The age of discontent : how workers and farmers reinvented American democracy / Ralph Brauer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Brauer, Ralph, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Working class--United States--History--19th century.

Working class.

Farmers--United States--History--19th century.

Farmers.

United States--History--1865-1921.

United States.

Physical Description:

xxii, 395 pages : illustrations, charts, facsimiles ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Washington, DC : Georgetown University Press, [2025]

Summary:

"For much of the last century, three narratives framed American history. The plantation narrative, with its Gone-with-the-Wind view of slavery and Reconstruction, bolstered racial apartheid. The frontier narrative worshipped individualism over collective responsibility and ignored the decimation of indigenous cultures. The industrial narrative, redefined by Ralph Brauer in this sweeping history of late-nineteenth-century labor and farmer activism, traditionally celebrated laissez-faire capitalism and the achievements of wealthy industrialists. The Age of Discontent offers an alternative perspective, asserting that the largest and most important expression of mass democracy in American history laid the foundations for economic growth and prosperity. Main Street, not Wall Street, was responsible for the American Century. Grassroots activists and reformers from the working and farming classes take center stage in this fascinating success story of government programs and legislation"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

The Grittiest Generation

Transition Stages Are Always Harsh

Dark Corners

A Threat of Endlessness

To Advance Agriculture

To Win Fair Treatment for the Living

From Some Lofty Height of Vision

In All Things Essential

To Help and Assist All Employed and Unemployed

The Reinvention of America

Widening the Gates of Opportunity

How Much Can You Buy

CONCLUSION: A Second Emancipation.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 309-382) and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Brauer, Ralph. Age of discontent

ISBN:

9781647124946

1647124948

9781647125707

1647125707

OCLC:

1434181197