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1.1: A Close Look at the 1893 World's Fair - Introduction to Chapter Readings and Videos

  • Page ID
    316514
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    Your Readings

    The first three readings from Smarthistory introduce you to the spectacle that was the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, particularly the two main areas of the World's Fair known as the "White City" and the "Midway Plaisance."

    • As you consider which segments of the American population's perspectives and values were the dominant forces that shaped the fair's overall structure, also consider which contrasting viewpoints were not given the opportunity to shape the fair's design. In other words, who had the opportunity to tell their own culture's stories? And who had their culture represented in ways dictated by others?

    After gaining that overview on the contents of those differentiated spaces of the fair, you will get to explore some additional dimensions of the fair's construction and public reception, including critiques by Ida B. Wells and Frederick Douglass. Keep these in mind as you approach class activities and assignments for this chapter.


    Content Warning

    Please note that images depicting historical events may contain themes or include verbal descriptions which do not reflect current understandings of topics like race, gender, sexuality, (dis)ability status, and religious diversity. These are provided in a historical context.

    Racist caricatures are included in some of this chapter's readings.


    This page titled 1.1: A Close Look at the 1893 World's Fair - Introduction to Chapter Readings and Videos is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Erica McCormack and Jack Lindsay.