Historical Impacts on the Philanthropical American Tradition

Seminar paper from the year 2012 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 1,7, University of Passau, course: From John D. Rockefeller to Bill Gates: The Philanthropical American Tradition, language: English, abstract: Philanthropy constitutes an integral and important part of American culture, and "the United States probably outstrips all other [countries] in the size and autonomy of its nongovernmental sector" (Gardner ix). Originally, the term 'Philanthropy' derives from the Ancient Greek phrase 'philanthropia' and means "love to mankind" ("Philanthropy" 1989). Today, the American philanthropic sector is unique in its dimension and organization among all countries in the world and "no other nation manages its religious, cultural, social service, health care, and educational activities in this way" (Hamrack xv). To explore the role of philanthropy in the United States of America, it is necessary to analyze the number of cultural and historical influences and events from which the Philanthropical American Tradition emerged.
Affected by the Native American culture, Puritan beliefs, the Mayflower Compact from 1620 up to the adaption of the democratic U.S. Constitution in 1789 and the phenomena of U.S. patriotism, a rich tradition of philanthropy developed in the USA. By providing the impact of historical events shaping the Philanthropical American Tradition, it is due to the multitude of influences only possible to examine the most important ones in this paper. The impact of these historical influences on the Philanthropical American Tradition will be exposed in consideration of the American culture and character. Finally, against the background of the strong American Philanthropical Tradition, the importance of America's non-profit sector will be revealed from a historical perspective.