Journal Entry 9 The Contemporary Connection

    The connection I see is a new interest in technology, which i would put under political, education, and entertainment. Through use of technology we begin to see something, that really until now hasn't been seen; an American identity. Now that the Civil War is over and reconstruction has begun we begin to see new American pride through the installations of monuments like the Statue of Liberty in 1886, the Washington Monument in 1884, Carnegie Hall in 1891 which is now one of the world's most renowned music theaters. This shows the beginning to a new era, one in which America will make landmarks of which it can be proud of. We hold these today in high honor, we take our past and we are proud of it. We have come a long way in about 240 years, which is very young by the standards of the nations we are in competition with economically and politically as a world power. We are in similar economic trouble that many saw during Reconstruction now, many didnt have jobs and nation-wide panics spread, much like what is happening today on Wall Street. We begin to see entertainment begin to be a pursuit in America in 1902 with the first movie theater and in 1907 with the first radio broadcast. From this point on American music and cinema will dominate anything else made in the world. As of today still, no one competes with America in the entertainment business, and that is something I know I take for granted. We have very easy access to good movies and music at the click of a mouse. Also in this time period we will start to see the beginnings of WWI. This will shape for the rest of the modern world and the perspective of our country. We are now the imperialists, that world may have a negative connotation, but it isnt a bad thing to help other countries and stand up against oppression on the side of the little guy. WWI and from this point on will change everything about America; from what we see, how we function, and how our country ran. These are the times where America went through trial and error to determine how to become a good country, these are the times and experiences that made us who we are.