The Appropriateness of Booker T. Washington and W. E. B....

Essential Question: Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois offered different strategies for dealing with the problems of poverty and discrimination faced by Black Americans at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. Assess the appropriateness of each of these strategies in the historical context in which each was developed. After the period where big businesses operated the country to benefit themselves, the middle class activists began to rise against these unjust actions. The new era was known to be the Progressive Era. Not only were progressives fighting for restoration in social equality, others like muckrakers were revealing the inadequate conditions in factories. Due to these events, African†¦show more content†¦Because of these actions and different techniques, society divided into those who advocated Du Bois and those who advocated Washington. However, Du Bois gained less support than Booker T. Washington because Washington’s viewpoint was promoted by much of the white population. Therefore consequence of this support was that Washington’s approaches to gain full citizenship was more suitable than Du Bois’ policies. The Progressive Era was a term used to describe a time period that had numerous reforms to correct the problems of the country. The origins of this time period was created from the lower class aiming to, â€Å"eliminate corruption in government, regulate business practices, address health hazards, and improve working conditions.† Not only did the lower class support reform, but middle class workers too because they were in competition with immigrants for jobs or they were women struggling for the same rights that men had. Another reform Progressives wanted was the right to a direct say in the primaries of elections so the public had more control within government. With more control in the government, this would allow the power of big corporation to be limited and prevent future problems that the middle and lower classes could endure. These goals the reformers had in the Progressive Era, led to a plethora of movements and actions in

Is the Majority Always Right - 1408 Words

Many of the societies we live in today are based on the majoritys decision, placing importance, and the right to make decisions, on the people, and their choices. Even in societies that do not function this way, the majoritys ways of thinking are reflected in how they act. Is this majority decision always right, however? Can the majority be trusted to make decisions and behave in ways that are considered right, moral, and justified? In my opinion, believing that the majority will always be right is a questionable and debatable belief, as it can often be a false assumption, and it should also be acknowledged that the majority itself will change over time, as will their beliefs. A well-known example of poor decisions made by the†¦show more content†¦These values create the idea of what is right and what is wrong. Therefore, the beliefs that are shared by the majority are the beliefs that are considered correct – in short, the majority separates what is right from what is wrong. So, what if who the majority was had changed? What if what the majority believed was different? It should be remembered that these alterations have, in fact, occurred. Therefore, still using the examples of racism against Japanese-Americans and Japanese-Canadians, the majority at that time believed that their actions were justified, that their nation was at war, and that these Japanese immigrants, who were from a nation that was Americas or Canadas enemy, could also, in turn, be their enemies. Therefore, they believed that their decision and actions were justified and the right thing to do, as well as there being less emphasis on human rights, resulting in few people t hinking that the Japanese immigrants were entitled to certain rights. This mindset also contributed to the Japanese losing their property – everything was sold, including their land, farms, possessions in their homes as well as their houses, fishing boats, and more – by the government. Since no, or at least few, objections were made against these actions, this decision was obviously right, because the majority had decided it was so. Also, it should be realized that the number of immigrants, and people of a non-Caucasian background in NorthShow MoreRelatedThe Concept Of Majority Rule With Minority Rights Essay1336 Words   |  6 Pagesof majority rule with minority rights. This is an idea formed from the principles of democracy that encompass American government. We must analyze democracy and compare it to the American government. Minority rights should be understood as those that are unalienable; human rights exempt from persecution. From this information, we will understand when, if ever, it is ok to impose one’s will over another Democracy is a government in which citizens make political decisions based on majority ruleRead MoreA Conversation About Justice Is A State Of Human Equality1198 Words   |  5 Pagesthere be justice for all? 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Henry David Thoreau’s consistently argued that government rarely proves they’re for the people and obtains its power from the majority because organization, however criticizes the legitimacy of governments viewpoints. Thoreau thoughts were people’s first option is to do what they believe is right and not to follow majority rule. If government is proven to be unjust, society should organize groups that refuses to follow laws and speak up until they’re heard. Separation fromRead MoreSocrates As A Moral Man1531 Words   |  7 Pagesdie for his beliefs of finding out the underling truth that the government tries to conceal from the people. The story presents an important question between Socrates and his friend Crito, as to whether the opinion of the majority is always right. A way we see how the majority works is in the political system. In one of the scenes in the story â€Å"Crito†, Socrates is lock up in jail, as the people in Athens believes he was corrupting the minds of the youth and inventing a new God which was impietyRead MoreEssay about Social Contract Theory1429 Words   |  6 Pagesthe job Congress is doing or the direction the president is leading us in, the status quo remains the same. This is because our current state of affairs, however twisted and convoluted it may be, has been determined as a norm, and agreed to by a majority. In the following pages I will show how modern social contract theory, especially that of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, grew into the divisive issue it is in contemporary political philosophy. I will do so by briefly unpacking the recent historyRead MoreEssay about Madisonian Majorities1643 Words   |  7 PagesSince time began, it has always been human nature for man to compete and win. Just like when it comes to majorities and minorities, majorities tend to overp ower minorities. Guinier makes a great point when she brings up, Madisonian Majorities, which are minorities working with the majority to achieve a solution. By working in this format, we could achieve so much more in much peaceful ways. Madisonian majorities could be best applied to a democracy, because both the majority and minority can work together

Hamlet the Passive Intellect Free Essays

The actions and events in Shakespeare’s Hamlet revolve around Hamlet’s inactivity. Without Hamlet’s hesitation, constant thought, and internal deliberation, the plot would proceed directly from Hamlet’s meeting with the Ghost to his murder of Claudius. Hamlet’s philosophical strifeheightens the complexity of his life issues and intensifies the depth of his dilemma. We will write a custom essay sample on Hamlet the Passive Intellect or any similar topic only for you Order Now Hamlet’s over-intellectualization coupled with his passive tendencies paralyzes his ability to act, locking him in an inescapable prison of his own inner consciousness. Hamlet’s over-intellectualization begins with his questioning of the ghost’s identity. When first told by Horatio that the ghost of his father haunts the battlements, Hamlet interrogates him obsessively to obtain every relevant detail to satisfy his intellectual curiosity. He  fires  a volley of questions at Horatio, ranging from whether his countenance is â€Å"pale or red† to how long it â€Å"fixed eyes upon [Horatio]† (1. 2. 250). His desire to dispel uncertainty and further his knowledge escalates in the physical encounter with the ghost. Rather than accepting his vision for granted, Hamlet examines the validity of his perceptions by debating whether the ghost of â€Å"a questionable shape† is â€Å"wicked or charitable† (1. . 45-46). Hamlet initially pronounces to the ghost that he will â€Å"wipe away all trivial, fond records, all saw of books, all forms, all pressures past, that youth and observation copied there,† declaring his resolution to act (1. 4. 108). However, when he reconvenes with his friends, he entreats them â€Å"never make known what you have seen tonight† (1. 5. 160). Instead of seeking for an immediate collective action to avenge his father’s â€Å"unnatural murder,† he chooses to prolong the process to devise an elaborate scheme within his own mind. He forestalls action—be it his friends’ or his own—to contemplate the implications of his experience. He concludes by cursing the fact that he â€Å"was born to set it right†Ã‚  Ã‚  (1. 5. 211). The ghost’s revelation places him in a position where he must be the agent of action, whose filial responsibility is to affect justice and kill Claudius. Hamlet’s dilemma, then, stems from the need to become an avenging son while being a naturally passive intellectual. Hamlet addresses his dilemma in greater depth by engaging in a rigorous, intellectual process, which ironically perpetuates the vicious cycle of inactivity. In his conversation with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, he confesses, â€Å"thinking makes it so. To me it is a prison† (2. 2. 270). Hamlet finds himself imprisoned by his intellect, as he â€Å"must like a whore unpack [his] heart with words† (2. 2. 614). He cannot act by heart because he is bound to â€Å"unpack† his actions with reason first. He berates himself as â€Å"a rogue and peasant slave† and â€Å"John-a-dream, unpregnant of my cause, and can say nothing† (2. 2. 576-595). Hamlet recognizes that he is not taking any decisive action to dutifully avenge his father’s death in staying within his comfort zone of intellectualism. As he articulates and explores his conflict of conscience, he concludes, â€Å"Thus conscience does make cowards of us all and thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought, and enterprises of great pitch and moment†¦lose the name of action (3. 1. 91-96). Hamlet reaffirms that his constant moralizing and philosophizing stymie the very action he strives for. The inexorable clash between his predisposition for sedentary contemplations and the filial imperative to actively seek revenge results in such strong feelings of self-loathing that he considers â€Å"shuffl[ing] off the mortal coil† (3. . 75). Committing suicide would proactively end his suffering, but he problematizes even that possibility as an unacceptable transgression against â€Å"[God’s]  canon ‘gainst self-slaughter! † (1. 2. 136). Ironically, this very soliloquy devoted to meditating on his passivity epitomizes his inaction; rather than coming u p with pragmatic solutions to end his dilemma, he explores and wallows in self-pity, which in turn exacerbates the intensity of his conundrum. Hamlet is so preoccupied with the enormous intellectual activity in his head that he closes himself off from all action in the external world. How to cite Hamlet the Passive Intellect, Papers