Populists and Progressives, Norman K Risjord's next book in the
Representative Americans series, gives readers a fascinating glimpse
into the tumultuous turn of the twentieth century. Risjord brings
together brief biographies to explore the political, social, and
cultural dimensions of the period from 1890-1920. The work begins by
personifying the rise of big business and the early struggle between
capital and labor with profiles of John D. Rockefeller and Mother Jones.
Next, a comparison of William Graham Sumner and Lester Frank Ward
illuminates the intellectual debate over social Darwinism. The Great
Plains' form of Populism comes to life through the story of William
Peffer, while Louis Brandeis represents the Wilsonian variety of
Progressivism. A portrait of Carrie Chapman Catt provides a window into
the women's suffrage movement and sketches of Alfred Thayer Mahan,
Richard Harding Davis, and John Hay explore the shaping of American
policies and politics. Finally, John Muir, W.E.B. DuBois, and Margaret
Sanger represent individuals ahead of their time and mark the transition
from Progressivism to the liberal thought of the latter half of the
twentieth century.