Exam 1
Topic Questions:
Provide a thorough assessment of the Socio-Economic Transformations that transpired in the United States in the late 19th Century.
First, explain the social and economic changes that took place in the Northern region of the country (Northeast and Midwest), focusing on the factors that led to the rise of the modern industrial city as well as the different social classes and groups that inhabited, their strategies for assimilation, and the urban culture that emerged within the city. Second, explain the transformations that transpired in the US South after the Civil War which changed dramatically this region from the traditional forms of social and economic organization into a more modern-industrial society.
Third, describe in detail the process by which the United States brought modernity and development to the western territories by fostering the creation of settlements, economic enterprises, transportation systems, foreign immigration, and the acculturation of Native American groups through the Reservation.
Topic 3: In Search of New Frontiers
Provide a thorough assessment of the American Search for New Frontiers in the periods between 1890 and 1920. First, identify and describe the meaning of the American frontier and explain the factors that led to the closing of the frontier in 1890.
Second, explain why Americans (and Europeans) felt compelled to expand the frontiers overseas to spread Modernity & Christianity, and in which ways these attempted to transform the traditional cultures of the world.
Third, explain how factors dealing with Industry and Commerce also propelled Americans to search new frontiers abroad. Fourth, explain why Americans searched for new frontiers in Latin America and the ways they transformed both the economies and cultures of those countries. Fifth, explain the process by which the US annexed certain islands in 1898 and how these new territories also represented new American frontiers.