Lincoln Steffens

Lincoln Steffens

Aphorisms - N

Steffens Summary

- concise statements of fact or opinion

http://goanimate.com/videos/0COeEEpi3MCY

"You ask men in office to be honest; i ask them to serve the public."

"Nothing fails like success."

" You cannot commit rape a little."

"I have seen the future, and it works."

"Power is what men seek and any group that gets it will abuse it."

"Art is like a border of flowers along the course of civilization."

Early Life - J

Lincoln Steffens - J

Life Cont. - J

- born in Sacramento, Cali

- father was a wealthy business man

-sent to an expensive military school

-began showing signs of rebelliousness that would lead him into ideas of political radicalism

- barely graduated military academy and went to University of Cali at Berkeley, where he had an epiphany

- graduated in 1889

-went to Europe and studied in Germany and France

-returned home to NY in 1892

-secretly married a girl and found a note from his father

- was a thinker, a very philosophical person

- isn't remembered much today, but still played an important role in history

APril 6, 1866 - August 9th, 1936

Early Work - J

- got a job as a police reporter for the New York Evening Post

- soon became interested in the web of corruption that entangled the police department and municipal government in general

-wrote about this throughout the 90s

Fame - J

- finally became famous in 1903 when an editor began a series of articles on corruption

- portrayed a pattern of shocking corruption in municipal gov. throughout country

-publication of Steffen's work introduced a new style of writing

-President Theodore Roosevelt coined this term "muckracking"...

Muckracking - N

Discussion Question

How did Lincoln Steffens shape American journalism during the Progressive Era?

Later Life - J

- common during the Progressive era

- was a journalist movement for investigative journalists

-included: Steffens, Sinclaire, Tarbell

-shed light on corruption and corporation wrongdoings

- moved to Europe and settled in a villa in Italy

-began working on his autobiography

-it represented Steffens's mental journey throughout his life

-affected many people who felt they should travel the same route

-hinted towards his positive attitude towards Communism

- died in Carmel, Cali

Support of the USSR - N

- "The notion of liberty... is false, a hangover from our Western tyranny."

-believed Communism would work well within the U.S.

- began to lose support from publishers and readers

Change In Ideas - N

- originally felt reform was the best course of action

- went to cover Mexican Revolution in 1910, developed ideas of revolution to fix capitalism

-success of Bolshevik Revolution secured his faith in revolution

-wrote about Russian revolution, even interviewed Lenin, and believed socialism was the way to go

-after a trip to the Soviet Union, he said the phrase: "I have seen the future, and it works."

Reporting Career - N

Decline of Muckracking - J

Shame of the Cities - J

- made many friends (Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, etc)

-wrote about political corruption, corporate monopolies, and poor living conditions for Americans

-helped expose the horrors in American society to the public - muckracker

- Steffens's series of work, titled "The Shame of the Cities," became a best seller

- wanted to expose the pattern of corruption and the real villains; the falsely respectable and honest businessmen whose bribes and greed fueled the whole system

- with its decline in 1910, Steffens lost faith in its effectiveness and turned to new ideas...