Super Short Summary

In A Fierce Discontent, Michael McGerr chronicles the rise and fall of the Progressive Movement in America from 1870 to 1920, driven by the middle class's "fierce discontent" with polarizing values and behaviors. He explores the movement's origins, class conflicts, key reform battles, and its eventual decline due to cultural backlash, using historical narratives to illustrate the era's complex social transformations. The book addresses themes including racial segregation, big business regulation, and class conflict.