Transcript Margaret Fuller - Teaching with Primary Sources Northern

Margaret Fuller
As factories increased and cities grew, some felt that it was
important to remember nature and how to live simply.
Margaret Fuller, a writer and activist, believed in living close
to nature. She worked with Ralph Waldo Emerson to publish
a newspaper called The Dial devoted to the subject of nature.
Margaret Fuller influenced Americans through her writing and
activism. What else did she do to influence America?
In the early and mid 1800s, American society in the Northeast was becoming increasingly
“modern.” Factories appeared throughout the region, providing many jobs. Cities grew
bigger and bigger. New inventions like the steam engine and railroad allowed people to
travel more easily. Life in general seemed to be moving away from the more traditional style,
of small farms and country living to a newer, city-based model.
In this era of rapid social and economic change, a group of writers, artists, and activists
worked to remember and promote the more traditional lifestyle. They believed it was
important to live simply, close to nature, and without all the hassle and stress that the new
factory-based city life brought with it.
One of these people was Margaret Fuller. Margaret Fuller was a writer and activist who
strongly believed in living close to nature. She worked with fellow writer Ralph Waldo
Emerson on a newspaper dedicated to the subject of nature, called The Dial. She was also
one of the first women’s rights activists and wrote extensively on the subject.
Unknown. (1840-1880). Margaret Fuller. Library of Congress: Prints & Photographs.
This is a page from Summer on the Lakes, one of
Margaret Fuller’s books about nature. In it, Fuller
paints an idealized view of nature. She describes
some “buildings” around Niagara Falls , and argues
that although people protested their presence,
nature’s beauty is even stronger than these
industrial buildings. Her praise of nature was
common among other philosophers and activists at
that time in history.
Unknown. (1843). Summer on the Lakes in 1843. Library
of Congress: American Memory, Pioneering the Upper
Midwest: Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and
Wisconsin, ca. 1820-1910.
In another section of Summer on the Lakes, Fuller
writes about female settlers. She identifies the
various hardships female settlers faced on the
journey westward.
Unknown. (1843). Summer on the Lakes in 1843. Library
of Congress: American Memory, Pioneering the Upper
Midwest: Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and
Wisconsin, ca. 1820-1910.
In the 1830s, Lowell , Massachusetts , became one of the first factory towns in America
. Using the local river water as a power source, many mills emerged in the town to
produce textiles. Many other towns in the Northeast were built using Lowell as a model
for building new cities around factories.
Detroit Publishing Co. (1900-1910). Lowell, Mass., mills on Merrimack River. Library of
Congress: Prints & Photographs, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
Margaret Fuller was born in Cambridge , Massachusetts , in this house. She and many
other activists from the early and mid 1800s were from the Northeast. Fuller grew up as
the first wave of industrialization swept through places like Lowell in Massachusetts .
Detroit Publishing, Co. (1910-1920). Margaret Fuller House [i.e. Brattle House], Cambridge,
Mass. Library of Congress: Prints & Photographs, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.