Muckrakers and Settlement Houses – US History:
Description:
The reforms of the Progressive Era were in part to the extraordinary work of “muckraking” journalists, novelists, and photographers–and to dedicated reformers working in the “Settlement Houses” of immigrant neighborhoods.
For this discussion, please read the following:
1. Jacob Riis, How the Other Half Lives, Chapters 1-4, 24, 25 (plus the illustrations)
https://www.bartleby.com/208/
2. Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, Chapter 2
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/140/140-h/140-h.htm
3. Jane Addams, Twenty Years at Hull House, Chapter 13
https://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/addams/hullhouse/hullhouse.html#154
Questions:
1. What was Jacob Riis looking to accomplish in his work–what were his main arguments? How did he use images as tools to shape public opinion?
2. What was Upton Sinclair looking to accomplish–what details in his fiction are most effective in describing immigrant life?
3. What was Jane Addams looking to accomplish? How were her methods unique, and what was her impact?