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The Mormons and their immigration to the West were an example of peoples moving west because they still hadn’t found the religious tolerance that they were seeking in the east. Their ideas were even more different from the mainline Christians than the differences between the Protestants and the Catholics. This led to the inevitable fears and misunderstandings that go with differences. They were also philosophically very conservative so sometimes when they were attacked as a group it was really an attack on their conservatism more than their beliefs. Polygamy however, was the deal breaker for most people and it was not a belief system that the Christian based society here was prepared to tolerate. Thus, Mormons settled in the west looking for a place to call their own where they would be left alone. They engaged in the same intolerance toward others and their faiths that was targeted toward them. Their presence had a profound effect on the west and its settlement.
The first part of the paper would be a discussion of the basic roots of Mormonism and their reasons for moving to the West at all. Included in this would have to be a discussion of religious intolerance nationally and a very brief look at the number of other groups and sects leaving the east for the same reasons. A discussion of polygamy, its roots and its ramifications will be a necessary part of this portion of the paper. Once that set-up has been finished then it should be necessary to move into the political and sociological ramifications of their presence as a group. It will be necessary to look into the role of women at the time and their place in the developing society in Utah
In looking up some preliminary information on Mormons there appears to be an abundance of information in newspapers of the time and those clearly lead to other government papers and resources so I think that will be the best place to begin.
Posted at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
The readings that I did were the two sections that made up Chapter 11 on Violence. This deals largely with the Western Civil War of Incorporation lasting from fairly soon after the Civil War on the East Coast up until approximately 1920. This was a war of industry waged to expand the grasp of larger entities into this new territory. This was a very bloody period that required the U.S. Army to intervene on several occasions. Brutality was not its only attribute. Because it was largely a conflict between the wealthiest, the result was that many poorer and less affluent people were left alone and allowed to prosper. Whether the individual results were positive or negative this was clearly a situation that affected everyone.
1. What was the Indian involvement in the Western Civil War of Incorporation? What was the direct impact on their societies? Who did they help and why?
2. How representative is the violence in film of this period?
3. Was there any move to protect any facet of the region during these “civil” wars? For example: the Indian territories/ regions of great beauty that are parks today
4. What was the impact on local religious (Mormans) and racial groups (black and/or Hispanic/ Chinese and other immigrants)? Were they able to steer clear of the violence or were they impacted and forced to respond? In what ways positive and negative, were they impacted?
5. What form did the violence take? Terrorist incidents such as we deal with today? Gunfighting in the streets? Duels between two individuals? Fists? Corporate sabotage? What was the net result of the violence?
6. What role did women play in this violence? Was their position in society enhanced or downgraded because of this violence?
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