HIS271Y1 Lecture : The Gilded Age
Document Summary
gilded age: came from the title of a book called the gilded age: a tale of today. excess, what is beautiful on the outside may not necessarily be beautiful on the inside. beyond the golden exterior of growth, the interior was ripe with inequality, poverty, and social decay. Today: causes and consequences of this characterization by looking at the myths and realities of the age. big business success was built on their ability to consolidate and monopolize. many of the businesses grew out of the new needs emerging at the turn of the century: sources of growth. massive influx of people moving to cities. population in 1870 was 40 million and grew by 20 million in 20 years. all of this made it possible to increase industrial production. entrepreneurial men, cutthroat, who were the chief force behind big business in america.
