Loss of Innocence

America in the early twentieth century was a study of socioeconomic contrasts. Those of Western European heritage had been here for generations already and were well settled in their White Anglo-Saxon neighborhoods. The influx of "new" immigrants, that is, those from Ireland, Italy, and Eastern and Southern Europe, including a large number of Jews, brought a cultural shock to America's system. Languages, cultures, and religions were strange; acceptance of these newcomers was not forthcoming. These "new" immigrants settled into urban slums, living in tenements, finding work which was usually beneath their skills, and raising families in a wholly foreign environment.

As Albert stated, getting up and going outside onto the earth did not change a man; getting up and going outside onto pavement did. Into this environment were dropped children who, in their attempts to survive and discover some identity, grew up too fast and became...