Lecture Notes: Jacksonian Era - Lecture 2

Introduction

• Focus: The need to expand land in the U.S. for cotton growth during the Jacksonian era.
• Issue: Old cotton lands in the South were overused and ruined.

Importance of Cotton in the South

• Cotton: Most valuable product in the South.
• Globally rare and expensive due to labor-intensive growth and harvesting.
• Harvesting: Physically taxing; required separation of seeds by hand.
• Resulted in: High profits, reliance on slavery.

Eli Whitney and the Cotton Gin

• 1792: Eli Whitney, a Yale graduate, visits a southern plantation.
• Invents the cotton gin, separating seeds from cotton efficiently.
  • Increased production 50-fold over manual separation.
• Impact:
  • Made slavery more profitable and widespread.
  • Led to overplanting and wastage of slave lands.
  • Planters invested heavily in western lands for future expansion.
• Jackson: Supported Southern expansion and profits from slavery.

American Exceptionalism and Romantic Movement

• 19th-century belief: U.S. had a special mission and exceptional people.
• Emergence of Romantic Movement:
  • Focused on poetry, art, and literature.
  • Explored personal feelings and the world.
  • Highlighted issues like slavery expansion under Jackson.
• Art's influence: More impactful than politics on personal opinions.

Transcendentalist Movement

• Evolved from Romanticism; emphasized individual action on values.
• Key figures:
  • Ralph Waldo Emerson: Creator of Transcendentalist literature.
  • Henry David Thoreau: Influential transcendentalist, writer of "Civil Disobedience."
• Thoreau's principles:
  • Challenged wealth and materialism.
  • Advocated for living by personal conscience.
  • Criticized Mexican-American War as unjust.
  • Promoted civil disobedience against unjust laws.

Abolitionism and Southern Defense

• Rise of abolitionism tied to Romanticism and Transcendentalism.
• Southern defense of slavery intensified, leading to fraudulent records like the 1840 census marking many free Blacks as insane.

Conclusion

• Short lecture focused on ideology related to Jacksonian era and slavery.
• Assignments:
  • Multiple choice quiz.
  • Two critical thinking assignments.
• Contact instructor for questions.

These notes provide an overview of the key points covered in the lecture on the Jacksonian Era, focusing on the socio-economic impacts of cotton agriculture, the invention of the cotton gin, and the cultural movements of the period. The lecture ties these themes to the broader political and cultural shifts of the era, including the rise of abolitionism and challenges to slavery.