![]() | Charleston and the Emergence of Middle-Class Culture in the Revolutionary Era Subjects: Charleston (S.C.) -- Social conditions -- 18th century; Charleston (S.C.) -- Social conditions -- 19th century; Middle class -- South Carolina -- Charleston -- History -- 18th century; Middle class -- South Carolina -- Charleston -- History -- 19th centur; Too often, says Jennifer L. Goloboy, we equate being middle class with "niceness"--a set of values frozen in the antebellum period and centered on long-term economic and social progress and a close, nurturing family life. Goloboy's case study of merchants in Charleston, South Carolina, looks to an earlier time to establish the roots of middle-class culture in America. She argues for a definition more applicable to the ruthless pursuit of profit in the early republic. To be middle class then was to be skilled at survival in the market economy. JENNIFER L. GOLOBOY is an independent scholar based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in the history of the early American middle class. She is the editor of Industrial Revolution: People and Perspectives. Goloboy earned her PhD in the history of American civilization from Harvard University. |
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