Early Life
Lincoln Steffens, known as the Father of Muckraking for the Saturday Evening Post, was born in the Mission Distrct of San Francisco, California on April 6, 1866. It was an era in which big business reigned, and Steffen's own father, Joseph Steffens, was a wealthy businessman as well. However, Steffens was not shaped by these circumstances - as a young child, he moved to Sacramento, which was just outside the influence of the city's big businesses. Steffens was sent to an expensive military school where he developed signs of rebelliousness which foreshadowed his radical nature. After barely graduating, he went on to study philosophy at the University of California. [2] The young Steffens, filled with thousands of questions on life and politics, believed that these answers came from studying philosophy. Upon graduating in 1889, his father’s wealth enabled Steffens to pursue studying in France and Germany where he developed his radical political views.
In Leipzig, Germany, Steffens studied with Wilhelm Wundt, the founder of the first formal laboratory for psychological research. Known as the “Father of Experimental Psychology,” Wundt studied the nature of religious beliefs and identified mental disorders and abnormal behavior[3]. Through his studies and experiments, Wundt made psychology into a separate branch. Steffens also went to study in the University of Berlin, Heidelberg, Paris, and Sorbonne. After studying at the six most renowned universities, Steffens returned to the United States in 1892. His father gave him a $100 check and said that his days of study were over and it was time to find for himself – this would be the last subsidiary from his father.
In Leipzig, Germany, Steffens studied with Wilhelm Wundt, the founder of the first formal laboratory for psychological research. Known as the “Father of Experimental Psychology,” Wundt studied the nature of religious beliefs and identified mental disorders and abnormal behavior[3]. Through his studies and experiments, Wundt made psychology into a separate branch. Steffens also went to study in the University of Berlin, Heidelberg, Paris, and Sorbonne. After studying at the six most renowned universities, Steffens returned to the United States in 1892. His father gave him a $100 check and said that his days of study were over and it was time to find for himself – this would be the last subsidiary from his father.
In the midst of intense research, Steffens married the novelist Josephine Bontecou in Germany of 1892. Josephine Bontecou Steffens wrote Letitia Berkeley, A. M., which details the life of a woman and written with a woman’s tone. Bontecou evokes sympathy from its readers and “stirs the feelings of the reader to a glow in its climaxes.”[5] It can be inferred that Bontecou impacted Steffens’ style of writing which was able to attract its readers.
Works Cited
1. McCullough, Helen. ""The Explosions of Our Fine Idealistic Undertakings"" McClure's Chapter 3. Allegheny College, n.d. Web. 5 June 2012.
2. White, Carl. ""Muckraking" Greenwich." Historically Speaking. N.p., 18 Aug. 2010. Web. 6 June 2012.
3. "Human Intelligence: Wilhelm Wundt." Human Intelligence: Wilhelm Wundt. Indiana University, n.d. Web. 7 June 2012.
4. "Dr. Simonton's Direct Doctoral Descent." Dr. Simonton's Direct Doctoral Descent. UC Davis, n.d. Web. 8 June 2012.
5. Emerson, Florence Brooks. ""Letitia Berkeley, A.M."" The New York Times. N.p., 16 Dec. 1899. Web. 7 June 2012.
2. White, Carl. ""Muckraking" Greenwich." Historically Speaking. N.p., 18 Aug. 2010. Web. 6 June 2012.
3. "Human Intelligence: Wilhelm Wundt." Human Intelligence: Wilhelm Wundt. Indiana University, n.d. Web. 7 June 2012.
4. "Dr. Simonton's Direct Doctoral Descent." Dr. Simonton's Direct Doctoral Descent. UC Davis, n.d. Web. 8 June 2012.
5. Emerson, Florence Brooks. ""Letitia Berkeley, A.M."" The New York Times. N.p., 16 Dec. 1899. Web. 7 June 2012.