Roosevelt's early education that he had at home instead of at school meant that he didn't mix what and people his own age of. This also would not have helped him to understand ordinary Americans because the majority of American you would have thought didn't have private tutelage instead they would have gone to school with other people their age. Being there and to deal with different people from an early age but Roosevelt didn't. The only part of his later education that helped him understand the concerns and fears ordinary Americans was that Harvard the school that he was being educated political believed in public service and Roosevelt was pleased to partake in the before mentioned public services.
Roosevelt's next opportunity to understand the ordinary Americans further was when he joined the American Democratic Party; the reason why he joined the Democrats was because there were already Roosevelt's in the Republican Party. Roosevelt's first challenge and first chance to understand the ordinary Americans was when he took part in the election for a place on the Albany State Senate, nobody expected we Roosevelt when that he used his character and some very energetic electioneering and proved them wrong. As his political career progress he was offered a place in Woodrow Wilson's government as assistant secretary of the Navy where he encountered a wide range of people with whom he dealt with successfully.
An affair that lasted four years would unexpectedly help Roosevelt to understand the concerns and fears of ordinary Americans because after the affair Eleanor Roosevelt decided that she was going to have a political career of her own. During her political career Eleanor became aware of many social issues outside of her experience and she made Franklin aware of the many social issues, this is how she helped Roosevelt to understand the concerns and fears of all ordinary Americans.
When Roosevelt was chosen to be Democratic vice-presidential candidate he used the same energetic electioneering as when he was in the election for a place on the Albany State Senate. This is Roosevelt using his character to become well known and well respected by the Democratic Party and ordinary Americans throughout the country. During his electioneering he learnt more about the concerns and fears of the ordinary American people.
When Roosevelt was struck down with polio his wife Eleanor was becoming a popular public speaker. She took up ordinary people's causes such and poverty and child labour child labour, whilst she was developing her own career she made Roosevelt aware of the before mentioned ordinary people's causes.
Warm Springs is the major point in Roosevelt’s life that help him to understand the concerns and fears of ordinary Americans. Warm Springs was Roosevelt’s own rehabilitation centre for anybody who had polio, the centre was mainly for less privileged people who can’t afford treatment for polio. The reason why Warm Springs is a major point in Roosevelt’s quest to understand ordinary Americans is because during his time at Warm Springs he spent with ordinary people getting to know them, what they want and what they need. He learned to be patient with the other patients at the centre.
Whilst he was devoting himself to Warm Springs he had plenty of time to drive in the countryside where he spent time talking to the people who lived in the state of Georgia. During hi drives though the countryside Roosevelt met and listened to ordinary people with worries and problems completely beyond his experiences, such as hardship, financial worries, lack of electricity, bad schools and low prices for the farm produces that they produced. For the first time in his life he realised he was interested in ordinary people and what they want, he wanted to be the people’s president.
Roosevelt’s first chance to use his understanding of the concerns and fears of ordinary Americans was when he became the Governor of New York. He began programmes to help people with less, for example Roosevelt introduce tax relief for farmers, cheaper electricity for people thought out the state of New York and assistance for the elderly and the unemployed.
My conclusion is that his early life didn’t make it easy for Roosevelt to understand the ordinary American people. In his later life especially when he had polio and when he was at Warm Springs he did understand the concerns and fears of ordinary Americans because he had spent so much time with the less fortunate and the needy.