 Addams was also influenced by John Ruskin (1819–1900), who theorized that art and culture reflected the moral health of society. Although Ruskin maintained a certain elitism in his view that great people produced great art, he also saw such great cultural works as a manifestation of the well-being of society as a whole. The plight of the oppressed was tied to a sense of the aesthetic. Indeed, Addams’ valorization of art and culture, as exhibited in the appearance and activities of Hull House resonates with Ruskin’s aesthetics. For Addams, “Social Life and art have always seemed to go best at Hull House” (STY 354). Addams viewed art and cultural activities as reinforcing essential human bonds (DSE 29). Ruskin also influenced Arnold Toynbee and other future settlement workers by identifying the problems in large industrial cities and calling for reforms foreshadowing the safety nets typical of later welfare states. Ruskin valued labor as a noble means of self-actualization. This became a crucial concept for Addams as she sought meaningful labor for those in the Hull House neighborhood. For example, Addams expresses sympathy for laborers who skipped work or came in late for work because “all human interest has been extracted from it” (SYC 129). Although Addams valued Ruskin’s moral imagination, the concept of labor, and ideas about transforming the city through infusing culture, she rejected his romanticization of the preindustrial past. With a strong belief in social progress, Addams did not desire a return to a previous era. For Addams, society should grow and adapt to its conditions, even regarding moral philosophy.