His 521 U.S. Social History to 1865

William H. Mulligan, Jr. 

DISCUSSION IV: March 24, 1998

 1. In the introduction to The Refinement of America: Persons, Houses, and Cities Richard Bushman writes, " … the pages that follow were written in the hope of showing how ideals interacting with materials changed the American environment and reshaped American culture." What are these ideals and how did they reshape American culture?

2. What does Bushman means by the following terms:

gentility

polite society

performance

habit of criticism

beautification campaign

refinement

middle-class respectability

republicanism

capitalism

3. In what ways did the "spread of gentility" confuse "rather than" clarify" the issue of class?

4. How does Bushman answer the question he poses on the introduction: "How could Americans reconcile their commitment to aristocratic gentility with their devotion to republican equality?"

5. Discuss the relationship between gentility and domesticity in America between 1700 and 1850.

6. Discuss the relationship between gentility and religion in America between 1700 and 1850.

7.What are the "practical benefits to be gained from refinement?"

8. Discuss the interactions between the rise of gentility and the rise of a democratic, capitalist society in America.