A Changing Culture
• In 1873 Mark Twain and Charles Warner
co-wrote the novel, The Gilded Age. 
• Historians use this term to refer to the
time between 1870 and 1900. 
• The term “gilded” refers to something
being gold on the outside while the inside
is made of cheaper material. 
• The authors tried to point out that
although this was a time of growth,
beneath the surface were corruption,
poverty, and a huge difference between
rich and poor.
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A Changing Culture (cont.)
• Industrialization and urbanization caused
Americans to look at society in a different
way. 
• This gave way to new values, art,
and forms of entertainment. 
• A strong belief during the Gilded Age
was the idea of individualism. 
• This is the belief that regardless of
your background, you could still rise
in society.
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A Changing Culture (cont.)
• Horatio Alger, a minister from
Massachusetts, left the clergy and
moved to New York where he wrote
over 100 novels about rags-to-riches
stories.
A Changing Culture (cont.)
Why did Mark Twain and Charles Warner
call the era from about 1870 to around
1900 the Gilded Age?
They were trying to warn people about the
society during this time. “Gilded” refers to
something covered in gold on the outside
while the inside is cheaper. They believed
that although on the surface, society
appeared to shine, the inside actually held
corruption, poverty, and crime.
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Social Darwinism
• Herbert Spencer, an English
philosopher, first proposed the idea
of Social Darwinism. 
• Spencer took Charles Darwin’s theory
of evolution and natural selection and
applied it to human society. 
• Like Darwin’s theory–that a species
that cannot adapt to the environment
will eventually die out–Spencer felt
that human society evolved through
competition.
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Social Darwinism (cont.)
• He concluded that society progressed
and became better because only the
fittest people survived. 
• Industrial leaders agreed with Social
Darwinism. 
• Social Darwinism paralleled laissezfaire, an economic doctrine that was
opposed to government interference
with business.
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Social Darwinism (cont.)
• Many devout Christians and some
leading scientists opposed the idea
of Darwin’s conclusions about the
origin of new species. 
• They rejected the theory of evolution
because it went against the Bible’s
account of creation.
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Social Darwinism (cont.)
• Andrew Carnegie, a wealthy business
leader, believed in Social Darwinism
and laissez-faire. 
• However, he also felt those who
profited from society should give
something back, so he softened Social
Darwinism with his Gospel of Wealth. 
• This philosophy stated that wealthy
Americans were responsible and
should engage in philanthropy, using
great fortunes to further social
progress.
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Social Darwinism (cont.)
Why were devout Christians and some
science leaders against Social Darwinism?
They rejected the theory of evolution
because it went against the Bible’s account
of creation.
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Realism
• A new movement in art and literature,
called realism, portrayed people in
realistic situations instead of idealizing
them as the romantic artists had done. 
• Thomas Eakins, a painter from
Philadelphia, observed and painted
day-to-day living in a realistic fashion. 
• He used realistic detail and precise
lighting.
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Realism (cont.)
• Writer and literary critic William Dean
Howells wrote realistically about
American life. 
• He also recognized talent in several
writers of this time, including Mark Twain,
who wrote Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn in 1884. 
• Twain is thought to have written the first
true American novel. 
• Henry James, an English writer,
portrayed the lives of the upper class in
his 1881 novel, Portrait of a Lady.
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Realism (cont.)
• Edith Wharton won a Pulitzer Prize for
the novel The Age of Innocence, which
portrayed the complicated lives of the
upper-class in New York in the 1870s.
Realism (cont.)
How did the realism movement in art and
literature differ from that of the romantic
artists?
The realism movement portrayed people
realistically. It did not attempt to idealize
people as the romantics did.
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Popular Culture
• Popular culture changed in the late
1800s. 
• People had more money to spend on
entertainment and recreation. 
• Work became separate from home. 
• People looked to have fun by “going out”
to public entertainment. 
• During the 1800s, the saloon acted like a
community and political center for male
workers. 
• It offered free toilets, water for horses, free
newspapers, and free lunches.
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Popular Culture (cont.)
• Coney Island in New York was an
amusement park that attracted working
class families and single adults. 
• It offered amusements such as water
slides and railroad rides. 
• Watching sports became very popular in
the late 1800s. 
• Baseball began to appear in the United
States in the early 1800s.
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Popular Culture (cont.)
• In 1869 the first salaried team, the
Cincinnati Red Stockings, was formed.
• Football and basketball also became
popular during this time. 
• In the early 1880s, vaudeville became
popular. 
• It was adapted from the French theater
and combined animal acts, acrobats,
gymnasts, and dancers in its
performance.
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
Popular Culture (cont.)
• During this time, people began enjoying
ragtime music. 
• The most famous African American
ragtime composer was Scott Joplin,
who became known as the King of
Ragtime.
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Popular Culture (cont.)
What were some of the changes in popular
culture during this time?
People had more money to spend during
this time. As a result, they spent money on
entertainment and recreation. They were
also willing to leave their homes to go out
in public to have fun.
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