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Difference Between Expansionism And Imperialism

argumentative Essay
1300 words
1300 words
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Zuhayr Alvi Mr. Tweed Honors US History II September 4, 2014 Growth of America There is a very fine line between expansionism and imperialism. Expansionism is defined as a policy to increase a country’s size by expanding its territory, while imperialism can be defined as a policy of extending a country 's power and influence through diplomacy or military force. Expansionism is a good thing; if it were not for expansionism, the United States of America would not be one of the biggest powers in the world as it is today. Imperialism however is immoral and unjust. Unfortunately a lot of the “super power countries” began to turn away from expansionism and towards imperialism. In a political cartoon by Thomas Nast in Harper’s Weekly newspaper, there …show more content…

In this essay, the author

  • Explains that expansionism is a good thing, but imperialism is immoral and unjust.
  • Explains that the idea of "manifest destiny" was coined by john o'sullivan which stated that americans had the god-given right to expand westwards.
  • Analyzes how the united states of america looked stubborn and would risk innocent lives and the nation’s security just to obtain some land. senator albert j. beveridge's speech descripts the corrupt mindset of this nation.
  • Explains that president roosevelt was against taking over smaller countries irrationally. the american anti-imperialist league called the united states "betrayers."
  • Concludes that the united states expansionism of the late 1900s and early 2000s was a palpable extension of mutual and national values.

After the United States of America expanded all the way westward into what is now present day California, we still were greedy. We started looking towards taking over small islands and territories that we could easily dominate and control. In the Supreme Court decision, Downes v. Bidwell the ruling states that any territory that we acquire, we can govern and we can prescribe our culture on to them (Document H). This statement from the court case shows how the United States managed to acquire territories and force the people to accept the “American way.” In the early 1900’s the United States had one of the biggest navies in the world. It was known as the Great White Fleet because we were parading the ships around the world just showing off our firepower. Using these massive ships we were able to dominate and dictate any battles on the sea. This was show in Alfred T. Manhan’s Interest of America Sea Power. This source talks about how we should keep Hawaii and Haiti away from foreigners just so we can use their ports for our trade and shipping purposes (Document C). We used our navy to take control of both of these territories and thirst for land still was not satisfied. Throughout history the United States of America often

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