunities including
organized sports, vaudeville, movies, and other activities
The impact of new mass communications technologies on the character of urban life
The main trends in literature and art during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
The impact of the Darwinian theory of evolution on the intellectual life of America
The profound new developments in American educational opportunities, particularly for women

Main themes of Chapter Nineteen, From
Stalemate to Crisis:

The effects of the political equilibrium of the Democratic and Republican parties during the late
nineteenth century, and the origins of this equilibrium in differing regional and sociocultural bases
The inability of the political system and a limited national government to respond effectively to the
nation's rapid social and economic changes, particularly the advent of large corporations and industrial
capitalism
The powerful but unsuccessful challenge mounted by the troubled agrarian sector to the new
directions of American industrial capitalism, and how this confrontation came to a head during the
crises of the 1890s and the election of 1896
The evolution of the old continental concept of Manifest Destiny to justify a new expansion of America
across the seas
The initial forays of American imperial power into places such as Hawaii and Samoa
The role of the Spanish-American War in catalyzing these imperialist stirrings into a full-fledged
American empire
The attitudinal, political, and military adjustments forced on the nation in its new role as a major world
power
The American imperial experience in the Philippines and China, and what lessons American leaders
took from both

A thorough study of Chapter Nineteen should enable the student to understand the following: \

The nature of American party politics in the last third of the nineteenth century
The problems of political patronage in the administrations of Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield,
and Chester A. Arthur that led to the passage of the Pendleton Act
The circumstances that permitted the Democrats to gain control of the presidency in the elections of
1884 and 1892
The origins, purposes, and effectiveness of the Interstate Commerce Act and the Sherman Antitrust
Act
The positions of the two major parties on the tariff question, and the actual trend of tariff legislation in
the 1880s and 1890s
The rise of agrarian discontent as manifested in the Granger movement, the Farmers' Alliances, and
the Populist movement
The historical controversy surrounding the origins and character of agrarian populism
The rise of the silver question from the "Crime of '73" through the Gold Standard Act of 1900
The significance of the presidential campaign and election of 1896
The reasons for the decline of agrarian discontent after 1898
The new strand of Manifest Destiny, and its roots in the old Manifest Destiny philosophy
The objectives of American foreign policy at the turn of the century with respect to power in Western
Hemisphere
The relationship between American economic and military interests and imperial developments in
Hawaii, Samoa, and Puerto Rico
The causes and events leading up to and through the Spanish-American War
The military and political problems encountered in fighting the Spanish and, subsequently, the
Filipinos
The motives behind the Open Door notes and the Boxer intervention
The nature of the military reforms carried out following the Spanish-American War
American imperial ambitions in comparison with broader global trends in imperialism at the turn of
the century


Main themes of Chapter Twenty, The
Imperial Republic:


Chapter Summary (Which should be considered in relation to the Main Themes listed later.)
Turning its interest from the continental United States to the world at large, America in the years after the
Civil War fought a war with Spain and acquired a far-flung empire. In 1900, American possessions
included Alaska, Hawaii, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and a string of Pacific islands. In addition, Cuba
was essentially an American protectorate. The nation was suddenly a world power, with worldwide
responsibilities and burdens. The empire had been acquired for economic and philosophical reasons.
Expansionism could provide an outlet for a perceived glut of American goods and an arena in which to
demonstrate the superiority of Western civilization. To accommodate its new role, the nation had to
devise ways to improve its military establishment and govern its overseas territories.
Objectives
A thorough study of Chapter 20 should enable the student to understand
1. The new Manifest Destiny and how it differed from the old Manifest Destiny.

2. The objectives of American foreign policy at the turn of the century with respect to Europe, Latin
America, and Asia.

3. The variety of factors that motivated the United States to become imperialistic and how we fit
into the imperialism of the age.

4. The relationship between American economic interests, especially tariff policy, and developments
in Hawaii and Cuba.

5. The causes of the Spanish-American War.

6. The military problems encountered in fighting the Spanish and, subsequently, the Filipinos.

7. The problems involved in developing a colonial administration for America's new empire.

8. The motives behind the Open Door notes and the Boxer intervention.

9. The nature of the military reforms carried out by Elihu Root following the Spanish-American
War.

Main Themes (Which are related to points raised in the Chapter Summary.)
1. Why Americans turned from the old continental concept of Manifest Destiny to a new, worldwide
expansionism.

2. How the Spanish-American War served as the catalyst to transform imperialist stirrings into a
full-fledged empire.

3. How the nation had to make attitudinal, political, and military adjustments to its new role as a
major world power.


Main themes of Chapter Twenty-one:

America's embrace of a much more assertive and interventionist foreign policy, especially in the
Caribbean and Latin America
The gradual involvement of the United States in WWI, from leaning toward the Allies since the
outbreak of hostilities to eventually being drawn into full participation in the war
The decisive impact of American intervention on land and sea in tipping the balance of victory for the
beleaguered Allied forces
The war mobilization of the Wilson administration - how they financed the war, managed the
economy, and encouraged public support of the war effort
The idealistic aims and bitter defeats suffered by Woodrow Wilson internationalist foreign policy after
World War I
The profound economic, social, and racial significance of America's involvement in the Great War

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-one should enable the student to understand the following:
The new direction of American foreign policy introduced by Roosevelt, especially in Asia and the
Caribbean
The similarities and differences between Taft's and Roosevelt's approaches to foreign policy
The reasons for the continuation of American interventionism in Latin America under Wilson
The unfolding of the diplomatic crisis between Mexico and the United States in the years before
American entry into WWI
The background factors and the immediate sequence of events that caused the United States to
declare war on Germany in 1917
The contributions of the American military to Allied victory in World War I
The extent of government control of the economy during World War I and the results of that control
The use of propaganda under George Creel and the CPI to further the WWI effort
The announced American objectives in fighting the war, Wilson's Fourteen Points
Woodrow Wilson's motives, successes, and failures at the Paris Peace Conference
The circumstances that led the United States to reject the Treaty of Versailles
The economic problems the United States faced immediately after the war
The reasons for the Red Scare and the upsurge of racial unrest that afflicted postwar America in 1919

Main Themes of Chapter Twenty-two:

The effect of the automobile boom and various technological breakthroughs on the economic
expansion and agricultural malaise of the 1920s
The attempt by businesses to craft a system of "welfare capitalism," and the reasons for its ultimate
failure
The emergence of a nationwide consumer-oriented and communication-linked culture, and its effect
on society and the "new woman"
The disenchantment of many artists and intellectuals with postwar life, and the broad cultural conflicts
over ethnic and religious concerns that plagued the New Era
The ardently pro-business administrations of Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, which, despite their
dissimilar personalities, followed a very similar course

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-two should enable the student to understand the following:

The reasons for the New Era industrial boom after the initial period of economic readjustment
following World War I
The nature and extent of labor's problems in the New Era, particularly with regard to "welfare
capitalism"
The plight of the American farmer in the face of agriculture conglomeration and advancing technology
The changes in the American way of life and American values in the 1920s in the areas of
consumerism, communications, religion, and the role of women
The reflection of and reaction to these changed values in American literature and art
The effects of prohibition on American politics and society
The reasons for xenophobia and racial unrest in the 1920s, and the religious controversies that
dominated the era
The debacle of the Harding administration, and the pro-business tendencies of all Republican
administration in the 1920s

Main Themes of Chapter Twenty-three:

The economic and structural weaknesses underlying the apparent prosperity of the 1920s that led to
the Great Depression, and how the stock market crash of 1929 touched it off
The effects of the economic pressures of the Depression on the American people, especially farmers,
minorities, and women
The cultural milieu of the Depression Era as reflected in photography, radio, movies, books, and the
Popular Front, and how the culture reflected both the escapist and populist tendencies of the time
The frustrations of Herbert Hoover's administration in dealing with the Depression, and how his
inability to ameliorate hard times swept Franklin Delano Roosevelt into the presidency

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-three should enable the student to understand the following:

The relationship between the stock market crash of 1929 and the subsequent Great Depression
The early beginnings and economic causes for the onset and durability of the Great Depression
The problems of unemployment and underemployment, and the inadequacy of relief
The particular problems of farmers in the Dust Bowl
The impact of the Depression on minorities, particularly African Americans and Hispanic Americans
The impact of the Depression on working women and the American family
The reflection of the economic crisis and the desire for escape as portrayed in American culture
President Herbert Hoover's policies for fighting the Depression
The historical and economic debate over the causes of the Great Depression
The Great Depression in the context of the global depression afflicting the rest of the globe

Main themes of Chapter Twenty-four:

The flurry of New Deal programs offered by FDR to combat the Depression, and how they played out
in the realms of economic confidence, agriculture, industrial recovery, and regional planning
The critics on the right and left of New Deal policies, and how they inspired Roosevelt to launch what's
referred to as the "Second New Deal"
The challenges facing the New Deal after Roosevelt's landslide in 1936, particularly increasing
conservative opposition, his own political blunders, and continuing hard times
The economic, political, and party legacies of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-four should enable the student to understand the following:

The series of emergency measures enacted by Roosevelt immediately after his inauguration and
designed to restore economic confidence
The New Deal programs for raising farm prices and promoting industrial recovery
The first federal efforts at regional planning
The political pressures from both the left and the right that spurred FDR to embrace both federal relief
programs and Social Security after 1935
The changes in the strategies of organized labor during the New Deal period
The effects of both the Court-packing scheme and the recession of 1937 on the New Deal
The impact of the New Deal on minorities and women
The lasting significance of the New Deal to the American economy and political system
The varying historical assessments of the New Deal

Main themes of Chapter Twenty-five:

The character of America's "unilateral internationalist" foreign policy in the 1920s, whereby the United
States tried to increase its role in world affairs, especially economically, while avoiding commitments
The response of America to the growing world crises in the 1930s, particularly isolationism and
legislated neutrality
The gradual road to American military involvement in WWII, leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor
in 1941

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-five should enable the student to understand the following:

The new directions of American foreign policyand the attempts to replace the League of Nations as a
guarantor of global stabilityin the 1920s
The effects of the Great Depression on foreign relations under both Hoover and Roosevelt
The patterns of Japanese, Italian, and German aggression that eventually led to World War II, and the
response to each by the Roosevelt government
The factors that led to the passage of neutrality legislation in the 1930s, and Roosevelt's application of
the legislation to various foreign crises
The growing pro-English sentiment in the United States after the onset of WWII, and its effect on
American neutrality up until 1941
The specific sequence of events that brought the United States into the war, culminating with the
attack on Pearl Harbor
The American role in the Sino-Japanese War that preceded and eventually became part of what is
normally considered World War II

Main themes of Chapter Twenty-six:

The initial American strategies for fighting the European and Pacific fronts, and the military
engagements that characterized the first half of the war
The profound effect of World War II on the American economy, and the attempts by the Roosevelt
administration to stabilize the wartime economic boom
The impact of the war experience on organized labor and minorities at home
The development of advanced technologies during the war and their impact on the course of the
conflict
The events leading to Allied victory in Germany and Japan, culminating in the fall of Berlin and
President Truman's decision to use the Atomic Bomb

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-six should enable the student to understand the following:

The efforts of the federal government to mobilize the nation's economy for war production
The critical importance of the vast productive capacity of the United States in defeating of the Axis
The effects of American participation in the war on the Depression and on New Deal reform
The changes that the wartime involvement brought for women, labor, and racial and ethnic minorities
The contributions of the United States military to victory in North Africa and Europe
The contributions of the United States military to victory in the Pacific
The historical disagreement over President Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb

Main themes of Chapter Twenty-seven:

The origins of the Cold War in the mistrust between the United States and the Soviet Union amid the
events of World War II
The consequences of the Marshall Plan and the logic of containment in increasing United States
involvement in crises around the world
The nervous ambivalence that characterized postwar American culture in the Nuclear Age
The origins and character of the Korean War
The hysterical anticommunism that flourished in the first decade of the turbulent postwar era

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-seven should enable the student to understand the following:

The extent of collaboration between the United States and the Soviet Union during World War II and
the differences that developed between the two nations concerning the nature of the postwar world
The meaning of the doctrine of containment and the specific programs that implemented this
diplomatic strategy around the world
The nature of Truman's Fair Dealits successes and failuresand the challenge posed by the Election
of 1948
The working out of atomic tension in American culture, as evidenced by television, film noir, and comic
books
The circumstances that led to United States participation in a "limited" war in Korea
The reaction of American public opinion to President Harry Truman's handling of the "police action" in
Korea, including his firing of General Douglas MacArthur
The nature and extent of American fears of internal communist subversion during the early Cold War
years
The historical controversies surrounding the origins of the Cold War

Main themes of Chapter Twenty-eight:

The remarkable (if not "miraculous") postwar economic boom, and its impact on government
spending, capital, and labor
The explosion of scientific and technological breakthroughs in the decades after World War I,
particularly in the realms of medical research, computer electronics, military technology, and space
exploration
The contours of the technological, consumer-oriented, and remarkably affluent society of the 1950s,
and its shadow, consisting of a less privileged underclass and the existence of a small corps of aesthetic
detractors
The origins of the civil-rights revolution for African Americans, beginning with the Supreme Court's
social desegregation decision of 1954
The business-oriented "dynamic conservatism" of President Dwight Eisenhower, which resisted most
new reforms without significantly rolling back the activist government programs born in the 1930s
The foreign policy of Dwight Eisenhower, which continued to allow containment by building alliances,
supporting anticommunist regimes, maintaining the arms race, and conducting limited interventions,
but also showed an awareness of American limitations and resisted temptations for greater
commitments

A thorough study of Chapter Twenty-eight should enable the student to understand the following:

The surprising strength of the economy in the 1950s and early 1960s
The explosion of science and technology in the postwar world, especially in the fields of medicine,
chemistry, electronics, rocketry, and space exploration
The effects of affluence on the American lifestyle in the 1950s, including the rapid growth of suburbs,
televisions, and rock 'n' roll
The aesthetic and social backlash against the affluent society, as manifested in the writings of the Beat
and the rise of juvenile delinquency
The plight of the "Other America," left out of the economic affluence of the period
The significance of the Supreme Court's desegregation decision and the rise of the early civil rights
movement
The characteristics of Dwight Eisenhower's middle-of-the-road domestic policy
The new elements of American foreign policy introduced by Secretary of State John Foster Dulles
The origins and significance of increasing United States involvement in the Middle East and Latin
America
The reasons for new tensions with the Soviet Union toward the end of the Eisenhower administration

(NO CHAPTER 29 SUMMARY)

(NO CHAPTER 30 SUMMARY)