D.B.F.: History

Post #11: The Seventies...Oh Boy!

     In the year 1970, America was engaged in the Vietnam War and many people didn’t really know what to think about it. Times were changing and many people were catching on to that. People were beginning to exercise their right to protest, and the right to speak out about something they didn’t like. This was a time of drug experimentation and where the traditional gender roles began to change. People began to escape into music and movies to get away from some of the troubles of the times. [1] Some of the top songs and top selling movies of that time share common themes of love, simplicity and the idea of an Anti-War movement, while others differ from each other, having themes along the lines of Love and being Anti-women.

    Our group compiled a list of the top ten movies, and after analyzing these movies, we noticed that the shared many common themes amongst each other. One of the biggest themes throughout our top ten most popular movies in the year 1970 was War. Half of the movies on our list dealt with the issue of war. For instance the #3 movie on our list, [2] “M*A*S*H, (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital), unlike many war films, has an anti-war message, but delivers it with a light touch through moderate anarchy, bizarre conversation, and the boredom, stress, and resentment of the drafted physicians.” This movie shows how not much of the war life, but the life of the doctors who are in the Korean War. It shows some gruesome operating images, yet adds a comedy to make it a bit more appealing. The film is shown through different episodes, and because of this, many compare it our #7 Catch-22 . Both movies have a message of anti-war and both are comedic. This leads us to the idea that even though these movies, and other movies such as #6 Little Big Man and #4 Patton are about the War and how gruesome it is, the movies are somewhat comedic. The directors didn’t want the moviegoers to be saddened by what they saw on the screen, so a little humor went a long way when it came to selling these movies.

    Not only were the movies related to the war but we found that some of the songs as well had to do with the War or anti-war theme as well.  Many of the songs, like “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” by Simon and Garfunkel, Rain Drops keep Fallen on my Head by B.J. Thomas and “Long and Winding Road” by the Beatles are about getting over the sadness and moving on to happier times. [3] In the song “Long and Winding Road” it says:

“Many times I've been alone and many times I've cried…Still they lead me back, to the long and winding road.” We think that the “long and winding road”

     We think that it is talking about the war and how long it is, how it will keep going and never seem to end, and this is what is leading him to tears. They try to stop the war…

“Anyway you'll never know the many ways I've tried”

…but it never ends and they just come back to fighting in a war.

    Another common theme through out the songs and the movie was Acceptance and Love. People just wanted other to be happy and let things come as they may. For instance in the movie Love Story, the theme is in the title. This is a “tear-jerker” about two people who are from two different social classes, trying to make their love work. They don’t care who has more money, all that matters to them is they love each other and they want it to work.  In the songs, “ABC” and “I Want You Back by Jackson Five both songs talk about love.

“ABC, that's how easy love can be, now.”

     They want everyone to realize that love doesn’t have to be something hard, something that gives u a headache or even heartache, it can be as easy as  “ABC.” Many people in those times, didn’t want to deal with the hard things. They wanted everything to come easy, and to just happen for them. Since they were in a time of war, they didn’t want to have to think of other troubles.

     This hints on the theme of acceptance that is apparent through some of the songs from the top ten. In the songs, “Let It Be” by the Beatles, “Thank You for Being my Friend by Sly and the Family” and “Everything is Beautiful” by Ray Stevens all deal with acceptance of how things are and thinking positively about everything. [4] “In Let it Be,” the lyrics state:

“And when the broken hearted people
Living in the world agree,
There will be an answer, let it be.
For though they may be parted there is
Still a chance that they will see,
There will be an answer, let it be.”

     The “broken hearted people” that are mentioned in the song are the people whose lives are disrupted and ruined by this war that is going on. Listening to this song it gives them hope because it says that soon, they will see an answer and for now, they should just let it be, because soon, an answer will come to them, if they just, “let it be.”

    Music was very popular in 1970 but the theme of Music was very popular amongst the movies as well. Three of the top movies, “Let it Be,” “Woodstock,” and “Gimme Shelter, ” were all centered around music. [1] “Let It Be was basically a documentary about the Beatles, before they broke up. Both “Gimme Shelter” and “Woodstock,” pointed out the downsides of when music fans turn violent. In Woodstock, it documented what happened in this live festival that included about 500,000 and everything that went on with in that, drugs, violence, birth, and crime. Many people weren’t aware of this side of Woodstock, until this movie came out. It shed a new light to what really went on at some of these concert events.

     Now, we all know that 1970 was a time when the gender roles were starting to diminish, but one thing that started to come through in a lot of the songs in 1970 was the bad depiction of Women. In the Songs, “American Women” by Guess Who and “Venus” by Shocking Blue women were portrayed as people that men should stay away from…as if they only lead to trouble. [6] The song “American Woman” shouts:

“American women…don’t wanna see your face no more,
I got more important things to do,
Than spend my time growin’ old with you,
Now woman, I said stay away,
American woman, listen what I say.”

     He is telling these women to stay away from him and that he doesn’t even want to see her face anymore. He doesn’t want to have to deal with her, and this is sending the message that women are all trouble and shouldn’t be interacted with at all. [7] In “Venus” the artist portrays the women as some sort of she-devil who draws in men with her evil looks.

“Her weapon were her crystal eyes,
making every man mad,
Black as the dark night she was,
Got what no-one else had.”

     In conclusion, in the year of 1970, was a year of lots of popular songs and movies and though a lot of them were very different from each other, by just listening to the songs, or watching some of the top movies, you could get an idea of what the issues and problems were that people were facing.

[1]       
Top ten songs:
1."Rain Drops keep fallin on my head" -- B.J. Thomas
2. "I want you back" --Jackson 5
3. " Venus " --Shocking Blue
4. "Thank you for being my friend" --Sly & the family
5. "Bridge over troubled water" --simon & garfunkel
6. "Let it be" --Beatles
7. "ABC" --Jackson 5
8. "American Women" --Guess who
9. Everything is beautiful" --Ray Stevens
10. "Long & winding road –Beatles

Top Ten Movies
http://www.superseventies.com/1970.html

1  Love Story
2. Airport
3. M*A*S*H
4. Patton
5. Five Easy Pieces
6. Little Big Man
7. Catch-22
8. Gimme Shelter
9. Let It Be
10. Woodstock

[2] http://www.superseventies.com/1970.html
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MASH_(movie)
[4] http://www.webpak.net/~mrolig/lyrics.htmlGsong_idEtlawr.html
[5] http://home.att.net/~chuckayoub/Let_it_Be.html
[6] http://www.ghg.net/bnsteiss/lyrics/amwoman.html
[7] http://www.geocities.com/ofmang/shockingblue/sbsongs.html

Group Report:

For this group blog our group had a lot of trouble trying to meet all together because we all had finals coming up that we needed to study for and other stuff going on. First we all met online and in a chat room discussed what we were going to do. Juan and Ashley were in charge of the songs so they found a list the top ten songs of 1970 and found out the themes and emailed them to the other group members. Asma, Richard and Tim were in charge of the movies. When everyone had done their part and all we needed to do was put it together, we found out that we were suppose to use the song list provided by Prof. Petrik not one that we found. So we had to start from square one on the songs. Secondly, we found out, the source we got the movies from wasn’t very credible because one of the movies was from 1969 so we decided to basically start the whole assignment over. So we met again online except now people were mad that we had to do this all over again. Tim and Asma took care of the new movie list and provided the themes. Asma wrote the blog, Juan would edited it and Richard put in the pictures. This was possibly one of the hardest blogs we as a group had to do together because of our hectic schedules yet at the same time, in the end, it made us closer than when we began.

Post #8: State v. Rehberg

          In the State vs. Rehberg case of 1885, a 19th century jury would have concluded that Edward Rehberg was guilty of abusing his daughter, Clara, and consequentially, caused her death in the second degree. First, cultural beliefs about children of the 19th century would have left little room for doubt in Edward's favor. Second, a jury of the 19th century would never have acquitted him because he came from a working class family and in general, society did not look highly upon you if you were not of a higher class standing. A jury of that time would have judged Edward Rehberg before they had ever heard his testimony, or the testimony of the witnesses; nor would they have believed the deposition of a child. Third, due to the legal status of children in the 19th century, and not only that, but the ideals held about childhood then, would have prevented a jury from believing a child's testimony. Young children were often seen as immoral, dishonest, disobedient, and i gnorant to the difference between right and wrong. Even a deposition as blunt as Clara Rehberg's on her deathbed would have been thought of as insubstantial evidence: "She whipped me (my step-mother) with a stick of wood and with a stove lifter, and then she went to the corral and got a strap, and whipped me with that on the face and legs and all over.-She had new shoes on when she came back from town (Helena)-she took them off, put on wooden shoes, and kicked me with them. My step-mother's name is Louisa. She whipped me at one time at the corral on my father's ranch,-then she whipped me in the house,-then she threw a bucket of water over me." [1] Such disturbing and blunt statements taken from a child as she died could not be ignored by our petite jury of the 21st century; nor could we ignore the overwhelming evidence which brings reasonable doubt to our minds that the Defendant, Edward Rehberg, did not abuse his daughter, Clara; thereby, making him not guilty o n the charge of second degree murder.

          Aside from Clara's deposition, there is an abundance of evidence which gives reasonable doubt as to whether or not her father abused her. The first amount of proof which makes Edward not guilty is the testimony given by Joe Tiebow. The witness produced by the defense, testified that he had been with Edward all day Sunday; that he and Rehberg never parted at all: "Q. Now, Mr. Tiebow, could Mr. Rehberg have whipped that child that day or beat her or abused her without your knowledge of it ? A. He did not leave me at all, and I cannot say that he was in the house."[2]

        The Second proof came from Emma Rehberg, a witness to the prosecution, stating that she had seen Clara with Louisa Sunday morning. Emma had been downstairs and upstairs a few times during the day, not seeing Clara while she was upstairs. Emma stated at one point that: "I was downstairs part of the time, and part of the time upstairs that afternoon. I saw Clara after dinner,-she was in the kitchen with Lousia, little Emil was out of doors, I was upstairs about an hour and a half taking care of the baby. I did not see Clara while I was upstairs. When I came down, she was sleeping on the lounge." [3] A few minutes after Clara awoke, Emma recounted that she saw Clara talking with her father, Edward, who took Clara immediately to town (Helena) after speaking with her on her condition.

             The third proof which gives reasonable doubt to the case are the testimonies of various doctors who all claimed that it would be possible for Clara to move around for a while after sustaining the injuries; however, once a state of rest had been entered (her sleeping) for a certain period of time, movement would become hindered by excruciating pain. This supports that Clara could have been beaten early Sunday morning, and she would have been able to continue helping Louisa with dinner. There is proof also that Clara was in extreme pain because both Joe Tiebow and Emma Rehberg testified that Clara could not get into the wagon herself and had to be helped. Dr. Van Holzschuher gave testimony when Clara was brought to his office, her father: "...asked a gentleman passing to help the child down" from the wagon. [4] This further supports that Clara was in extreme pain after her period of rest following the sustainment of her injuries.

          These proofs listed above are only a three points of the overwhelming evidence stacked in Edward Rehberg's favor. All proofs given bring reasonable doubt to the case of State vs. Rehberg making Edward not guilty on the charge of second degree murder. As a jury of the 21st century, our group believes that Edward was not guilty; however, a jury of the 19th century surely would have found Edward guilty. Due to cultural ideals of children and how they act during childhood, the minds of a 19th century jury would have been clouded and decided before this trial ever began. Our group, not knowing the outcome of this trial, can only hope the jury which debated over this case saw the reasonable doubt in the evidence and looked for the correct suspect of Clara Rehberg's tragic death.

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Works Cited:

Petrik, Paula. Redaer: HIST 120, "State vs. Rehberg (1885)." Fall 2005, 2-35.

[1]Petrik, Paula. Redaer: HIST 120, "State vs. Rehberg (1885)." Fall 2005, 32.

[2]Petrik, Paula. Redaer: HIST 120, "State vs. Rehberg (1885)." Fall 2005, 27.

[3]Petrik, Paula. Redaer: HIST 120, "State vs. Rehberg (1885)." Fall 2005, 18.

[4]Petrik, Paula. Redaer: HIST 120, "State vs. Rehberg (1885)." Fall 2005, 22.

Images:

http://www.fcmcclerk.com/jury/tbj_jury.jpg

http://photosbymartin.com/images/pcd3321/hay-tree-67.3.jpg
http://www.hatsofflynden.com/images/Flags%20Of%20The%20World/Red%20Cross.JPG

Post #6: Yet Another Chance to Embarrass Myself...

Holly Flynn
Benjamin Lewis
Sean Banks

Post #5: The Good, Bad, and Ugly

            Jatraria: Land of Opportunity

he nineteenth century was a time of cultural contradictions and differences. Divisions and borders could be seen in religion, class, and politics. Though many sought to remove this form of ideology, mainly the Jeffersonian Republicans, others clung to it out of necessity. As we all know, money makes the world go round. Many communities that came from wealth did everything in their power to remain superior. This included the segregation of other classes and the exploitation of others not included in their sphere of influence. Thus, our Utopia is a reflection of the Federalist ideologies that were common in those times; therefore, our design shows the separation between two cultures-the wealthy and the poor.

Unlike many other segregations of people which are more of a state of mind, (such as discrimination) the division among the members of our utopia is a physical one. This division consists of a river, a bridge, watch towers, and security. The entire left sector of the community is devoted to the upper class. The area is surrounded in lush vegetation, vast forests, and intricate orchards. There are various types of architecture that serve religious purposes as well as for entertainment. The entrance to the wealthy side is guarded by soldiers to prevent any mixture with immigrants. The safety of the elitist on the left has to be insured due to the massive amounts of new immigrants coming not only into the United States everyday, but into Jatraria as well. "In the 20 years from 1820 to 1840, about 700,000 newcomers had entered the United States. That figure jumped to 1.7 million in the 1840s, then to 2.6 million in the 1850s...Factories came more and more to depend on immigrant labor, including children, since newcomers would work for lower wages and were less prone to protest harsh working conditions" (Davidson 403-404). This clearly demonstrates the elitist characteristic of the federalists.

While the left side of the utopia is dedicated to the wealthy Americans, the right side contains the labor which generates the businesses. In this sector, there are many businesses and factories that are aligned next to the Jatrarian River. These businesses specialize in everything from ship-building to steel production. Using the river as transportation, the Jatrarian Society exports many of its products to Europe. Unfortunately, due to the stressed importance of commerce, housing areas for the mainly immigrant population on this side of the water is severely ignored. "Immigrants who could barely make ends meet were forced to live in overcrowded, unheated tenant houses, damp cellars, and even shacks. Urban slums became notorious for crime and drinking, which took a heavy toll on families and the poor. In the eyes of many native-born [Jatarians] immigrants were to blame..." (Davidson 404). True to form, the main goal of the entire community is to generate as much profit as possible--no matter the cost. Because of this, the people who live on the right side of the river are severely exploited by their wealthy counterparts.

By separating the social classes, focusing on industry, and looking toward Europe for inspiration, our community clearly demonstrates the true characteristics of a Federalist society in the early nineteenth century. Our society has no regard for moral ethics or any concern for the immorality in commercial life. We, as Jatrarians, epitomize the belief in Federalism. Like it, or not.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Work Cited:
Davidson, James W. Nations of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic. McGraw Hill: New York, New York. 2006.

Images:
http://www.chicagohs.org/DGBPhotoEssay/gif/dgb15s.jpg
http://housatonic.net/faculty/ABALL/Paintings/cartoon.gif
http://www.illinoisleader.com/content/img/f13376/federalists.jpg

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Group Report:
Due to the holiday weekend, our group as a whole was unable to meet because we have several commuters in the group. Also, we all agreed that it would be much better to work together as a group to decide on the Utopia details and ideologies. After class on Tuesday: Richard, Juan, Asma, and Tim all met at the Enterprise lab to create the map and to begin the blog. Ashley was unable to meet there because she had a class immediately after history. However, we made sure to email her to details of what we started. Then, on Wednesday, the entire group met again (without Ashley for the same reason) in order to complete the blog and the map. Richard then got in touch with Ashley on Wednesday afternoon to send her the blog. Ashley then edited the blog for grammatical errors, incorporated quotes from the text; as well as, found a few pictures to help create a more complete picture of what our Utopia was like. The map turned out great, and the blog was done to the satisfaction of all members of our group.

Task 4: Catlin's "Pigeon's Egg Head"

Everything we do is influenced by the world around us, from the way we dress, to the way we talk.  They are almost impossible to escape once they’re upon you, these foreign influences, and this is very accurately depicted by George Catlin’s “Pigeon’s Egg Head”.  Catlin’s work shows the changes to the Native American culture brought about by the Europeans.

According to Catlin, the period of time between 1830 and 1850 was a time of transformation, but not for the better.  His painting, Pigeon’s Egg Head, clearly depicts two different points in the Native American timeline.  To the left is your stereotypical Indian chieftain with his flamboyant, yet modest, garb, traditional headdress, and ceremonial peace pipe.  To the right is the same chieftain, but what’s this?  He’s wearing slacks and a petticoat, leaning on his umbrella and smoking a fine cigarette.  He appears to be drunk, and there are bottles of liquor in his pockets.  The immense effect of the Europeans on the Native American society is clearly seen here.  Could it have been this way without the Europeans?  Yes, but only if another culture had come along and spread their ideas in a similar manner.

While we as students examine this change through the use of a textbook and historical art, it can be seen by merely looking around you, looking at the way most of the Native Americans do business today.  Perhaps they would still be people of the land, but today’s society has forced them to adapt to the greed of the nation, the disgusting excess.  It is a shame to think about these things, but if we don’t, then we will never realize the importance of our surroundings as we journey through life.  Catlin, while painting the change in Native Americans, also painted a picture of a life lesson…we are who we’re told to be.

Davidson, James West et al. Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2006.

"Pigeon's Egg Head"- http://americanart.si.edu/images/1985/1985.66.474_1b.jpg

Post 3: My pitiful comments...

Sean's Post

Colleen's Post

Jonathan's Post

Post #2-Group Post: British Reaction to American Activism

                                            Who's Laughing Now?

n the 18th century, the sentiments towards American patriots varied from simple annoyance, to being the British army�s most feared enemy.  Through a series of laws called the Coercive (Intolerable) Acts, passed by the British Parliament, American revolutionaries found a profound motivation to rebel against their mother-country.  This �rebellion� took many shapes.  From harmless cartoon mockery, to fierce hand to hand warfare, American revolutionaries began to sew seeds of freedom.  When an oppressed society has reached its limit, they will bind together for freedom and collectively denounce injustice.  This is exactly what the Americans did. The revolutionary war was a success to the American patriots because the British underestimated their activism and rebellion, thus causing the British defeat and American independence.

     A British cartoon titled �Society of Patriotic Women at Edenton, North Carolina (1774)� mocked  American women for not accepting imported tea. This shows that not even women were safe from the British mockery (Davidson 139).  This cartoon shows the intensity of the political propaganda at the time, which is only one of the many forms of conflict during this revolutionary period.  The picture depicts women using their sexuality, instead of education, for a voice in politics.  The women in this picture are exaggerated by the cartoonist to the point that they look more masculine.  This is reflected by heavy drinking, masculine facial features, and un-attended children and household chores.  This is the British�s interpretation of American women going out of their roles in society.

     The difference between British and American ideals is encapsulated by the previous cartoon (Society of�North Carolina).  With careful observation, the distinction between the two societies is clear.  The British hold on to their conservative morals when it comes to women in politics.  Thus, we have a mockery from a British cartoonist, which shows their disapproval of new and �radical� American beliefs.  Women have far more say in what they believe is to be true in American culture than that of British culture.  British overconfidence in their own abilities and beliefs caused their own failure to keep America under its imperial grasp.  In the end, Britain�s inability to take the American activism seriously proved to be a fatal flaw in their plan, perhaps the most fatal of all.

Davidson, James West et al. Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2006.

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     Sometimes working in a group can be difficult; our inital plans were fairly hetic and crazy.  Firstly, we found it difficult to decide how excatly this blog was going to get written, and by whom.  So for starters, we all talked through how we wanted to meet and work on this blog.  Many ideas were thrown around about emailing, chatting online about the assignment, and everyone just writing their own thing and passing it along.  Finally, several of us got together and started writing out our assignment with the input of our other members.  The assignment was completed to the satisfaction of every one of our group members and best of all, it was completed on time. Booyah!

Creation Stories and Those Meddling Europeans (Task One)

It is clear that the creation stories of the Native Americans changed somewhat between 1650 and 1910, but do we really know why?  In most cases in history, beliefs have formed or changed due to an outside influence of some kind.  This was also the case for the Ottawa tribe, the Sioux tribe, and the New Netherlands, which were heavily influenced by the Europeans; however, does that rule out the possibility of an inside influence having had some effect?  Can the Europeans be considered the sole reason for the shape that the Native American creations stories took?

As is the case with the stories of most Native American tribes, each of these stories emphasized animals.  Take the tribe of the New Netherlands, for example.  The story of this people revolves around the bear, the deer, and the wolf having been the three animals that humans were born of, and from each came a different set of standards.  To be born of the bear meant great strength and courage, to be born of the deer meant meekness and timid ness, and to be born of the wolf meant trickery and deceit. An interesting view, but because of Dutch influences, it was said that since man was smarter, he was able to hide his true intentions so that he may come out on top; an odd yet effective adaptation.

When we look into the creations story of the Ottawa tribe, we find the Great Hare, the main deity of the people.  Long story short, this deity was keen on men having their own private woman to supply the labor for menial tasks…not really, but pretty much.  Doesn’t that sound like the stereotypical view of women that we are still trying to shake off today?

As for the Sioux, who were transported west by whites, their story is also quite tainted with a few of the religious clichés we still take light of today.  It is obvious to me that in each of these three cases, the highly influential Europeans tainted the Native Americans, and that sort of thing has a substantial effect on the future of a society.  Through these stories and comparisons we can clearly see that the influence of one culture on another can certainly aid in the total domination of any society.  This can certainly be applied to the past, the present, and the future.  Take a look around.

Davidson, James West et al. Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc, 2006

In the beginning...

...there was the end.