We are devoting much of this year to a study of American History in the first half of the Twentieth Century, with particular emphasis placed on the lives and impact of Theodore and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
I hope that many of you will have started, if not yet finished, the excellent biography Theodore Roosevelt: A life by Nathan Miller. I would also encourage you if possible to read the insightful and stimulating The Age of Reform: From Bryan to FDR, by Richard Hofstadter (especially the excellent introduction if the book itself is too much) and, what is essentially a short collection of essays entitled Progressivism by Arthur Link and Richard McCormick. There is also The Era of Theodore Roosevelt by George Mowry.
For Franklin Delano Roosevelt, I’m recommending FDR by Jean Edward Smith but there are a number of well-reviewed biographies that you might prefer. I also understand the chapters on the Roosevelts in Leadership. Lessons from Presidents in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin are definitely worth a read.
A key question for you to consider is – “Did the Progressive movement shape the Roosevelts or was it their personalities that shaped progressivism?”
Progressivism is a broad church. Whereas the Populist movement tended to be concentrated in the west and south and was largely agrarian, progressivism was “enlarged and redirected by the growing enthusiasm of middle-class people for social and economic reform” and was an “effort to restore a type of economic individualism and political democracy” that was believed to have existed in America before being corrupted by large corporations, immigration and the political machine as represented by Tammany Hall. There was a dark undercurrent to Progressivism as it was often nativist, isolationist and racist, with an outlook marked by a suspicion of large “institutions” including the federal government. Perhaps this helps to understand the current American political scene?
For those of you interested in background reading of a slightly lighter nature I’d like to recommend The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, which tells the story of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, and The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, an expose of life in the meat packing industry at the turn of the century. This would also be a good time to read or reread the novels of John Steinbeck, in particular The Grapes of Wrath. We will also be organizing two cinema evenings – The Age of Innocence, based on the Edith Wharton novel, and Hyde Park on the Hudson, which is centred on the weekend in 1939 when he invited King George and Queen Elizabeth to his estate in upstate New York in part to sway public opinion behind strengthening Anglo-American relations in opposition to Nazi Germany.
If anyone has any other personal recommendations on other books we might read or film/television programs that we might watch please let me know. For the totally committed amongst you a have a copy of Ken Burns documentary The Roosevelts, An Intimate History, which I’d be happy to screen but it does run to approximately 14 hours.
I am hoping to finalise a date in April/May for our first discussion. My suggestion is that we meet for lunch on [Friday May 3rd/May 9th/10th/13th]. Please let Sophie know if that is convenient. The lunch will be focused on Business and Government during the Progressive era and in particular Theodore Roosevelt’s attitude towards the great “Trusts” and his actions to curb their power. I’d also like us to consider under what circumstances would actions be taken to rein in the power of today’s global technology companies or whether they now exist beyond the influence and control of a national government. A special treat will be Brendan giving us his rendition of the famous “Man in the Arena” speech of 1910. Perhaps we can also persuade him to read extracts from FDR’s inaugural speech of 1933?
We will plan on meeting in the Autumn to discuss FDR’s New Deal and the broader issues of government intervention in the markets with the benefit of nearly 90 years of economic theory and argument. This will also be an opportunity for us to familiarise ourselves with the works and thoughts of John Maynard Keynes.
Please let me know if you have any additions that you’d like to propose for the planned events. Good reading.