President Obama’s Inaugural Address

“Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans.  Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose and necessity to courage.”  Well, they say Heinz sight is 20/20, and maybe his ambitions were a bit grand.  With the recent 2010 midterm elections passing some would argue with the “Republican tsunami” this was a direct aim at are President.  Could this mean a referendum on his national polices, and that people aren’t happy with the agenda he has since attempted to implement?  I would argue, no.  It is just too soon to tell.  Many what ifs surround the recent midterm election it would be nearly impossible to predict accurately what the “mind” of the nation is thinking?  The economy was and will continue to be at the forefront of political speeches and we see that demonstrated in President Obama’s Inaugural Address.  If the President had been more successful in obtaining a better economic direction for the country the policies he wants to implement would been seen as less radical currently.  Unfortunately the economic hardships of many and the “individualistic” bubble people continue to live in emanated from the ballot box this past November.  And another optimistic President cast to the side by the American people.

Bartky, pages 82-83

On pages 82-83 Bartky speaks of society's immense influence on a woman’s psyche in relation to her weight.  She provides us with various examples, and it is doubtful to assume as a woman this is not something I am already familiar with.  What I found interesting about this particular part of her writing is when she speaks of the “tyranny of slenderness.”  I found myself reflecting back to Tocqueville and his idea of the problems posed by the “tyranny of the majority.”  It seems Tocqueville’s idea of what could happen if the majority comes into power is exactly what is happening to women.  Society, or the “majority” is feeding into the minds of females and what it means to be “beautiful.”   The consequences, as Bartky points out are profound because not all girls can achieve society's “ideal.”  Therefore, they take drastic measures in an attempt to achieve perfection. 

Address At Milwaukee, Wisconsin (pgs. 235-237)

In these few pages, Lincoln reflects on how needed education is.    He explains various subjects and how they aid the avid farmer in his daily tasks such as chemistry, botany, and natural philosophy.  Lincoln thinks an uncultivated mind is a dangerous thing.  He believes this will lead to a particularly grim existence.  He finishes his thoughts by explaining how reading aids this process.  Put together a civilized society he explains will have much less need for war.  Lincoln thinks if people are educated they are much less likely to be taken advantage of.  I think Lincoln was correct in his assumption.  Education has been and I believe will continue to be a key role in American society.  Thinking of a population of uneducated minds is a scary thing I think, as did Lincoln. 

First Inaugural Address

Lincoln’s first inaugural address starts largely with an attempt to ease the minds of Southerners.  Lincoln reassures Southerners that he is not an enemy to the institution of slavery.  He points out a slave who escapes from a slave state to a free state is not automatically freed from his duties.  He is to remain a slave until his duties are fulfilled.  I think most people respected Lincoln because he refused to construe the applicable laws in order to meet his political favor.  Lincoln was successful in part because of his ability to make political calculations without seeming dishonest.  Lincoln was aware of the volatile situation that could and ultimately did arise between conflicting parties.  While most other Presidents would have lost a great deal of respect after one of the bloodiest wars in history, Lincoln is able to convey his message in a way that allowed everyone to understand the deep consideration he gave to the situation.

Chp. 21, pgs 634-636

Chapter 21, Tocqueville explains “why great revolutions will become rare.”  His introducing thoughts explain why, although democracy is an ever changing entity, it does not mean radical changes.  Tocqueville explains that because each man has the ability to choose his path, the need for revolution becomes less necessary.  He says “almost every revolution which has changed the shape of nations has been made to consolidate or destroy inequality.”  Our nation’s history proves Tocqueville’s thinking was right on target.   It made me reflect on the events leading up to the Civil War.  In order for American’s to have this quintessential democracy Tocqueville speaks of, segregation needed to be abolished.  Our nation changed because of the Civil War, and it was sparked because of the desire to demolish the inequality between blacks and whites.  Tocqueville concludes his opening thoughts in saying there will always be the poor, rich, and somewhere in between.  The ability for every average person to better their circumstances will prevent the “great revolution” from beginning.

Chp. 17, Tocqueville

Chapter 17, in the reading today only made me think partly how ahead Tocqueville was in his thinking.  He talks about money being the driving force behind a man’s ambition.  If not the sole purpose for his work it definitely plays an immediate role not far behind.  If Tocqueville were alive today I am sure he would not be surprised at the way greed has taken over the American mind for some.  He displays America as passionless and driven by their desires to acquire wealth.  I have to wonder though if Tocqueville associated himself with any other men besides the rich he writes about.  I do not get the feeling from most historians everyone in America was prosperous simultaneously.  He paints this picture of a wealthy society in which people cannot seem to get satisfaction from anything but money.  But what about early American’s who would never know what it was like to possess enough money to get by let alone become rich.  I am sure they received satisfaction in other ways with their lives. Therefore, it is here I tend to disagree with the remainder of his thoughts.  Tocqueville says “Variety is disappearing from the human race; the same ways of behaving, thinking, and feeling are found in every corner of the world.”  Examining our world today this statement is only half true.  While most of the world is making feverish attempts at becoming more civilized I would have to argue America is still ahead of most.  We have advanced in areas of math and science for which I am sure Tocqueville could have never predicted.  Successes that may be in part driven by money but I would argue not the sole purpose of the pursuit.

Chapter 4, pages 194-195

In Chapter 4 Tocqueville argues that Americans have what's called political association but this differs substantially from Europe.  Tocqueville says that Americans basically talk their ideas out, but cease to ever accomplish much.  Whereas Europeans are not looking for an outlet to express their ideas but make their ideas a reality.  A fatal flaw in European association he says is the possibility of tyranny and oppression.  Leaving Tocqueville to decide America's freedom to associate is a much more civilized one.  I found the argument surrounding his central theme engaging .  He argues because Europeans never have a chance of representing the majority they instead result to a less than stellar means of accomplishing their goals.  He claims that in America we do not have this problem because a difference of opinion is nothing more than an annoyance.  We are free to think and speak how we feel but unlike Europe everyone has this same ability.  What I took away from this chapter is that in America their is a sense of respect for others ideas.  This same sense of respect for others ideas in Europe is something less tolerable.

New Destination for the Children, pg. 296-297

Linda waited for six months for news that her daughter Ellen had made it to New York. This news came in the form of a letter to Linda's grandmother. In the letter, Ellen expressed a sentiment to her mother.  Ellen prays for her mother each morning and night.  The remainder of the letter was written by a young lady with whom Ellen was staying. The end of the letter left Linda with a sense of uneasiness about her daughter's future. The letter's author had referred to Ellen as "her little waiting maid." Linda verbalized this uneasiness by conjuring up a variety of outlandish scenarios for her daughter's future. 
After reading this particular passage, I felt that Linda's life was starkly differently from that of an average slave.  I understand Linda's reluctance to trust anyone, but I feel as though the letter's author was trying to put her at ease, not scare her.  Linda takes the letter out of context.

Norton, "The Small Circle of Domestic Concerns."

In chapter one, Norton describes the fundamental structure of a typical eighteenth century American home.  The husband was the head of the family.  The women desired notoriety with respect to their daily household affairs.  Livingston romanticized the colonial female in his essay “Our Grand-Mothers.”  Livingston paints a picture of a woman who is content; she strives to please her husband with every action and attempts to instill this in her own daughters.  Norton continues the chapter discussing the woman’s role in finances.  The husband controls the money and prevents the wife from having any input.  The women are put at a significant disadvantage due to inexperience regarding monetary matters in the absence of the husband.  Norton does not fail to mention that the women are just as much responsible as the men.  Norton highlights the many examples of this phenomenon such as the shock of learning debt burdens for the first time.  Males and females experienced drastically different situations in the eighteenth century.