Quiz for American Voices: “These Dead Bodies Were the Answer”: The Triangle Fire

Question

1. What was the purpose of William G. Sheperd’s report on the Triangle Fire?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is d. Shepherd’s primary goal was to report the story fully, conveying both the humanity of the victims and the horror he experienced as an eyewitness.
Incorrect. The answer is d. Shepherd’s primary goal was to report the story fully, conveying both the humanity of the victims and the horror he experienced as an eyewitness.

Question

2. According to the remarks of Rabbi Stephen Wise, who was responsible for the tragedy that took place at the Triangle Factory?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is c. Rabbi Wise’s comments suggested that everyone had some responsibility for the fire that killed 146 women. He explained that, “We might have foreseen it . . . we might have controlled it, but we chose not to do so.”
Incorrect. The answer is c. Rabbi Wise’s comments suggested that everyone had some responsibility for the fire that killed 146 women. He explained that, “We might have foreseen it . . . we might have controlled it, but we chose not to do so.”

Question

3. Rose Schneiderman made her remarks in the same setting as Rabbi Wise and yet her speech has a very different tone. To whom is she referring when she uses the term “we” in her speech?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is d. Schneiderman’s “we” refers to the working class. Her remarks accuse middle-class New Yorkers, including reformers, of being a part of the problem workers face.
Incorrect. The answer is d. Schneiderman’s “we” refers to the working class. Her remarks accuse middle-class New Yorkers, including reformers, of being a part of the problem workers face.

Question

4. According to Schneiderman, what was the solution to the problem of dangerous conditions in the workplace?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is a. Schneiderman believed that industrial capitalism was inherently dangerous to workers and that only a strong labor movement could bring about the changes that would improve the conditions of the workplace. She did not believe that the reformers in the audience had workers’ interests at heart and concluded her remarks by saying, “I know from my experience it is up to the working people to save themselves. The only way they can save themselves is by a strong working-class movement.”
Incorrect. The answer is a. Schneiderman believed that industrial capitalism was inherently dangerous to workers and that only a strong labor movement could bring about the changes that would improve the conditions of the workplace. She did not believe that the reformers in the audience had workers’ interests at heart and concluded her remarks by saying, “I know from my experience it is up to the working people to save themselves. The only way they can save themselves is by a strong working-class movement.”

Question

5. Based on the remarks he made to his fellow lawyers, which of the following groups would Max Steuer have been most likely to support in the wake of the Triangle Fire?

A.
B.
C.
D.
Correct. The answer is d. Steuer’s remarks showed that despite his humble origins and experience as a young worker in garment factories, his sympathies lay clearly with the factory owners whose acquittal he helped to secure.
Incorrect. The answer is d. Steuer’s remarks showed that despite his humble origins and experience as a young worker in garment factories, his sympathies lay clearly with the factory owners whose acquittal he helped to secure.