•             In this essay, I will present 3 or more reasons, citing textual evidence that answers the essential question, “Why is culture important?”, and close with how it relates to today.

                First, though challenges rose during the revolutionary period, with the determined American spirit, workers responded. According to the US History Textbook, it quotes, “Poor working conditions and low wages led workers to organize into groups to improve their conditions”(p. 383). As new inventions and ideas paved the way for the Industrial Revolution, the culture and way of life in America changed--accompanied by pros and cons. For example, manufacturing with stream-powered spinning cloth sky-rocketed and assisted in mass production, only requiring a worker to move the parts rather than hand-weaving for single threads. Furthermore, scientific inventions helped with tasks that would usually take hours, instead making it possible to finish a piece of cloth within minutes. Francis Lowell created a textile mill, John Fitch invented a steam engine, with Daniel Fitch expanding upon this by making the first steam-powered paddle boat and Peter Copper inventing the steam-powered locomotive. As a result, job opportunities sprung up, with companies needing as many workers as possible. However, this mass production and working rush caused many issues with businesses, specifically with labor. Children working with dangerous parts were more common than ever, and long labor hours toiled down on the citizens’ well-being. Quantity was favored over quality, and the mass amounts of workers huddled around in a windowless space proved to be dangerous for their health; no proper labor boundaries were established, leading to the exploitation of the workers. In order to change these conditions, trade unions were formed and they refused to work again unless their terms were accepted, becoming nationwide throughout America. These strikes and inventions showed how the American spirit persevered through economic and social conditions to create change throughout the country. It showed how anyone can strive forward to make a difference--inventions or protests--with their beliefs. Throughout the era before the Civil War, the people’s way of life and culture faced drastic modifications through traditions--women’s rights movements were slowly starting to be established, contributing to the final recognition of their natural rights years later, and urbanization was increasing as the years progressed. The citizens acknowledged the new work reforms during this revolutionary era, realizing that oppression through exploitation threatened their country’s rights and beliefs. In response, the people pushed for further change, shaping the ways of labor, economics, and social norms for the future.

                Second, slave codes and other restricting rules made life for slaves unsustainable. According to the US History Textbook, page 398 quotes, “Under the codes, enslaved African Americans were forbidden to gather in groups of more than three.” Although innovation was purely beneficial in the North, once Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin to help farm the seeds out of the buds in 1793, slavery, which was slowly dying out due to unpopularity, suddenly experienced a rise. Now that using one cotton gin could produce goods equal to 50 workers hand-picking them, southerners exploited their slaves, making them work longer hours. Although the South experienced an economic boom and cotton became their leading export, the fight to freedom was even more arduous. The invention greatly contributed to the Industrial Revolution, supplying the North with cotton for clothes and weaving, and making the South crucial for agriculture and farming. Later, as new territory treaties handed the land over to the US, cotton planters moved west to cultivate more land suitable for farming--by the 1850s, the Cotton Kingdom consisted of numerous cotton plantations stretching from South Carolina to Texas, full of fertile soil and mild temperatures. The South soon became entirely reliant on slave labor, overworking and abusing them for their own benefit. Slaves faced extensive hours from early in the morning to late in the evening with little to absolutely no pay in return every day. If they were to display any signs of disobedience, there would be physical punishment and worst of all, their families could be separated, which were the only things that helped slaves get through the long days. On top of that, slave codes prevented any African Americans from escaping, and by forbidding gatherings, the community they built up to persevere through hardship could be torn apart. Through all hopelessness, slave parents taught their children traditional African stories and songs--their families were a strong source of pride, strength, and love; these traditions passed down African themes and moral beliefs. This would serve as a constant reminder of what they stood for, passing down these concepts from generation to generation, preventing erasure from their slave owners. Additionally, slaves used the Bible stories about ancient Hebrews who also suffered through slavery, often singing about these during work to remember to not stay compliant. Overall, spiritual music helped African Americans remember their identities and lead them towards hope.

                Third, throughout this new era, writers and musical artists began to use their mediums to express American themes. According to the US History Textbook, it states, “Longfellow based many poems on events from the past. ‘Paul Revere’s Ride’ honored the Revolutionary War hero”(p. 420). In any country’s history, art always served as a crucial concept necessary for a rich culture that can be used as a weapon towards opposition and history erasure. Not only retelling events, authors, painters, and musical artists can showcase themes of specific concepts, something that specifically American artists utilized into during the Industrial Revolution, an era that did not just consist of economic growth. In a case of encapturing various American life-styles, George Caleb Bingham painted a picture of country people living near the frontier line. George Caitlin and Jacob Miller recorded the life of Indians in the Great Plains and the Rockies far west. Additionally, John James Audubon traveled all over the country to record bird wildlife in “The Birds of America” consisting of 435 life-sized prints. With American artists portraying the artistic aspects of geography and capturing culture, other kinds of art showcases focused on westward expansion and the constant change throughout the nation’s history. Art wasn’t just restricted to paintings however--poet Henry Wadsworth wrote “Paul Revere’s Ride” to honor the hero who contributed to the American Revolution, and “The Song of Hiawatha” to acknowledge the lives of Native Americans. Meanwhile, other poets such as John Greenleaf Whittier and Frances Watkins Harper captured the abolitionist movement and consequences of slavery, themes that were difficult to approach. Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson were also very dedicated poets that introduced new perspectives on various topics, influencing American culture. Furthermore, authors Washington Irving and James Fenimore Cooper are also notable, with Cooper writing about frontiersmen and a hopeful depiction of peace between settlers and Indians. Other writers such as Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, and William Wells Browne were the most influential, with their novels exploring creative concepts. Not only that, but Browne recorded his experiences during his slave and fugitive slave life, while also being a Conductor in the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escape plantations. Women also wrote important and inspiring themes of protagonists gaining benefits through being good people, but also treading through darker topics such as widow and orphan hardships; Catherine Sedgwick and Fanny Fern are examples of successful women authors. Although European music was adopted for a while, a new style adapted, consisting of patriotism, religion, migration, and immigration. Not only that, but the spiritual songs African Americans adopted to persevere through slavery branched out into what we know today as blues, jazz, country, and rock music. As a whole, artists presented the artistic side of American culture, ranging from history to social reform movements to the strong sense of nationalism. The affects of their art pieces are continued to be acknowledged today as snapshots of the Industrial Revolution, serving as physical manifestations of the country’s values. All of the emotions, thoughts, and messages embedded through art are embodied and stand through history, embodying the perseverance of the American spirit. Overall, the revolution of art acted as depictions of the nation’s deeply rooted culture with the creativity, adapting and inspiring future generations of artists through such themes.

                In conclusion, the worker’s movement, importance of religion for slaves, and the revolution of American art all embodied the events of the Industrial Revolution. The essential question, “Why is culture important?”, relates to today with improvement. All of these important instances are connected to social reform movements--workers wanted their rights to be respected, slaves persevered through religion, and art is manifestation of American culture. They all relate to changing society, the country’s way of life, and thinking, which would eventually transform into action. Culture is the root of behaviors that doesn’t just have to be religion--it can be lifestyle, work, traditions, or anything that makes up an individual’s way of living. But most importantly, culture is capable of dating back, tracing back hundreds to thousands of years, all the way to the root cause of it. An idea, a philosophy, a concept, things that are capable of starting something new, branching out into new possibilities. With these new possibilities, culture can adapt, take physical form, evolve into something else, and eventually, can create an entirely different culture. Cultures are capable of inspiring thoughts, and as thoughts develop, they soon are expressed, whether it be art, religion, or action, creating circumstances or practices that influence the environment around it. Yet, above all, culture is what helps people remember who they are and what they fight for. It is capable of shaping the past, influencing a person’s thoughts and beliefs, driving their core values forward. The Second Great Awakening, for instance, was deeply embedded in Christianity and the idea of individual salvation, becoming the heart of this social reform movement. Because of this, emotionally stirring meetings were held, and people, little by little, tried to become better people through small steps that could affect entire communities. As such, history is also a driving force in culture that affected events that