Dbq Nationalism

Prior to the “Era of Good Feelings”, America was characterized as a nation where people did not recognize themselves in union but instead identified themselves according their region. During this period America became more integrated (politically, socially and economically) and a sense of nationalism prevailed. In the years following the War of 1812 America 's status on the world stage strengthened, the economy grew and became more prosperous due to the market revolution, and new forms of transportation and their improvements connected the country in ways that had not been seen before. Despite this rise in nationalism, there were also some elements of sectionalism that had existed since colonization.

During this period there were many events that that helped America unite as one nation. A visual example of this is seen in an 1819 painting displaying the celebration of

Politically, there were questions about the amount power given to the federal government vs the states; as question since the adoption of the Constitution. At times states felt the need to question the power federal government. For example in the Decision of McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) confirmed that no state could tax federal property, enforcing the supremacy clause (Document D). While this reinforced a nationalist point of view that challenge was clearly sectionalist in nature. Efforts to diffuse political rivalries were also present. An example was the request for Missouri statehood in late 1819 who was also requesting that slavery be permitted. To diffuse the sectionalist debate the Missouri Compromise was placed by congress. At the time the U.S. contained 22 states, evenly divided between slave and free. (Page 155).... (QUOTE BY JEFFERSON) A sectionalism standpoint was also depicted in the presidential election of 1824 where each state differed in voting for the men running for the same position (Document