Manifest Destiny
The phrase Manifest Destiny was first used in 1845, although the concept has existed since the early days of American history. Before the term was coined other words were used to describe the expansion; such as explorers, settlers, or idealism. The concept developed out of the idea that the United States had the God given rights to acquire all land between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This philosophy became increasingly popular during the first half of the 19th century, especially under the administration of President Polk. The fundamental want and need to explore and conquer new lands and establish new borders is the important concept behind Manifest Destiny. This concept was very popular with the political leaders of the time and because of this it became generally accepted by the public as a whole. The Manifest Destiny was a driving force behind several wars that succeeded in gaining new territory for the United States such as the Mexican War and the Indian Wars. For example in 1818 Andrew Jackson led military forces into Florida to punish the Seminal Indians which led to winning Florida from
Although Manifest Destiny has long been a debatable topic, what was once held to be the positive force that made the United States what it is today is now seen by many to be a negative concept in the history of our nation. There has even been a great cultural change the last few decades away from movies, TV, and games that used to portray Native Americans as the "bad guys". Generally their feelings of remorse were alleviated because of the popular public opinion that the Manifest Destiny was good for the nation. The westward expansion forced many Native Americans nations to sign unfair treaties with the United States that caused them to leave their homelands and move farther west. Many of these people believed that America was already such a powerful nation that it would only be a matter of time until America controlled the Native Americans' land. Along with this the United States is seen as fighting the war, but being the aggressor to expand their already large and growing nation. Although the majority of Americans believed that Manifest Destiny was good for the country many of them did not really care about what was happening to the Native Americans leaving their lands. Many Native Americans died during this forced immigration. Even at this time some Americans had moral doubts because the Manifest Destiny was infringing on the rights of the people already living in these territories. Upon reflecting the methods used to acquire the new territory, people have theorized how the United States could have acquired the territory peacefully. The Native Americans were looked upon as being ruthless and aggressive, but looking back, they are now seen as defenders of their homeland. These aggressive acts that are part of Manifest Destiny continued the Americans drive to control all the land they desired. Most of these people were not opposed to acquiring the land, but they became enraged by the way the Native Americans were treated.
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Acceptance Essays
