Agenda Objective : To assess and evaluate the Gilded Age in light of our unit focus. Schedule :

1. L7: Taking Stock of the Size and Scope of the U.S. Government In the Gilded Age: Formative Discussion Agenda Objective: To assess and evaluate the Gilded Age in light of our unit focus. Schedule: Formative Discussions! • Homework • Unit Work: • Nothing for now… • Thesis Work: • Final Draft Due Friday 2/14 by 2:30 pm sharp! • See Reader for all required components!! • Green block: Bring work for the half day!

2. Discussion Questions • Business leaders of the late nineteenth century have been characterized as both greedy and unscrupulous “robber barons” and as great “captains of industry” whose entrepreneurial skills and business acumen produced economic growth. Which view is more persuasive and why? • To what degree can the philanthropy of the Gilded Age be described as a form of Conspicuous Consumption? • Were labor unions or corporations more representative of American values during the Gilded Age? You will need to choose and define a specific value and then evaluate whether unions or corporations were more likely represent that value. • We have identified the Gilded Age as a time in which the relationship between the people and the government was altered by the presence of monopolistic corporations. Make an argument for the nature of the relationship between the government and the people during the Gilded Age.