American History: A Survey (Brinkley), 13th Edition

Chapter 20: THE PROGRESSIVES

Main themes of Chapter Twenty:

• The growth of progressivism as a reaction to the problems caused by the rapid industrialization and urbanization of the United States in the late nineteenth century



• The nature of the progressive impulse, particularly the optimistic vision shared by all progressives that an active government and human intervention could solve problems and create an efficient, ordered society



• The desire of progressives to reduce the influence of party machines on politics and foster instead rule by "experts"



• The crusade-like nature of many progressive movements, including prohibition, immigration-restriction, and women's suffrage movements



• The guiding ideology, domestic interests, and foreign entanglements of Theodore Roosevelt's administration



• The troubled succession of William Howard Taft to the presidency, and how it paved the way for the ascension of Woodrow Wilson



• The administration of Woodrow Wilson as both a conservative and progressive leader

• The origins and complexities of the progressive impulse



• The progressive emphasis on scientific expertise, organizational reform, and professionalism



• The role of women and women's organizations in promoting reform, and vice versa



• The success and significance of the women's suffrage movement



• The desire of the progressives to limit the role of political party organizations, and the measures they advocated to accomplish this goal



• The prohibition movement and its relationship to other progressive reforms



• The origins of the NAACP and the importance of W. E. B. DuBois



• The movement to restrict immigration and its relationship with other avenues of "reform"



• The alternate approaches to the problems of the trusts: socialism, regulation, or trust busting



• The historical debate concerning the origin and nature of progressivism



• The nature and extent of Theodore Roosevelt's "square deal" progressivism



• The similarities and differences between the domestic progressivism of William Howard Taft and of Roosevelt



• The distinction between conservation and preservation, and why this distinction ultimately triggered the split between Taft and Roosevelt



• The consequences of the split in the Republican Party in 1912



• The philosophical and practical differences between Roosevelt's New Nationalism and Wilson's New Freedom



• The differences between Woodrow Wilson's campaign platform and the measures actually implemented during his term



• The social limits of Wilson progressivism, particularly with regards to women's suffrage and segregation