Crisis and progress: The rhetoric and ideals of a nineteenth century reformer, George William Curtis (1824-1892)
Kennedy, Robert Charles
This item is only available for download by members of the University of Illinois community. Students, faculty, and staff at the U of I may log in with your NetID and password to view the item. If you are trying to access an Illinois-restricted dissertation or thesis, you can request a copy through your library's Inter-Library Loan office or purchase a copy directly from ProQuest.
Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/22673
Description
Title
Crisis and progress: The rhetoric and ideals of a nineteenth century reformer, George William Curtis (1824-1892)
Author(s)
Kennedy, Robert Charles
Issue Date
1993
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
McColley, Robert
Department of Study
History
Discipline
History
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Biography
History, United States
Language
eng
Abstract
"George William Curtis and his fellow reformers were part of the new knowledge elite of journalists, academics, and other professionals that developed in the second half of the nineteenth century. The rise of a national press allowed more pervasive and persistent publicity of reform agendas. Sympathetic editors and journalists, like Curtis, considered their role to be that of sentinels and tribunes of the ""public interest"". In this role, they were instrumental in setting the parameters and defining the terms of debate over government's role in fostering the ""good society"" in America. These reformers disdained theory, particularly that of laissez-faire and limited government, in favor of pragmatism and utilitarianism."
Curtis and the other reformers borrowed vocabulary and techniques from medicine and the nascent social sciences, and developed methods of political action--media saturation, lobbying, drafting model legislation--which were intended to be applied to various reform efforts. Some historians have seen a dichotomy between scientific and moralistic reformers, or have depicted an evolution from moralism to scientism, but, for Curtis and other mid- and late-nineteenth century reformers, moralism and scientism co-existed in their rhetoric and ideals, if at times uneasily.
"The rhetoric of crisis was one of the major tactics the reformers used to generate public attention, popular support (or the perception thereof), and political action on behalf of their various causes. Repeatedly when calling for reform, Curtis and other members of the emergent knowledge elite used rhetoric that engendered a sense of crisis in which the government was presented as the only, or at least the most effective, agent capable of intervening to stave off the crisis in the name of an ill-defined ""public interest."""
These reformers were usually, like Curtis, affiliated with the Republican party, which recent historiography has shown to be the party of government in the second half of the nineteenth century. The reforms urged by Curtis and other reformers, which entailed the use of government intervention, occurred primarily at the state level, but succeeded at the federal level, too, when Republicans dominated the political process. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Use this login method if you
don't
have an
@illinois.edu
email address.
(Oops, I do have one)
IDEALS migrated to a new platform on June 23, 2022. If you created
your account prior to this date, you will have to reset your password
using the forgot-password link below.
