Article #433-1 | Gutenberg Articles

Excerpt

Excerpt from The Conflict, by David Graham Phillips

Yet Kelly could not, dared not, doubt that poll. It was his only safe
guide. And it assured him that the long-dreaded disaster was at hand.
In vain was the clever trick of nominating a popular, "clean" young
reformer and opposing him with an unpopular regular of the most
offensive type--more offensive even than a professional politician of
unsavory record. At last victory was to reward the tactics of Victor
Dorn, the slow, patient building which for several years now had been
rasping the nerves of Boss Kelly.

What should he do?

It was clear to him that the doom of the old system was settled. The
plutocrats, the upper-class crowd--the "silk stockings," as they had
been called from the days when men wore knee-breeches--they fancied
that this nation-wide movement was sporadic, would work out in a few
years, and that the people would return to their allegiance. Kelly had
no such delusions. Issuing from the depths of the people, he
understood. They were learning a little something at last. They were
discovering that the ever higher prices for everything and stationary
or falling wages and salaries had some intimate relation with politics;
that at the national capitol, at the state capitol, in the county
courthouse, in the city hall their share of the nation's vast annual
production of wealth was being determined--and that the persons doing
the dividing, though elected by them, were in the employ of the
plutocracy. Kelly, seeing and comprehending, felt that it behooved him
to get for his masters--and for himself--all that could be got in the
brief remaining time. Not that he was thinking of giving up the game;
nothing so foolish as that. It would be many a year before the
plutocracy could be routed out, before the people would have the
intelligence and the persistence to claim and to hold their own. In
the meantime, they could be fooled and robbed by a hundred tricks. He
was not a constitutional lawyer, but he had practical good sense, and
could enjoy the joke upon the people in their entanglement in the toils
of their own making. Through fear of governmental tyranny they had
divided authority among legislators, executives and judges, national,
state, local. And, behold, outside of the government, out where they
had never dreamed of looking, had grown up a tyranny that was
perpetuating itself by dodging from one of these divided authorities to
another, eluding capture, wearing out the not too strong perseverance
of popular pursuit.

Explanation

**Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from The Conflict by David Graham Phillips**

Context of the Source

The Conflict (1911) is a political novel by David Graham Phillips, an American journalist and muckraking novelist known for his critiques of political corruption, corporate greed, and social inequality. Phillips was part of the Progressive Era (late 19th–early 20th century), a time of reform movements aimed at curbing monopolies, political machines, and economic exploitation. His works often exposed the collusion between politicians, industrialists ("plutocrats"), and party bosses who manipulated democracy for personal gain.

This excerpt focuses on Boss Kelly, a fictional political boss (likely inspired by real-life figures like William M. Tweed of Tammany Hall), who realizes that his corrupt system is under threat from a growing populist reform movement led by Victor Dorn. The passage captures Kelly’s cynical but shrewd understanding of power, public sentiment, and the structural weaknesses of American democracy that allow plutocrats to maintain control despite occasional backlash.

Themes in the Excerpt

The Decline of the Political Machine
- Kelly acknowledges that his usual tactics—nominating a "clean" reformer as a puppet while opposing him with an unpopular regular—have failed. The public is no longer fooled.
- The "long-dreaded disaster" suggests that the Progressive Era’s reforms (direct primaries, anti-corruption laws, muckraking journalism) are finally gaining traction.
Class Conflict: Plutocracy vs. the People
- The "silk stockings" (upper-class elites) dismiss the reform movement as temporary, but Kelly, who rose from the "depths of the people," knows better.
- The people are realizing that politics directly affects their wages and cost of living—a Marxist-like awareness of economic exploitation.
- Kelly admits that elected officials are "in the employ of the plutocracy," meaning they serve wealthy interests, not the public.
The Illusion of Democracy
- Kelly mocks the American system of checks and balances (legislative, executive, judicial branches at national, state, and local levels).
- The fragmentation of power, meant to prevent tyranny, actually enables corporate and political elites to evade accountability by shifting between jurisdictions.
- This reflects real Progressive Era concerns about regulatory capture—where industries influence all levels of government to avoid reform.
Cynicism and Survival
- Kelly is not ideologically opposed to reform; he simply wants to extract as much as possible before the system collapses.
- He believes the people lack the persistence and intelligence to sustain real change, so he will keep exploiting them with "a hundred tricks."
- His pragmatic greed contrasts with the idealism of reformers like Victor Dorn.

Literary Devices & Stylistic Analysis

Irony & Sarcasm
- "Clever trick of nominating a popular, 'clean' young reformer" → The phrase is dripping with sarcasm. The "clean" candidate is likely a controlled opposition, a puppet of the machine.
- "Enjoy the joke upon the people" → Kelly finds humor in how the people’s own democratic safeguards (separation of powers) are used against them.
Metaphor & Imagery
- "Rasping the nerves of Boss Kelly" → The slow, grinding pressure of Dorn’s reforms is compared to an irritating, inescapable noise.
- "Entanglement in the toils of their own making" → The people are trapped in a web (toils) of their own democratic system, which has been hijacked by elites.
- "Dividing authority among legislators, executives, and judges" → The fragmentation of power is portrayed as a self-defeating labyrinth that plutocrats exploit.
Free Indirect Discourse
- The narration blends Kelly’s thoughts with the author’s voice, giving insight into his calculating, opportunistic mind.
- Example: "Not that he was thinking of giving up the game; nothing so foolish as that." → This feels like Kelly’s internal monologue, revealing his arrogance and greed.
Historical & Political Allusion
- "Silk stockings" → A 19th-century term for the elite, referencing when men wore knee-breeches with silk stockings. This class-based language reinforces the divide between rich and poor.
- "National capitol, state capitol, county courthouse, city hall" → A litany of political institutions, emphasizing how corruption is systemic at every level.
Foreshadowing & Tension
- "The doom of the old system was settled" → Suggests that Kelly’s reign is ending, but he will fight dirty to delay the inevitable.
- "Brief remaining time" → Implies that reform is coming, but not immediately—Kelly still has time to loot the system.

Significance of the Passage

Critique of Gilded Age Corruption
- Phillips exposes how political bosses and plutocrats manipulate democracy to enrich themselves while keeping the public in poverty.
- The Progressive Era’s struggles (trust-busting, labor rights, electoral reform) are reflected in Kelly’s fear of losing control.
Relevance to Modern Politics
- The exploitation of divided government (lobbying, regulatory arbitrage, corporate influence) remains a contemporary issue.
- Kelly’s cynical view of the public’s attention span ("they could be fooled and robbed by a hundred tricks") mirrors modern concerns about misinformation, populism, and political fatigue.
Psychological Realism of a Villain
- Kelly is not a mustache-twirling villain; he is pragmatic, self-aware, and darkly humorous.
- His understanding of systemic flaws makes him a compelling antagonist—he knows the game is rigged, and he plays it well.
Progressive Era’s Faith in Reform vs. Cynicism
- While Phillips supports reform, this passage acknowledges the difficulty of lasting change.
- Kelly’s belief that the people lack persistence is a challenge to Progressive optimism—will reforms stick, or will corruption adapt?

Key Takeaways from the Text Itself

Kelly’s Dilemma: He knows the old system is doomed, but he will milk it for all it’s worth before it collapses.
The People’s Awakening: They are finally connecting economics to politics, realizing they are being robbed by a rigged system.
The Plutocracy’s Blindness: The elite ("silk stockings") underestimate the movement, thinking it will fade.
Structural Exploitation: The fragmentation of American government, meant to prevent tyranny, instead enables a shadow tyranny of wealthy interests.
Kelly’s Dark Humor: He laughs at the people’s naivety, confident that he can outmaneuver them with legal and political tricks.

Final Interpretation

This excerpt is a masterclass in political cynicism, showing how power resists change even when reform seems inevitable. Phillips does not just condemn Kelly—he understands him, making the corruption feel systemic rather than personal. The passage serves as both a warning (about the resilience of elite power) and a call to arms (for sustained, intelligent reform).

Would you like a deeper dive into any specific aspect, such as historical parallels or Phillips’ broader themes in The Conflict?

Questions

Question 1

The passage suggests that Kelly’s primary emotional response to the political shift is best characterised by:

A. Resigned fatalism, as he accepts the inevitability of reform without resistance.
B. Moral indignation, as he perceives the public’s awakening as an unjust betrayal of loyalty.
C. Wry amusement tinged with urgency, as he exploits the system’s flaws while recognising their temporary nature.
D. Paranoid desperation, as he frantically seeks to dismantle Dorn’s influence through illegal means.
E. Nostalgic longing, as he idealises the past stability of the political machine he once controlled.

Question 2

The "joke upon the people" (line 20) primarily derives its irony from the fact that:

A. The people’s distrust of government has led them to reject all political participation, making them easier to manipulate.
B. The constitutional safeguards designed to protect democracy have been repurposed to entrench plutocratic control.
C. Kelly’s own working-class origins make his betrayal of the people a darkly comedic twist of fate.
D. The reformers like Dorn are themselves secretly funded by the plutocrats, rendering their movement farcical.
E. The people’s demand for transparency has ironically created so much bureaucratic complexity that corruption thrives unseen.

Question 3

Which of the following best captures the passage’s implicit critique of the "silk stockings"?

A. Their wealth insulates them from the economic realities facing the working class, rendering their political analyses irrelevant.
B. Their underestimation of populist momentum stems from a fundamental misreading of historical cycles of reform.
C. Their reliance on outdated class signifiers (e.g., "silk stockings") reveals a nostalgic attachment to aristocratic hierarchies.
D. Their corruption is more blatant than Kelly’s, as they lack the political machine’s veneer of populist legitimacy.
E. Their support for Dorn is purely performative, intended to placate the masses while preserving elite interests.

Question 4

The passage’s structure—moving from Kelly’s immediate tactical dilemma to his broader philosophical reflections—serves to:

A. Undermine Kelly’s credibility by exposing the contradiction between his pragmatic actions and his abstract justifications.
B. Highlight the intellectual superiority of reformers like Dorn, who operate on principle rather than opportunism.
C. Suggest that Kelly’s strategic brilliance is ultimately hollow, as his insights cannot prevent the system’s collapse.
D. Illustrate how systemic corruption is self-perpetuating, as even its critics (like Kelly) become complicit in its logic.
E. Foreshadow Kelly’s eventual redemption, as his awareness of the system’s flaws plants the seeds for his defection.

Question 5

The "hundred tricks" (line 18) most plausibly refers to:

A. Legal loopholes exploited to delay reform legislation indefinitely.
B. Propagandistic tactics to discredit reformers like Dorn as radical or incompetent.
C. The adaptive resilience of plutocratic control, which mutates to evade each new democratic safeguard.
D. Bribes and direct payoffs to judges and legislators to block investigations.
E. The manipulation of electoral districts to dilute the voting power of reform-minded constituencies.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: C

Why C is most correct: The passage portrays Kelly as a cynical operator who sees the humor in the people’s predicament ("enjoy the joke upon the people") while simultaneously recognising the urgency of extracting maximum gain before the system collapses ("get for his masters—and for himself—all that could be got in the brief remaining time"). His tone is wry (darkly amused) yet pragmatic, not fatalistic or desperate. The phrase "nothing so foolish as [giving up the game]" underscores his calculating opportunism, not resignation.