Addams, Roosevelt, and the Crisis of the Upper Class

I. Survival of the Fittest

A. Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)--English philosopher who attempted to reconcile philosophy and ethics in light of the scientific discoveries--principally Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution--being made during his adult life. Spencer applied Darwin's theory--or at least his understanding of it--not only to biology, but also to psychology and sociology, as well as to other fields.

B. Spencer and Biology--Spencer argued that the development of life from its lowest form to its highest--human beings--was guided by what he called "The Great Law of Nature"--namely, that the constant interaction of forces tended to change all forms of life from simple to more complex.

C. Spencer and Race

1.Knowledge--Spencer argued that there were two kinds of knowledge--the knowledge gained by an individual through their own experience, and knowledge gained by "the race" as intuition.

2. Race--Spencer's arguements about knowledge and race were twisted by his supporters (slightly) into a hierarchy of racial intelligence, with "Anglo-Saxons" or "Teutons" at the top, and "less intelligent" races falling beneath them.

a. Spencer's "thought" on race and knowledge, because it appealed to the prejudices of whites and appeared to be based in science, was extremely popular.

II. Addams and Tolstoyism

A. Tolstoy and Self-Sufficiency--Tolstoy's commitment to being as self-sufficient as possible had great appeal to those who felt that the events of their own age was making them more distant from the land and time they were familiar with.

B. Life Among the Peasants

1. Tolstoy--lived among the peasants who still resided on his family's estate, working in the fields and growing much of the food that he consumed in common with them.

a. Addams recalls in Twenty Years at Hull House meeting a daughter of Tolstoy's at 5:00 tea when she returned from the fields after working 12 hours.

b. Tolstoy's library, where he did much of his writing, had not just a battered desk and musty old books, but a scythe and hoe leaning against a wall, as well.

2. Addams--lived among former peasants in Chicago who were in the process of shedding their peasant identity, or were at least altering that identity by adding to it the identity of industrial worker, small business owner, and city dweller.

a. Addams and bread making--the appeal of Tolstoy's commitment was such that upon returning to Chicago, Addams determined that to contribute to her own  sustenance, she would spend two hours a day making bread--but soon found out that her other tasks required those two hours, and she became convinced that she had to seek from within herself her own path in this matter of conscience.

b. Labor Museum--displayed various tools and demonstrated their use to show the connection between the simpler tools used by peasants to make goods for their own use, and the tools they (and their children) used to make similar goods for mass consumption in factories. Ostensibly this was done to show the younger generation the connection between their parents' "old ways" and their new work--but it also served to connect visitors to Hull House to "authentic" work, done before the advent of  machines.

III. Theodore Roosevelt and Authenticity

A. The Life of the Cowboy--Roosevelt's life-long obsession with matching himself against the forces of nature (whether living the life of a cowboy, hunting, or another aspect of the "strenuous life") was not only a reflection of his own insecurities and obsessions, but also those of his generation and, in particular, his class.

1. The Importance of Physicality--particularly for males, this was a means of proving their masculinity, since most of Roosevelt's class could no longer do so through their work. This was also meant to prove (mainly to themselves) of their fitness to continue as the leaders of society.

B. Growth of Sports--for the generation after Roosevelt (including his sons), participation in vigorous sport--especially football--was also a signifier of manhood.

1. Football--grew in popularity during Roosevelt's years in the White House, despite the growing danger of that participation--or perhaps because of it.

2. Ivy League--the "best" and most physical football was played among the old established colleges on the east coast,  known as the Ivy League.

3. Detractors--pointed out that much of the play focused upon the deliberate intent of participants to maim or cripple opponents--and that even the play that did not intend to do this often had that as a result.

a. Harry Bennett and the Ford Service Department--in the 1920s and 1930s, Bennett hired thugs, boxers, and football players for the Ford Service Department to keep Ford workers in line and to prevent labor unions from making any inroads into Ford facilities.

4. Dangerous play--killed a number of players each years, and resulted in Roosevelt in 1905 calling in a number  of  representatives from these schools to make up new rules to limit dangerous play--a group that grew into the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

a. Despite the danger, Roosevelt encouraged his own sons to play the game, despite their suffering serious injuries as a result.