Surreal Public Moods in America: The Legacies of Great Awakening, Know Nothings, Prairie Populism, and Modern Upheaval

​American history features recurring episodes when powerful social movements gripped the public imagination, mobilized vast audiences, and transformed the national landscape. Each movement—religious, political, or cultural—left a legacy that continues to influence the United States. By understanding both the surreal energy of these periods and their tangible results, we see how mass engagement shapes the nation’s evolution.
 
The United States is clearly in a similar period of change, seemingly intractable. It’s important to understand these cycles repeat, usually when the government has failed its citizens, and that these cycles typically cause reform.
 
The First Great Awakening (1730s–1740s): Reviving Religion and Sparking Independence
 
The First Great Awakening swept the American colonies with evangelical fervor, drawing unprecedented crowds to open-air sermons and revival meetings. Preachers like George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards inspired emotional conversions and new denominations. The scale and intensity of these gatherings created a surreal sense of unity and transformation.

The movement weakened the authority of established churches and promoted religious pluralism. It encouraged ordinary people to question hierarchy, fostered a spirit of individualism, and laid the groundwork for the American Revolution. By fostering new ideas about equality and dissent, the Awakening contributed directly to the rise of revolutionary thought and the development of an independent American identity.
 
The Second Great Awakening (1790s–1840s): Religion Fuels Reform
 
Building on the foundation of the first revival, the Second Great Awakening drew even larger audiences to camp meetings on the expanding frontier. This movement reached deep into rural communities, creating collective experiences of religious ecstasy and moral resolve. Participants described the meetings as transcendent, with thousands participating in singing, praying, and communal action.

The revival energized reform efforts across society. Activists launched abolitionist campaigns, founded temperance societies, and advanced the causes of women’s rights and public education. The movement created a culture of volunteerism and activism that drove the early fight against slavery, expanded democratic participation, and laid the roots for later social justice movements.
 
The Know Nothing Movement (1850s): Nativist Backlash and Political Collapse
 
The Know Nothing Party, born from secretive nativist clubs, rapidly expanded as fears over immigration and Catholic influence swept American cities and towns. Their mysterious rituals and explosive growth generated an atmosphere of paranoia and political urgency. For a brief period, the Know Nothings controlled legislatures and elected governors.

Despite their meteoric rise, the Know Nothings quickly fragmented as debates over slavery overshadowed nativist issues. The movement collapsed, but its legacy lingered in recurring anti-immigrant sentiment. The Know Nothings illustrated the dangers of scapegoating and the volatility of single-issue politics in a nation wrestling with deeper structural conflicts.
 
Prairie Populism (Late 1800s–Early 1900s): Rural America Demands Change
 
Prairie Populism united rural farmers against economic hardship and monopolistic practices. The People’s Party held massive rallies, published newspapers, and inspired a vision of economic democracy. Once isolated by distance, Ordinary Americans felt a surreal sense of empowerment as they banded together to challenge railroad tycoons and banking elites.

Although the Populist Party faded after failing to win national office, its policy ideas reshaped the nation. The Progressive Era adopted many Populist reforms, including the direct election of senators, graduated income tax, and regulation of major industries. Prairie Populism showed that even when a movement’s political party fails, its ideas can live on to benefit future generations.
 
Civil Rights Movement (1950s–1970s): A Nation Awakens to Justice
 
The Civil Rights Movement drew millions into marches, sit-ins, and voter registration drives. Images of peaceful protestors confronting violence created a surreal moral drama witnessed by the world. The sheer size and determination of the movement forced the entire nation to confront its legacy of segregation and injustice.

The movement secured landmark legislation, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, ending legal segregation and expanding voting rights. Civil rights activism set a precedent for future social justice efforts and fundamentally altered American law, politics, and social norms, moving the nation closer to its ideals of equality.
 
Antiwar Movement (1960s–1970s): Youth Challenge Authority
 
During the Vietnam War, the Antiwar Movement mobilized students, artists, veterans, and clergy in massive protests and teach-ins. Millions took to the streets in surreal displays of unity and defiance. Televised images of demonstrations and clashes with authorities dramatized the national conflict over U.S. policy abroad.

Sustained protest contributed to a shift in public opinion and put pressure on policymakers to end American involvement in Vietnam. The movement’s legacy includes greater skepticism of government narratives, expanded free speech rights, and a template for organized dissent that has inspired subsequent generations of activists.
 
Modern Political Upheaval (2010s–2020s): Digital Age Intensifies Mass Engagement
 
Today, social media and 24-hour news cycles enable movements to capture national attention almost instantly. Hashtags, livestreams, and viral videos create a sense that political drama is unfolding everywhere at once. Millions participate in protests, online campaigns, and new forms of civic engagement. The speed and scale of these movements give today’s politics an intense, sometimes surreal energy.

Movements such as Black Lives Matter, Occupy Wall Street, and widespread protests over elections and policy have changed public discourse, pressured institutions, and led to significant policy debates and reforms. However, increased polarization and fragmented information also challenge national unity and democratic norms, with the results of the current era still unfolding.
 
Conclusion: Mass Movements and the Changing Face of America
 
These mass movements—The First and Second Great Awakenings, the Know Nothings, Prairie Populism, the Civil Rights and Antiwar movements, and today’s political upheavals—captured enormous audiences and pushed American society into new territory. Their results reveal that even when movements do not achieve all their goals, they can transform laws, beliefs, and the very nature of public life. These cycles of mass engagement and reform remain central to the American story.