America in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era

By: Edward T. O'Donnell, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Edward T. O'Donnell

Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

America stands at a dramatic crossroads: Massive corporations wield disturbing power. The huge income gap between the one percent and the other 99 percent grows wider. Astounding new technologies are changing American lives.

Sound familiar? These and other issues that characterize the early 21st century were also the hallmarks of the transformative periods known as the Gilded Age (1865-1900) and the Progressive Era (1900-1920). Before the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, America was a developing nation, with a largely agrarian economy and virtually no role in global affairs. Yet by 1900, within 35 years, the US had emerged as the world's greatest industrial power.

Explore these tumultuous times in America in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Over decades marked by economic, political, social, and technological upheavals, the US went from an agrarian, isolationist country to the world's greatest industrial power and a nascent geopolitical superpower. In a time rife with staggering excess, social unrest, and strident calls for reform, these and other remarkable events created the country that we know today: industrialization gave rise to a huge American middle class; voluminous waves of immigration added new material to the "melting pot" of US society; the phenomenon of big business led to the formation of labor unions and the adoption of consumer protections; electricity, cars, and other technologies forever changed the landscape of American life.

In taking the measure of six dramatically innovative decades, you'll investigate the economic, political, and social upheavals that marked these years, as well as the details of daily life and the cultural thinking of the times. In the process, you'll meet robber barons, industrialists, socialites, reformers, inventors, conservationists, women's suffragists, civil rights activists, and passionate progressives, who together forged a new United States.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2015 The Great Courses (P)2015 The Teaching Company, LLC

Fascinating time of American History

What did you love best about America in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era?

Prof. O'Donnell does a great job with explaining the good and the bad about the Industrial Revolution. Even the name Gilded Era is explained that though it is shiny and pretty on the surface underneath is harsh (thanks Mark Twain). He is fair to show the personalities of the leaders and their foibles. We learn of the amazing jumps in progress during this time. Electricity and its daily uses, travel, manufacturing, treatment of the Native Americans, giving up the improvements for African Americans in the South found after the Civil War. So much you will learn of items we use today, developed 100 years ago.

What did you like best about this story?

i am a great lover in History, especially American, and learned that this era is just a blank part of my past learning.

Which character – as performed by Professor Edward T. O'Donnell, PhD – was your favorite?

as many people do, I am interested in Teddy Roosevelt. What a character. Aggressive but able to get along with people.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

all that glitters is not gold.

Gave me a far better and wanted understanding of our current day world

This was a great listen!! In particular, the contrasts between the Guilded age and Progressive era were so insightful -and really enlightened me to historical social and political patterns in the US (and some for developed world overall) that apply to our current day situation. It gave me a much wanted understanding of what in the last 2 centuries has led up to today's US social, political and economic nuances -and even some sense and comfort of the future.

Great Overview...

of an important era in US history. I enjoyed this Great Course. Professor was well-spoken.

Wow

I learned so much! The organization, framing, and delivery of the content was so clear and most enjoyable. I’m tempted to listen again and take notes next time.

Parallels to our own time

This is one of the best Great Courses on history, covering a less discussed part of American history. One of my best aspects was the many parallels to our time - great wealth disparity, rise of populist movements, generational differences, concerns over immigration, technological revolutions causing worker displacement - but the professor doesn't present the similarities in any overt or political way, so it is there for the listener to discover. He has an interesting lecture style that always kept me engaged.

As other reviewers have noted, it is more of a social history than one focusing on politics, though I felt the political aspects of the time were covered appropriately.

A weak start, stronger finish

We all sorta knew this stuff of the guided age- but this connected the parts and added context.
The parallels with 2016 seem eerie at times- and almost disheartening because we didn't figure it out the first time.
I

OMG - what a story!

Well, Pendergast did this, DeCosta did that & then Constance… she did what?!?!? … holy moly, leave a girl hangin’ while your at it!!! … Preston & Childs are stinkers, stinkers I say!

Very excellent Professor

Liked the length and the pace. The lectures moved quickly from point to point while maintaining logic and a solid story thread. A great job at syllabus development.

Excellent presentation

Well produced and thoughtfully executed. This course demands revisiting because the concepts deserve deep exploration.

Informative about the social progressive movement

Overall the writer did a pretty good job outlining the social progressive movement. Some of it was well done, while other portions I think minimized and even lauded some of the most negative aspects of social progressive movement. I’m not nearly enough critique and scrutiny in my opinion.