First published 1970
Jane Addams made history as the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, but her greatest achievement was proving how one person's moral courage could reshape society. Cornelia Meigs traces Addams' remarkable journey from privileged beginnings to becoming America's most influential social reformer. The biography reveals how Addams confronted the brutal realities of urban poverty and dangerous working conditions that plagued American cities. Through unwavering determination and genuine respect for people across all social classes, she built movements that would fundamentally change how society cares for its most vulnerable members. Meigs weaves together historical narrative with vivid descriptions of the harsh living conditions that motivated Addams' work. The book shows how social attitudes we now consider basic human decency were once radical ideas that required tremendous personal sacrifice to advance. Readers discover the specific strategies Addams used to build coalitions and create lasting institutional change that improved millions of lives.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, biography-memoir, 21st-century, social-justice, activism, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: moral-courage, social-reformer
Setting: America, Urban
Period: 19th-Century, 20th-Century
274 pages · Hardcover · Little Brown & Co