Tuesday, November 1, 2011
1870-1920 USA: US becomes a world power.
Why did the US emerge as a world power during this time period? What are some examples of our "conquests" during the Gilded Age? Do we still behave in an imperialistic manner today? Cite some examples. What are your thoughts re: US foreign policy then or today?
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The U.S. emerged power then because of Social Darwinism. Since Europe was taking over many colonies, the U.S. believed that we would perish if we did not join imperialism and expand our horizons. Europe was taking over places such as Africa in order to gain natural resources, but America did not have the need for such resources. Then, prominent Americans stepped in and said the we were going to lose all power. They believed that we had the right and responsibility to go to places and push our ideals on them. We also took weaker colonies to gain economic strength, these weaker colonies allowed to us to go overseas and trade in order to earn more money. America needed economic strength to keep going, because of Europe's extensive "conquest" to be on top. Another reason for an promising power is militarism. Militarism meant glorifying our armies, and glorifying our armies meant being better than the other nations (which leads back into Social Darwinism). The main reason for imperialism was Social Darwinism.
ReplyDeleteDuring imperialism, we have made many "conquests." We took Hawaii, which is now a part of America. When taking Hawaii we convinced their king to change voting rights, but then the King died and the Queen took over. The queen didn’t want America to take over, therefore she abolished the new voting rights, which caused the American planters to overthrow the Queen. Also, we built the Panama Canal. We overcame many struggles in order to build the canal, such as the problem with trying to own the land that belonged to Colombia, but we defeated these troubles and built the canal. We used the canal for military purposes (which leads back into imperialism).
I do think we still act a little imperialistic today. For instance we went invaded Iraq to "defend" ourselves, but we weren't even sure that Al-Qaida was there. It seems that the U.S. uses force to push people towards our ideals and that we think we are the best. I am not sure which foreign policy I am for, because it seems that both have many downfalls and are alike. They both seem to use force greatly, and seem to push our morals on other nations. Today we appear more open to our problems, more accepting, and not as controlling. Although, we have made progress I still think that we are a little imperialistic.
I love the detailed examples you include from the Gilded Age and today:) Nice job!
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