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Essay On The United States From 1865 To 1940

1374 Words6 Pages

The United States has undergone major transitional phases in order to become the country it is today. One of its greatest periods of change occurred in the years 1865 to 1940, in which the U.S.’s growing emphasis on strong economic policy changed its interactions with foreign countries, its image to foreign countries, and what role it’s willing to play in the world. These tireless efforts to become an economic powerhouse was a major driving force in the U.S. actions during this time and ultimately allowed it to change its image on the global stage from a new. To begin to understand what caused these dramatic changes in the how the U.S. interacts with the rest of the world, it is imperative to understand the origins of its more capitalist roots, …show more content…

borders from sea to shining sea. The treaty gave the U.S. more land, but more importantly the Pacific Ocean. As a result, the U.S. now had unfettered access to countries connected to the Pacific. A country that would play a major role in the U.S. economy was the Philippines. This small island country in the Pacific in the eyes of American business would give the U.S. access to the rest of the far east. In order to take control of the Philippines, the U.S. employed tactics designed to remove the existing Spanish control over the country by inciting the native countrymen to action to seek independence. The U.S. used the prospect of freedom from Spain to manipulate the country into subjugation, and when this failed led the Philipino- American War in which the U.S. killed hundreds of thousands of Philipino citizens. Clearly, the economic potential of the Philipines drove the U.S. to change its show of allyship into a show of aggression, this marks a major change in how the U.S. handles diplomacy in countries with much to …show more content…

imperialism was Mexico, and although it didn’t suffer the same fate as the Philipines, it did, however, feel the pressure of having something America wants. Mexico represented access to Latin America, but instead of the tactics used to manipulate other countries, it instead went focused on taking economic control without formal control over the area. So, the U.S. instead worked to systematically make Mexico dependent on the U.S. to maintain its economy. The U.S. had control over Mexico’s railroads, mining, and even trade with other countries, ultimately holding its economy hostage in order to get what they want. Imperialism through economic dependence became the preferred method as it drew less attention from stronger foreign countries that didn’t appreciate the U.S. starting wars. Imperialism represents one change in U.S. motivations for interacting with other

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