Jacob Riis Research Paper

Jacob Riis once said, “Look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred-and-first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not the last blow that did it, but all that had gone before.” When Riis’s life is closely examined, it becomes apparent that he took his own words to heart! He never stopped pressing for change and reform of problems created by industrialization and urbanization. When he finally achieved results, it was because of all of the previous work he had put into the cause, not just the most recent things he had done to spur change. Throughout his life, Jacob Riis never stopped pressing for change through the means of photography and journalism. He had experienced first-hand the …show more content…
It is extremely evident when examining Riis’s life that his past led him to create influential writing and photography that spurred a great deal of reformation in New York City.

To fully understand Jacob Riis’s actions and opinions in regards to reformation, it is necessary to dissect his past. Much of his past influenced his future actions promoting reformation and exposing slums. Jacob Riis was born on May 3, 1849. His was born in Ribe, Denmark. His family was extremely large, in fact, he had thirteen siblings! Poverty was a large problem for Riis during his childhood and well into his earlier adult years. He experienced the disrespectful and rude treatment of those better off than him and his family. These experiences contributed largely to his intent to help cause change and reform. He had experienced many of the negative aspects of poverty and urbanization, which meant that he was already aware of major problems that needed to be solved. He also developed compassion and sympathy for those in terrible situations because he had experienced some of the same issues as those

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Jacob Riis Research Paper