2004-11-13
"America Would Become God 's Country"
In Loren Baritz 's "God 's Country and American Know-How", it briefly describes the birth of our nation, characteristics, and theories through out America 's history. "America would become god 's country" (435) is not only the title of the summary but the basis of our founding father 's thoughts. In the begin only few words were spoken of the outside world, problems consisted within our borders that had to be dealt with. These included Indians, witches, and worst of all shrewd Yankees. The "new world was puny" (436) and could not be the protector of the free world. World War One was a large factor that increased American thinking of the "invincible war machine"(440) these thoughts continued up till World War Two, Americans now knew they we were superior, with the development of nuclear weapons technology has proven their superiority on the battlefield. JFK, Eisenhower, and George F. Kennan are just some of the examples Loren quotes from, but these great men show the change in American views and opinions. "We went to war in Vietnam in the name of ideas, of principles, of abstractions."(438), this statement is only the beginning of America 's "city on a hill" (435) beliefs. Soon after the Vietnam War began the thinking changed from "United States could not be beaten in war" (440) to "Vietnam should have taught us that we could not continue to play the role of moral advisor and moral enforcer to the world" (437). Loren shows the readers not only the birth of our nation, but how Americans have gone from isolated to protector of free nations, and a World Power. By supporting his thoughts with quotes and grave description this story will not only open your mind to your thinking but to the thoughts of the nation we live in today.
Works Cited
Baritz, Loren. "God 's Country and American Know-How"
Real Culture; contexts for critical reading and writing.
Ed. Diana George and John Trimbor. 5th Ed.
New York: Parison Longman, 2004. 434-41
Cited: Baritz, Loren. "God 's Country and American Know-How" Real Culture; contexts for critical reading and writing. Ed. Diana George and John Trimbor. 5th Ed. New York: Parison Longman, 2004. 434-41
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
The book begins in the United States – the present-day world hyper-power. The United States’ ascent to world dominance began after its victory in World War II, which was catalyzed in large part through what the country offered – freedom, as well as a chance to start anew. Offerings such as freedom sparked an influx of immigrants, and immigrants attracted into the United States in turn built up human population and made the job market more competitive. However, as America’s power grew stronger, the country became increasingly an “empire.” Exercising its powers, America began over-using military force, threatening foreign governments, and taking global actions without international approval. These intrusive behaviors of America, however, go against history. Lessons learned from the past suggest that world super-powers could only dominate through compliance with foreign nations, such as how Achaemenid Empire ruled their people.…
- 1283 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Cited: Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American People. 7th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2010. Print.…
- 1818 Words
- 5 Pages
Better Essays -
[7] A History of the United States: Inventing America - P. Maier et al, W.W. Norton & Company Ltd., 2002…
- 2165 Words
- 9 Pages
Powerful Essays -
It was the starting point for America to become a civilized nation. In the chapter two it says, “Contemporary comments about Americans fall into four not always distinct categories: emotional…
- 936 Words
- 4 Pages
Better Essays -
Nationalism, many can argue, was a guiding light that helped the populous in Europe unite. As early as the late great Roman Empire, it was that notion of being a part of a uniform body of civil, governed people who helped these places flourish. In early 19th century America, during the "Era of Good Feelings" as one newspaper put it, Americans began to root themselves in all that the nation stood for which helped them in turn begin to think about moving the United States into a respectable position among the world's super powers. For example, Stephen Decatur toasts the country and acknowledges that it is our country, for better or for worse. This is a sharp contrast to the views of our founding fathers because George Washington himself, the "father of our nation", saluted king George although he was a part of the attempt to establish a separate nation. Poets and writers also began to capture the nation's spirit.…
- 538 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
The author begins with famous quote lines as a clear example of “American exceptionalism” and the idealistic descriptions of the United States, especially over the last two centuries. As the author notes how American exceptionalism is similar to other nations that claimed exceptionalism as well. He clears out there are no differences between them when it comes to their self-assertion conduct, many which resulted in a righteous attitude that leads them to think they are positive role models to the world. A believe that makes the Americans with their privileges and unique qualities to think they are superior than others, when in fact they are no less different.…
- 605 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
In the preface of Paul Johnsons “A History of the American People” he shares with us his view on America and the study of it and its people. He tells us that his book is not his opinion but the facts about America as fully and honestly as he could deliver them. Growing up he learned little to almost none about America’s history and the people, he mostly learned Greek, Roman, and English history. One of his tutors A. J. P. Taylor said to him “You can study American history when you have graduated, if you can bear it.” As you could imagine that sparked his interest of the subject and made him want to learn. His first encounters with American history were with officers of the US Sixth Fleet and in the 1950s when he was working in Pairs as journalist. In his book he…
- 605 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Some may say that history has a tendency to repeat itself. From episodes regarding war, to expansionism, and incidents of genocide similar examples are present through modern day. While this phenomenon never ceases to replicate the past, there are always enough subtle nuances of change that prevent history from repeating itself exactly as before. At a time when European expansionism was begging to take shape war and genocide were prevalent. When Columbus set sail for Asia with the intent of establishing a trade monopoly between the vibrant culture of Asia and Spain and discovered the New World, along with it came the discovery of the Indians and a new trade and labor opportunity began to take place. Columbus' discovery of the New World has been controversial. There are those who wish to honor him and therefore feel that the accusations concerning his crime of genocide are revisions of history. Blinded by greed Columbus turned into a vicious tyrant hungry for only gaining wealth and status. However, there are sources that describe the atrocities Columbus and the Spaniards committed against the Indians. These brutalities are all part of a bigger picture of genocide committed by Columbus when he discovered the New World. Many of the tribulations done are similar to those performed by the Nazis in World War II. Hitler's "Final Solution to the Jewish Problem" attempted to be solved through a mass genocide we know as the Holocaust. Some people would argue that Columbus "conquests" and "Hitler's Final Solution to the Jewish Problem" are comparable. These people look at the atrocities that both parties committed against their victims and the amount of people who died. Although the methods and intent were different, the slavery and subjugation of the Indians and the Jews as compared through the two men Columbus and Hitler and had an affect on our modern world.…
- 3516 Words
- 15 Pages
Powerful Essays -
The modern American public often views the Founding Fathers of the United States as level-headed, well-intentioned, diplomatic, successful statesmen. Upon further investigation and analysis, a clear discordance in the men’s visions of the American Spirit shows its face. Some founders strived for a strong centralized federal government while others desired a union of essentially independent states. This dichotomy reveals the schism of understanding amongst the “Founding Brothers” as illuminated in the historical analysis by Joseph Ellis.…
- 571 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Trollope’s background gave her deep respect and reverence for religious practices but not for the dramatic and enthusiastic Evangelicalism which she encountered in America. She constantly compared the chaos and oddities of American religious practices with the more refined state of the Established Church of England. She believed it strange “that “the most intelligent people in the world” should prefer such a religion as this, to a form established by the wisdom and piety of the ablest and best among the erring sons of men.” (99) In the opinion of Trollope, American religious practices were the most objectionable difference between the Americans and the English because their ways and environments didn’t live up to Trollope’s high expectations.…
- 559 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Cited: Berkin, Carol, Miller, Christopher L. Miller, and Hames L. Gormly. Making America: A History of the United Sates. 4th Ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006.…
- 1981 Words
- 8 Pages
Better Essays -
Professor McClay believes that Americans should be in the uniqueness of our mission. He is adamant that there should be a steady interplay between founding ideals and current realities by fostering an interlocking relationship with the Founding Fathers through academics and paternal/governmental influence. He claims that our social cohesiveness depends on the preservation and dissemination of American myths and legends. For example, the myth of “Manifest Destiny” justifying American expansion into territory held by Mexico and expansion into Cuba and the Philippines in the 1890s (McKenna & Feingold 2011, 3). This helps further rationalize the countries’ advancement of values of universalism, idealism, and zealous crusading by endorse the notion that, “God is on our side!” asserts McClay (McKenna & Feingold 2011). Lastly, McClay does acknowledge that in nurturing mythic reality as a sustaining feature of American democracy and cultural hegemony, we must does not disregard the “strange moral complexities” of the past because it provides a basis for learning from previous mistakes (McKenna & Feingold 2011, 12).…
- 746 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
America began to form as the founding fathers came together to declare independance and set rules and boundaries for our country as a whole to abide by. Many documents were made during this famous period of development, including the Declaration of Independance, Articles of Confederation, and many more smaller scaled documents to contribute to the United States’ newfound rules and freedom. The literature written is extremely important to this country and is taught to most students who live here to ensure understanding of the impact these pieces had and still have on our country. Without these rationalist ideas, people coming together, practical ideas, and impactful pieces of literature, our country would not be successful and as developed as it…
- 757 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
America is the land of the free, the land of the brave, and the land of opportunities. However, throughout history this country has endured hardship to reach its success. For the past 500 years, America has been explored, established, and has evolved over time. Although this nation has undergone changes, America’s identity is traced back to its roots that started it all. Exploration, wealth, and power influence the identity of this mighty nation.…
- 707 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
By the year 1901, the United States possessed the third-largest navy in the world, a considerable overseas empire, and a burgeoning reputation as a world power. It had acquired this international precedence through its involvement in the fervent imperialism of the era; the rapid expansion, colonization, and competition that was occupying the most influential nations of the world, including Britain, France, Germany, and Japan. America’s new found role as a colonial power was not, however, a sudden development. Whereas the United States expansionism of the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-centuries was a clear continuation of the social and cultural principles that had fueled the nation’s past expansionism, it was to a greater degree a departure from the methods of the past through its pursuit of new economic and political motives. American imperialism of the late 1800s and early 1900s demonstrated the same cultural and social justification of previous expansionism. The original doctrine of Manifest Destiny, which emerged in the 1840s to accompany westward continental expansion, advocated a belief that America was destined by God to expand its borders across the continent in order to spread the blessings of liberty. As Senator Albert J. Beveridge explicates in his 1900 speech to 56th Congress (Doc. E), this belief was equally influential in later imperial America; he expresses the Americans’ self-recognition as God’s chosen people, a race not only blessed, but bound by a holy duty to enlighten the rest of the world through their own expansion. This was the sentiment of “The White Man’s Burden”, described in Rudyard Kipling’s 1899 poem of this title, which invoked the social responsibility of the American race to elevate the primitive…
- 933 Words
- 27 Pages
Good Essays