The Romantic era’s new “American identity” was realized by the 18th-century’s literary, social, and artistic push for the creation of a culture that was unique to American society and the expansionist urge to expand America’s political realm of power. This was achieved with the influence of manifest destiny and expansionism, the emergence of transcendentalism and transcendentalist literature, and the identity of the American man being characterized by the traits of the “common man”, and the exploration of nature and the frontier through art.
Manifest destiny, the idea that America had a divine right to expand her territory from coast to coast, fueled and justified expansionism in America during the 18th century. One of the events during the Romantic era that was the product of manifest destiny was the Mexican-American War (1846-48) under the Polk administration. President James K. Polk invoked the ideology of manifest destiny in order to justify sending General Zachary Taylor to tempt Mexico into a war after they refused to sell Mexican territory to the United States, which presently includes California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico. Obviously, there were many drawbacks to the entitlement American’s felt to the Western frontier and inevitably cause much harm to “the Other” that got in the way of American expansionism, namely
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Native American and Mexicans. In the case of the Native Americans, The Indian Removal Act of 1830 did not lead to anything other than tragedy; even today, Native American tribes have not recovered from the damage of being relocated to give American citizens more land to take advantage of. However, the annexation of Mexican territory expanded the United States influence, added to the diversity of its new culture and identity, and provided the opportunity for American citizens to expand their prospects make a new life for themselves. Literature in American began to house its own unique themes and storylines. Two major ideas that were evident throughout much of Romantic literature were the idea of the new “American man” and transcendentalism tied in with man’s relationship with nature. The new “American man” is described as the “common man”; a man who explored the unknown, lived off the land, and was driven by his own truth rather than society’s. This American man was characterized literary heroes like Natty Bumpo, who is described as a “solitary and self-reliant hero who mingles easily with nature’s ‘noble savages’” (Kennedy and Cohen 327), from James Fenimore Cooper’s The Leatherstocking Tales. In Leatherstocking Tales, Cooper even gives his audience an insight into the relationship shared between nature and the Romantic man. “Cooper’s deepest theme…he contrasted the undefiled purity of ‘natural men’, children of the untrammeled wilderness, with the artificiality and corruption of modern civilization” (Kennedy and Cohen 327). Contrary to how Cooper’s deepest theme is described in the way that he accurately reflected the key component of transcendentalism, self-reliance. David Henry Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson both navigated society’s relationship with nature and preached the tenants of transcendentalism with conviction. In Thoreau’s, Walden, he explores the idea of self-reliance and finding one’s own truth. He lives out in nature at Walden Pond to escape the monotony of his life in society and the expectations of those surrounding him. What he finds from this adventure into the unknown is that knowing oneself trumps all else. “Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. I sat at a table where were rich food and wine in abundance, … but sincerity and truth were not; and I went away hungry from the inhospitable board” (Aufses, Aufses, Shea, and Scanlon 776). Thoreau finds that going out into nature helps him reconnect with himself again and frees him from the distractions of things listed in the quote above, e.g. love, money, and fame. Emerson’s Self-Reliance obviously preaches the merits of self-reliance. He laments on the fact that once an individual goes out into society, out into the world, they lose the small voice in their head that whispers their own truth. That voice grows weaker and the voice of society grows stronger. “These are the voices which we hear in solitude, but they grow faint and inaudible as we enter into the world. Society everywhere is an conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members” (Aufses, Aufses, Shea, and Scanlon 592). Emerson is more vocal with his opinions against relying on anyone other than oneself and he sounds very negative about the community he is a part of, but in reality his ideas and writings contributed to the diversity of the new American identity that was emerging during that time. The art of the Romantic era reflected the struggle between nature, humanity, and the developing technology in America.
The Exhumation of the Mastodon by Charles Willson Peale juxtaposes nature with scientific innovation as well as with individualism. Peale painted himself and his family into the painting as to emphasize their role in the discovery of the bones of the mammoth and celebrate their status and wealth. This painting intertwines romantic themes of innovation, with transcendentalist themes of individualism, and the relationship of science and nature through the pulley system with the horizon of nature in the
background. Individuals like Cooper, Thoreau, Emerson, President Andrew Jackson, and President James Polk were instrumental in developing the new American identity by spreading the ideas of manifest destiny and actively fighting for the America’s expansion to the West. The change in thought during the Romantic era is evident from the development of a national literature, evolving political sentiments, the belief in manifest destiny, the exploration of nature and humankind’s relationship in art, and the presence of transcendentalism in almost all aspects of society.
Many Americans packed few belongings and headed west during the middle to the late nineteenth century. It was during this time period that the idea of manifest destiny became rooted in American customs and ideals. Manifest Destiny is the idea that supported and justified expansionist policies, it declared that expansion was both necessary and right. America’s expansionist attitudes were prominent during the debate over the territorial rights of the Oregon territory. America wanted to claim the Oregon territory as its own, but Great Britain would not allow that. Eventually the two nations came to an agreement and a compromise was reached, as seen in document B. The first major party of settlers that traveled to the west settled in Oregon.
Turner fails to realize the extent to which Native Americans existed in the ‘Wilderness’ of the Americas before the frontier began to advance. Turner’s thesis relies on the idea that “easterners … in moving to the wild unsettled lands of the frontier, shed the trappings of civilization … and by reinfused themselves with a vigor, an independence, and a creativity that the source of American democracy and national character.” (Cronon) While this idea seems like a satisfying theory of why Americans are unique, it relies on the notion that the Frontier was “an area of free land,” which is not the case, undermining the the...
In addition, during Polk’s term he expanded the United States’ border to the west coast. His desire to enlarge the country stemmed from his belief in “manifest destiny” which was the idea that the United States was destined to stretch to the Pacific Ocean. His presidency; his decisions for the country were influenced by manifest destiny. In the article titled “Mexican-American War,” James K. Polk wanted to acquire California and the southwestern land of the United States. Polk’s movement of troops into the conflicted zone between the Rio Grande and Nueces River initiated a conflict with Mexico. The conflict developed into a war, with hefty Mexican losses, but finally ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo with the U.S. as the victor. In the treaty, Mexico decided to sell all the land north of the Rio G...
John Sullivan founded the manifest destiny movement (Doc A). This idea of God leading the U.S. westward into new territory spread, reaching the president, James K. Polk. He liked this idea, for he wanted to gain more land, especially from Mexico. James Polk was greedy for more territory, as he was a Democrat, who supported annexing Texas and Oregon. Using manifest destiny to obtain this land for the U.S. meant more Americans would support the westward expansion. Therefore, Polk was able to send Americans, particularly farmers, westward, which would soon cause great conflict with Mexico, leading to war. Polk sent multiple representatives to Mexico, wanting to make deals for land in Mexico’s possession (Doc E). One specific person Polk sent was WIlliam Emory. He went to offer a friendship with Mexico and to state reasoning for the U.S. invading Mexican territory. James Polk knew the Mexican Republic was angry at America for invading Texas. So, logically, he sent one of many “ambassadors” to create a peace treaty, and offer a friendship supplying benefits, such as protection for Mexico. Although, Mexico declared the U.S. as “invaders” and rejected the proposed treaties. Though it may seem former president James Polk was pro-manifest destiny, and genuinely wanted a national agreement of peace with Mexico, he was really eyeing their land, where he could obtain the territory, and
...ver had the resources nor Polk's true imperialist nature. Polk's idea of "Manifest Destiny" was simply a way to rationalize the United States practice of imperialism in North America. Little of the land gained in the 19th century was given to the U.S.; most of it was taken using force and often violence. Financial compensation for the land was irrelevant considering the wars that took place to complete acquisition of the southwest. The motives of the United States government and President Polk were not only that of expansion. They had also wanted to gain new natural resources, land for agriculture, and the power that would be attained by the country's increased size. The country's belief in Polk's imperialistic form of expansion was the key to attaining a western seashore. The power gained by this expansion helped make America into a world powerhouse it is today.
In a lively account filled that is with personal accounts and the voices of people that were in the past left out of the historical armament, Ronald Takaki proffers us a new perspective of America’s envisioned past. Mr. Takaki confronts and disputes the Anglo-centric historical point of view. This dispute and confrontation is started in the within the seventeenth-century arrival of the colonists from England as witnessed by the Powhatan Indians of Virginia and the Wamapanoag Indians from the Massachusetts area. From there, Mr. Takaki turns our attention to several different cultures and how they had been affected by North America. The English colonists had brought the African people with force to the Atlantic coasts of America. The Irish women that sought to facilitate their need to work in factory settings and maids for our towns. The Chinese who migrated with ideas of a golden mountain and the Japanese who came and labored in the cane fields of Hawaii and on the farms of California. The Jewish people that fled from shtetls of Russia and created new urban communities here. The Latinos who crossed the border had come in search of the mythic and fabulous life El Norte.
The term “Manifest Destiny” was never actually used until 1845, but the idea was always implied from the Doctrine of Discovery. Without understanding the Doctrine, it is impossible to understand the reasons and fundamentals behind why Manifest Destiny began.This Doctrine was a set of ten steps and rules that European nations followed in order to avoid conflict over land holdings, created in the early 1400s. The first few steps give the discovering country full rights to buy the land from the native peoples. This is important, since it gave the discovering country the power of preemption. Conquered Indian peoples lose sovereign powers and the rights to free trade and diplomatic relations, and the land they occupy is said to be vacant. Religion played a massive role in the regulations of the Doctrine, since “non-Christian people were not deemed to have the same rights to land, sovereignty, and self determination as Christians”(Miller 4). These rules were all meant to favor the ethnocentric, with full understanding of the repercussions on those who lived in the places being conquered.
In the 1830’s America was highly influenced by the Manifest Destiny Ideal. Manifest Destiny was the motivating force behind the rapid expansion of America into the West. This ideal was highly sponsored by posters, newspapers, and various other methods of communication. Propaganda was and is still an incredibly common way to spread an idea to the masses. Though Manifest Destiny was not an official government policy, it led to the passing of the Homestead Act. The Homestead Act gave applicants freehold titles of undeveloped land outside of the original thirteen colonies. It encouraged Westward colonization and territorial acquisition. The Homestead Act was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862. To America, Manifest Destiny was the idea that America was destined to expand across the North American continent, from the Atlantic, to the Pacific Ocean. Throughout this time Native Americans were seen as obstacles because they occupied land that the United States needed to conquer to continue with their Manifest Destiny Ideal. Many wars were fought between the A...
Alan Trachtenberg, professor of American studies at Yale and author of The Incorporation of America, argues that the system of incorporation unhinged the idea of national identity that all American’s had previously shared. As a result, incorporation became the catalyst for the great debate about what it meant to actually be American, and who was capable of labeling themselves as such. Throughout his work Trachtenberg consistently tackles the ideas of cultural identity and how those ideas struggled against one another to be the supreme definition of Americanism. This work not only brings to life the issue of identity, but it attempts to synthesize various scholarly works into a cohesive work on the Gilded Age. It demonstrates that concepts developed during the incorporation of the time period have formed the basis for the American cultural, economic, and political superstructure.
The United States, as a young nation, had the desire to expand westward and become a true continental United States that stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Various factors, strategic and economic, contributed to the desire to expand westward. According to John O’Sullivan, as cited by Hestedt in Manifest Destiny 2004; "the U.S. had manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence to the free development of our yearly multiplying millions" (¶2). As Americans ventured westward to settle the frontier, their inherent superior beliefs, culture and the principles of democracy accompanied them. America’s ruthless ambition to fulfill its manifest destiny had a profound impact on the nation’s economy, social systems and foreign and domestic policies; westward expansion was a tumultuous period in American History that included periods of conflict with the Native Americans and Hispanics and increased in sectionalism that created the backdrop for the Civil War.
Just as the European romantics cared about emotions, nature, imagination, meditation, humanity and freedom, the American first "group of great imaginative writers -Irving, Bryant and Poe" (readers Note p 57) -cared about the them too . In their writings, these writers were taken by the romantic ideals empathizing on nature, creating their own world, borrowing sets from the past or from legends, meditating their life, and finding their own explanations to its processes . With such attitudes, these writers made their way into literature as romantics . " The Devil And Tom Walker","Hop Frog", " To a Waterfowl" and "Thanatopsis" serve as good examples for American Romanticism .
In the mid-19th century, the West drew increasing numbers of American settlers despite the hardships of the journey and the difficult living conditions that waited them at their journey’s end. Thus Americans were immediately sized on the phrase “ Manifest Destiny”- believing that United State’s destiny is manifest, inevitable, to expand to the Pacific Ocean and into Mexican territory.
"From the first day that the United States won its independance, thoughtful Americans have attempted to define the new national identity" that decolonization invited. Becoming an independant political nation forced citizens to suddenly devise a "community and character" (Finkelman, 63) worthy of this newborn America. It was believed that, once free from Birtish fetters, a unique American character would emerge automatically. But this was not so, and it was left up to the artits, politictians, scientists, businessmen and women, and every other citizen to contrive the American identity. Those who were most accomplished at scrutinizing the American identity and what it was, were the many authors and writers of the 19th century.
Manifest Destiny! This simple phrase enraptured the United States during the late 1800’s, and came to symbolize an era of westward expansion through numerous powerful entities. The expansion can be inspected though many different contextual lenses, but if examined among the larger histories of the United States, this movement can be classified as one of the most influential developments of the post-Civil War period. While very influential to the larger part of American history, the seemingly barbaric methods that were used conquer the western lands and their peoples took physical and economical forms that proved to be a plague upon the West.
“Americans aren’t idyll daydreamers; they take the initiative.” (Cato.org) In his statement, Edward Hudgins, the director of regulatory studies at the Cato Institute, captures the essence of “Americaness.” Since the publishing of Ben Franklin’s Autobiography in 1790, this definition of Americans as go-getters and self-made-men has become stock. While Franklin’s life story helped define the American identity, the discussion of what an American is began decades before, as can be seen through J. Hector St. John de Crevoeur’s Letters of an American Farmer. Franklin and Crevecoeur both touch on American archetypes including the Yeoman Farmer Ideal, the free, self-made man, and the noble savage. These authors also set the stage for how Americans should act in regards to fellow Americans, religion and the “old world.” The house of