“To Hesitate is Cowardly”: Radicalism and American Manhood, 1870-1920 By © 2011 Kyle Anthony Submitted to the graduate degree program in History and the Graduate Faculty of the University of Kansas in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. ________________________________ Chairperson Dr. Jeff Moran ________________________________ Dr. Chris Forth ________________________________ Dr. Anton Rosenthal ________________________________ Dr. Ted Wilson ________________________________ Dr. Ann Schofield Date Defended: April 18, 2011 The Dissertation Committee for Kyle Anthony certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: “To Hesitate is Cowardly”: Radicalism and American Manhood, 1870-1920 ________________________________ Chairperson Dr. Jeff Moran Date approved: April 18, 2011 ii Abstract Examination of newspapers, novels, images, and organizational materials from the Gilded Age and Progressive Era reveals that radical groups framed their masculinity within contemporary expectations of manhood in order in order to legitimize their radical theories. An investigation of five prominent radical groups—the Knights of Labor, Haymarket anarchists, Populists, Wobblies, and socialists—shows how radicals contested industrial-era capitalism by making the claim that capitalists had degraded workers‘ manhood. Thus, radicals called on workers to accept their radical programs as a means of regenerating their manhood. In response, the political and industrial elite successfully rebuffed radicalism, in part, by positioning the masculinity of radicals as existing outside of socially acceptable norms. This dissertation explores the discursive contest between radicals and their opponents and uncovers the interconnectedness between masculinity, politics, and economic theories during a crucial period in America‘s development as a nation. iii Acknowledgements It has been a long road since I first entered the University of Kansas as an engineering student over eleven years ago. I would not be in the fortunate position I am today if it were not for the truly wonderful people that have assisted me and provided support along the way. To those who helped me with my dissertation and my growth as a student, I am greatly indebted to you. I could not have asked for a better place to call home as I completed this journey, and as a result, I have many people to thank. To my best friend and best man, Bryan Alonzo, thank you for your friendship and for letting me forget my worries and just have fun once in a while. To my many friends in the Department of History, Jeremy, Emily, John, Nicole, Brady, Kenny, and Lon, thank you for providing support and helping me grow as a student. I would like to especially recognize Ethan Schmidt, though you had no responsibility to do so, you took me under your wing and helped me survive my first couple of years. Thank you for being a mentor and a role model. To Ryan Gaston, thank you for your unending support and friendship, I look forward to many more years of friendship and watching Kansas basketball with you. I am indebted to several professors in the History Department who assisted me in my development as a historian. To Jonathan Earle, thank you for your guidance and advice when I was an undergrad, and for being such a great teacher; you have made a great impact on the kind of teacher and person I want to be. To Donald Worster, Paul Kelton, Roger Spiller, Karl Brooks, and Nathan Wood, thank you for challenging me and imparting your wisdom on what it means to be a historian. Finally, I would like to thank Sheyda Jahanbani for being a true friend and mentor; I have grown immensely as a teacher under your guidance. My project has taken me to places all over the country, and I am truly grateful to the librarians and staff that have provided me with assistance. I would like to thank the staff at iv Watson and Spencer Libraries at the University of Kansas, at the Kansas State Historical Society, at the Wisconsin Historical Society, and at Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University. I have many fond memories of my travels, and your help was of utmost importance to my project; for all your assistance, I am grateful. I owe a debt of gratitude to the many people that made this dissertation possible. To my fellow members of the graduate dissertation reading group: James Quinn, Karl Rubis, Kim Schutte, Steven Tucker, Sally Utech, and Karenbeth Zacharias, thank you for reading my chapters and providing me with comments to improve my work. I would especially like to thank Kristen Epps who gave insightful criticisms of my work, but more importantly, has been a true friend. It is a pleasure to thank those faculty and staff member who have assisted me in the completion of my dissertation. To committee members Chris Forth, Anton Rosenthal, and Ann Schofield, I would like to thank you for your helpful comments, suggestions, and guidance. To Ted Wilson, I am unbelievably grateful for all of your support throughout the years. Whether it was writing reference letters, serving on my committees, or providing me with guidance as one of your teaching assistants, you have been a constant supporter, and I thank you. Finally, I owe my deepest gratitude to Jeff Moran, a truly great advisor. Thank you for your countless hours of assistance you have given me, from carefully editing my chapters to filling out reference forms and letters that have allowed me to win fellowships and teaching positions; I truly appreciate all your help and consider myself fortunate to have you as my advisor. I would not be where I am today without the incredible support I have received from my family. To Jack, my black Labrador, thank you for ―supervising‖ me and keeping me on task when I would have preferred to procrastinate. To Teresa, my ―second mom,‖ thank you for letting me invade your house with my research materials. I feel truly blessed to have been able v to known you. To my sister, Erin, thank you for being supportive and providing me with a floor in your shoebox apartment to crash on while I conducted research. To my parents, Craig and Mary, I would not be where I am without the unwavering emotional and financial support you have given me all of my life. Finally, to Becca, I am grateful and incredibly lucky to have you in my life. Thank you for your support, encouragement, patience, and above all, love, which gave me the strength to complete this work. It is to you that I dedicate this dissertation. vi ‗To Hesitate is Cowardly‟: Radicalism and American Manhood, 1870-1920 Table of Contents Title Page i Acceptance Page ii Abstract iii Acknowledgements iv Table of Contents vii Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Strikers, Detectives and the 17 Knights of Labor: The Construction of Respectable Masculinity in Working- Class Organizations Chapter 2: Beasts, Cowards, and 61 Martyrs: Victorian Manhood and the Haymarket Anarchists Chapter 3: Hayseeds and Modern 103 Producers: Masculinity in the Populist Movement Chapter 4: Red-Blooded Manhood, 148 Solidarity, and the Industrial Workers of the World Chapter 5: Socialism in the 197 Progressive Era: Virile Manhood, Reformist Zeal, and Gender Politics of World War I Conclusion 242 Bibliography 250 vii Introduction During the Gilded Age and Progressive Era—a period of rapid industrialization in America—modern economic structures took form with the solidification of capitalism and the two-party system of democracy. Yet, the cementing of capitalism and the two-party system was not an inevitable outcome, as radical ideologies emerged to challenge the status quo. The purpose of my dissertation is to explore how radicals and their opposition used the language of masculinity in their cultural productions during this fifty-year period, and it seeks to answer how and why expectations and definitions of manhood were used to legitimize and delegitimize political and economic radicalism. Furthermore, this exploration Gilded Age and Progressive Era masculinity will allow us to understand the dominant themes and changes in idealized masculine behaviors and expectations in America, as well as show the interconnection between masculinity, politics, and economics during a crucial period of radical thought in America. Thus, the central question at the heart of this dissertation is: how did radicals and their opposition, including the established political parties and the industrial elites use the language of manhood for their own purposes? In looking at how masculinity was constructed in this time period, I will show that men coped with, challenged, and shaped their political and economic understanding of society through gender-based discourse. Ultimately, my argument is that radicals‘ beliefs, expectations, and cultural discourse of what it meant to be a man, with few exceptions, did not radically overturn predominant meanings of manhood in American society. On the contrary, as radicals vigorously protested capitalism and the two-party political system in America, they often tried to accomplish their radical goals by relying on contemporary and accepted expectations of masculinity in America. Radicals used this gender discourse to legitimize their reformist economic and political beliefs by constructing male identities that were in line with society‘s 1 general expectations of manhood. Furthermore, radicals used these accepted notions of manhood to argue that the ruling moneyed classes and corrupt politicians in society had betrayed authentic American manhood. In conceptualizing this argument, I do not argue that an ―ideal‖ masculinity is attainable, for gender ideals are dynamic and fluid. Instead, I aim to show that radicals attempted to portray themselves as ―ideal men‖ in order to make their economic and political radicalism sufficiently palatable to a suspicious American public. At the same time, political and economic elites were not passive observers. Hoping to delegitimize the radicals‘ potentially dangerous ideologies, they also used gender discourse that portrayed their radical opponents in un-masculine ways.