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The concept of american exceptionalism
The concept of american exceptionalism
The concept of american exceptionalism
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In modern today compared to history, there are multiple perspectives of the actual definition of ‘American Exceptionalism’. The government officials of this nation and different nations have their own view of American Exceptionalism. The entire society as a whole civilization has their thoughts of what American exceptionalism entails. The first aspect that should be acknowledged in the dimensions of American Exceptionalism is the facet of addressing the definition of exceptionalism set apart from the nation of America. According to Merriam dictionary; the terminology exceptionalism simply means: “the condition of being different from the norm; also: a theory expounding the exceptionalism of a nation or region.” After research, I realized that …show more content…
In the words of an English scholar; G.K. Chesterton “America is the only nation in the world that is founded on a creed”. In history, the United Stated displayed a high level of exceptionalism as far as democracy and morality; America claimed the purpose for their behavior was in the effort of freedom. In 1831, Alexis De Tocqueville stated “he noticed that the American idea of “nationality” was “different” based less on common history or ethnicity than on common beliefs”. To elaborate on this statement, I believe that Tocqueville was basically expressing the America has no equal. The nation exceptionalism has a significant correlation to the Manifest Destiny (Jacksonian democratic term, 1840), which focused on …show more content…
Critics of American Exceptionalism view this factor as ignorance on behalf of the nation, specifically faulting the government for it belief in the display of American exceptionalism. America has been accused of performing as a “nation above all other nations”, pushing its hegemony on other parts of the world, in addition to focusing on its own interest, with no thought for other nations. One that a fact that has impacted the perspective of social mobility in the United Stated is: in 2005 a study discovered that children that are born into poverty in US are less likely to find prosperity as opposed to a child that is born into poverty in Europe and Canada. Individuals in opposition of American Exceptionalism indicted the fact that the US possesses inspirational values; however, they display arrogance in national affairs and intervene in other nations affairs for self-interest rather than stimulating democracy and freedom. Another thing that critics seem to believe is that America is less of exceptionalism and more along the terms of ethnocentrism and propaganda. In their arguments, the critics take the approach of comparing America to other nations and their nature or destiny. One of the provided aspects that critics state about America is that it is not distinctive; other countries also welcome immigrants to the same
In “Lost in America” by Douglas McGray, McGray uses urgent diction, repetition and statistics to point out that foreign diversity should be accepted so the United States can keep a competitive mark against other countries.
America has always been looked at as “The New World” where people from all over come to fulfil their dreams. Their dreams may not have been exceptional, but only to have enough to survive, have a house where their children could be raised and feel free and protected. Now, according to Webster’s online dictionary Americanism is defined as a custom, trait, belief, etc., peculiar to the United States of America or its citizens, but to me it means so much more.
In the eyes of the early American colonists and the founders of the Constitution, the United States was to represent the ideals of acceptance and tolerance to those of all walks of life. When the immigration rush began in the mid-1800's, America proved to be everything but that. The millions of immigrants would soon realize the meaning of hardship and rejection as newcomers, as they attempted to assimilate into American culture. For countless immigrants, the struggle to arrive in America was rivaled only by the struggle to gain acceptance among the existing American population.
In America, it is a common misconception that all foreigners are similar; it is believed that they all have similar dreams and each of them end up chasing after the same jobs. However, this is not the case. Not only do immigrants from different countries hold different dreams, but those with a shared background even have varying hopes and dreams for the future. This is evidenced in Bharati Mukherjee’s essay, “Two Ways to Belong in America.” She utilizes several rhetorical strategies in order to show that immigrants have the ability to be assimilated into the American culture, but that they should not be deported if they choose not to conform to said culture.
There exists a lot of controversy over the term “American Exceptionalism.” Not only was this debate prevalent many years ago, it also exists today. There are many aspects of American culture that can make it seem like the most superior country in the world, but also there exists many that make it seem otherwise. The term American Exceptionalism is a term that is used to strengthen a country. In times of peril and chaos, the most important action a country can do is to come together as one. Exceptionalism is not only a term for leaders to live by, but also is a term that equates to a sense of pride for the entire country.
The Untied States of America is commonly labeled or thought of as the melting pot of the world where diverse groups of people flock to in order to better their current lives. In our countries history this has proven to primarily be our way of living and how the people as a nation view immigration. However, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries this open door mentality was quite the opposite to what the majority of people felt towards the idea of welcoming these huddled masses. Immigrants were not seen as equals or people willing to work hard for a better life but rather a diseased parasite that would suck the prosperous and prestigious life that the old immigrants had become accustomed to. American nativist groups during this time period acted in a hypercritical manner with the impression that open immigration would, in the end cause our country to be overtaken and overrun by a far less superior race.
It has been observed that, from history American has served as a destination for most immigrants in the world the world (Williams 16).
America is not the illustrated land of opportunity to all. The statement provided that, a land giving opportunity to all is judgmental for many concerning reasons. For one, America is known as a country where people of various races are informed of great dreams that seem reachable, but the chances of an immigrant moving to America and starting a new life are slim. Throughout American history, the opportunity to create something has always been difficult and will sincerely remain that way no matter the sacrifices a person must give up on in their life.
America is often known as the land of opportunity, a place where you can be free. Many Immigrants came to America so that they could have a greater possibility at succeeding in life. Immigrants took a leap of faith when coming to America, for some it worked out well but for others they had a difficult time here. Despite the struggles that the immigrants encountered such as; standing out from others, being separated from their families, and breaking their culture, the immigrants are still grateful to be in America because they were in better conditions than they were in their home land. When viewing interviews or looking at an immigrant’s perspective you get many responses to being in America, some major things that stood out were the amount of freedom the immigrant had, and the age of the immigrant. These two things had a huge impact on the opinion of America from an Immigrants point of view.
Diversity is what built America. This is supported by John F. Kennedy’s “ The Immigrant Contribution from A Nation of Immigrants” and Anna Quindlen’s “A quilt of a Country” essay dictons. Both of Quindlen’s diction characteristics are abstract and sophisticated, while John F. Kenney’s diction characteristics are concrete and abstract.
On the first day of class, I wasn’t so sure what the term “American Exceptionalism” meant, but by the end I have figured it out. American Exceptionalism is the notion that America is uniquely different from the other nations. The reason America is “uniquely different” from the other nations is because, the world expects America to lead, have values, pursue freedom, be diverse and open, and also practice democracy. Being a democratic nation makes us the city upon the hill. America is like a big brother, other nations look to us for help, guidance, and prosperity. The values and beliefs about politics and the government shape our American culture. The stress on a distinct national identity is appropriate within an increasingly diverse nation state and ever globalizing world. I agree upon this statement, because America deserves to be known as the “it” nation. America is more accepting, we are like a melting pot of different cultures and ethnicities.
America had definitely played its role in its imperialism. First of all imperialism is the control from one country doing to another. America has controlled a lot of countries in its time. In this essay I will talk about the causes and effects that America’s imperialism played a role in. We have really controlled a lot of countries in our time but this essay will focus more on the 19th and 20th century. We play a pretty big influence in the world today as in status wise. A lot of countries respect us because of our integrity and greatness that we have achieved. Overall I will talk about how imperialism existed in the time of American in 19th and 20th century as well as explain the causes by this time and effects that resulted on our lives today.
American exceptionalism is a term suggesting that America was the best or superior; it was a term saying that it was different than any other place. Winthrop talks about the city upon the hill, which suggests America being a model or setting an example for other countries. We were supposed to be a beacon of liberty and freedom. During the founding of America, America was different than any other place. At its founding America was exceptional because it was different in the way people interacted with each other, different in the way the government worked, and different in its aspirations.
American exceptionalism is a belief that the United States is different from other nations around the world and as such superior; the term was coined by Alexis de Tocqueville in 1831, yet the philosophy of American superiority can be traced all the way back to the days before the United States was even an idea. They saw their new culture as “A city upon a hill” and sought to achieve moral and spiritual perfection. With this moral superiority the colonists, later Americans, saw a duty presented upon them by God and nature to instill such superior values into other cultures and the world. One such example can be clearly seen in the work of St. John de Crèvecoeur in Letters from an American Farmer where the narrator “Farmer James” states his belief
The word exceptional is synonymous with best; therefore, by that principle, American Exceptionalism means that America is the best. Because of the idea of American Exceptionalism, it is clear that the United States is the best nation at education. The US leads the world as the 24th in reading, 25nd in science, and 40th in math of of 72 nations on the PISA, a measure of international education (Programme). Because of these statistics, the educational system in the US is the best.