Disciplines
- MLA
- APA
- Master's
- Undergraduate
- High School
- PhD
- Harvard
- Biology
- Art
- Drama
- Movies
- Theatre
- Painting
- Music
- Architecture
- Dance
- Design
- History
- American History
- Asian History
- Literature
- Antique Literature
- American Literature
- Asian Literature
- Classic English Literature
- World Literature
- Creative Writing
- English
- Linguistics
- Law
- Criminal Justice
- Legal Issues
- Ethics
- Philosophy
- Religion
- Theology
- Anthropology
- Archaeology
- Economics
- Tourism
- Political Science
- World Affairs
- Psychology
- Sociology
- African-American Studies
- East European Studies
- Latin-American Studies
- Native-American Studies
- West European Studies
- Family and Consumer Science
- Social Issues
- Women and Gender Studies
- Social Work
- Natural Sciences
- Anatomy
- Zoology
- Ecology
- Chemistry
- Pharmacology
- Earth science
- Geography
- Geology
- Astronomy
- Physics
- Agriculture
- Agricultural Studies
- Computer Science
- Internet
- IT Management
- Web Design
- Mathematics
- Business
- Accounting
- Finance
- Investments
- Logistics
- Trade
- Management
- Marketing
- Engineering and Technology
- Engineering
- Technology
- Aeronautics
- Aviation
- Medicine and Health
- Alternative Medicine
- Healthcare
- Nursing
- Nutrition
- Communications and Media
- Advertising
- Communication Strategies
- Journalism
- Public Relations
- Education
- Educational Theories
- Pedagogy
- Teacher's Career
- Statistics
- Chicago/Turabian
- Nature
- Company Analysis
- Sport
- Paintings
- E-commerce
- Holocaust
- Education Theories
- Fashion
- Shakespeare
- Canadian Studies
- Science
- Food Safety
- Relation of Global Warming and Extreme Weather Condition
Paper Types
- Movie Review
- Essay
- Admission Essay
- Annotated Bibliography
- Application Essay
- Article Critique
- Article Review
- Article Writing
- Assessment
- Book Review
- Business Plan
- Business Proposal
- Capstone Project
- Case Study
- Coursework
- Cover Letter
- Creative Essay
- Dissertation
- Dissertation - Abstract
- Dissertation - Conclusion
- Dissertation - Discussion
- Dissertation - Hypothesis
- Dissertation - Introduction
- Dissertation - Literature
- Dissertation - Methodology
- Dissertation - Results
- GCSE Coursework
- Grant Proposal
- Admission Essay
- Annotated Bibliography
- Application Essay
- Article
- Article Critique
- Article Review
- Article Writing
- Assessment
- Book Review
- Business Plan
- Business Proposal
- Capstone Project
- Case Study
- Coursework
- Cover Letter
- Creative Essay
- Dissertation
- Dissertation - Abstract
- Dissertation - Conclusion
- Dissertation - Discussion
- Dissertation - Hypothesis
- Dissertation - Introduction
- Dissertation - Literature
- Dissertation - Methodology
- Dissertation - Results
- Essay
- GCSE Coursework
- Grant Proposal
- Interview
- Lab Report
- Literature Review
- Marketing Plan
- Math Problem
- Movie Analysis
- Movie Review
- Multiple Choice Quiz
- Online Quiz
- Outline
- Personal Statement
- Poem
- Power Point Presentation
- Power Point Presentation With Speaker Notes
- Questionnaire
- Quiz
- Reaction Paper
- Research Paper
- Research Proposal
- Resume
- Speech
- Statistics problem
- SWOT analysis
- Term Paper
- Thesis Paper
- Accounting
- Advertising
- Aeronautics
- African-American Studies
- Agricultural Studies
- Agriculture
- Alternative Medicine
- American History
- American Literature
- Anatomy
- Anthropology
- Antique Literature
- APA
- Archaeology
- Architecture
- Art
- Asian History
- Asian Literature
- Astronomy
- Aviation
- Biology
- Business
- Canadian Studies
- Chemistry
- Chicago/Turabian
- Classic English Literature
- Communication Strategies
- Communications and Media
- Company Analysis
- Computer Science
- Creative Writing
- Criminal Justice
- Dance
- Design
- Drama
- E-commerce
- Earth science
- East European Studies
- Ecology
- Economics
- Education
- Education Theories
- Educational Theories
- Engineering
- Engineering and Technology
- English
- Ethics
- Family and Consumer Science
- Fashion
- Finance
- Food Safety
- Geography
- Geology
- Harvard
- Healthcare
- High School
- History
- Holocaust
- Internet
- Investments
- IT Management
- Journalism
- Latin-American Studies
- Law
- Legal Issues
- Linguistics
- Literature
- Logistics
- Management
- Marketing
- Master's
- Mathematics
- Medicine and Health
- MLA
- Movies
- Music
- Native-American Studies
- Natural Sciences
- Nature
- Nursing
- Nutrition
- Painting
- Paintings
- Pedagogy
- Pharmacology
- PhD
- Philosophy
- Physics
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Public Relations
- Relation of Global Warming and Extreme Weather Condition
- Religion
- Science
- Shakespeare
- Social Issues
- Social Work
- Sociology
- Sport
- Statistics
- Teacher's Career
- Technology
- Theatre
- Theology
- Tourism
- Trade
- Undergraduate
- Web Design
- West European Studies
- Women and Gender Studies
- World Affairs
- World Literature
- Zoology
Big Tim Sullivan and Metropolitan Politics, Essay Example
Hire a Writer for Custom Essay
Use 10% Off Discount: "custom10" in 1 Click 👇
You are free to use it as an inspiration or a source for your own work.
In this biographical article, historian Daniel Czitrom analyzes the life and political rise to power of “Big” Tim Sullivan who in 1889 was accused of being the “boon companion of thieves, burglars, and murderers” as the elected representative of the Five Points slum district in New York City, an area of great poverty and impoverishment and the home to some of the most notorious criminals in the long history of the city. However, in contrast to his “persona” as a haborer of thieves and killers, Sullivan declared in 1907 “I believe in liberality. Help your neighbors but keep your nose out of his affairs. I am square with my friends, and all I ask is a square deal in return” (172). Certainly, these statements do not reflect the attitudes of a man who runs with criminals and lives the life of a criminal himself.
As Czitrom argues in this article, “Big” Tim Sullivan, in order to counter the charges against him by Thomas F. Byrnes, chief inspector of the New York Police Department in 1889, went to great lengths to create a new “public persona” or an image that conveys honesty and integrity, supported by stressing his “impoverished and fatherless childhood, the saintly influence of his mother, and the necessity to go to work” at seven years of age to help support his mother and siblings (173). Also, as part of this new persona, Sullivan wished to create “a new metropolitan political style” based on “a deep knowledge of city street life” while living at Five Points with his fellow Irish immigrants, living hand-to-mouth in the tenements of New York City and doing whatever was needed to survive (173).
Of course, in the late 1880’s, the city of New York was experiencing some significant transformations in relation to the nature of urban politics. One important area as Czitrom points out was the so-called underworld that today signifies a world filled with criminals and organized crime syndicates like the Italian Mafia and in 1889 the Irish Mafia, composed of immigrants from Ireland. This entity, a sort of concealed society beneath traditional and accepted culture, provided a “zone of pleasure for visiting businessmen and tourists” (i.e., prostitution, gambling, and other vices usually outlawed by the State of New York), and many opportunities for exploitation, something which Sullivan fully appreciated via “the enormous political and economic power” related to the people that frequented this “zone of pleasure” and those who controlled the structure of metropolitan life in the city (174).
Also, the career of “Big” Tim Sullivan as a potent political activist played a major role in the merger of New York City politics and Sullivan’s show business ventures that included “an uncanny and shrewd melding of job patronage and legal services” for the “underdogs” of the city; “charity and poor relief” for those struggling to survive on a daily basis; “urban carnivals” for those who could not afford big ticket prices for places like the Metropolitan Opera House; the “protection of gambling and the saloon trade,” reminiscent of mob activities in Las Vegas in the early 1960’s; and an increase in tolerance for “commercial entertainments,” such as shows that featured scantily-clad dancers and performers in what were then known as bawdy houses (Czitrom 191). Thus, “Big” Tim Sullivan could be seen as a contemporary of P.T. Barnum but with a political alignment more in favor with the common man and woman living out their existence in Five Points and elsewhere in New York City at about the same time as the emergence of the Gilded Age and the so-called “Robber Barons.”
Bibliography
Hartzell, Lawrence L. A Mosaic of America. Vol. 2. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Publishing, 2007. 172-191.
Stuck with your Essay?
Get in touch with one of our experts for instant help!
Time is precious
don’t waste it!
writing help!
Plagiarism-free
guarantee
Privacy
guarantee
Secure
checkout
Money back
guarantee
![E-book](https://essays.io/wp-content/themes/essays.io.2023/public/assets/img/calc/image-book.png)