America 's The Great War

In the book, America's Great War: World War I and the American Experience, Robert H. Zieger discusses the events between 1914 through 1920 forever defined the United States in the Twentieth Century. When conflict broke out in Europe in 1914, the President, Woodrow Wilson, along with the American people wished to remain neutral. In the beginning of the Twentieth Century United States politics was still based on the "isolationism" ideals of the previous century. The United States did not wish to be involved in European politics or world matters. The U.S. goal was to expand trade and commerce throughout the world and protect the borders of North America.

Between the years of 1894 and 1914, America’s investments overseas have increased five-fold; however, German U-boats and the Great Britain’s naval blockade threaten our foreign interests. Thus, the United States must join the Allies in The Great War and defend our country, her interests and her allies overseas in Europe. In this paper the reader will be introduced to the pros and cons of America joining the fight against the Central Powers, and why it is essential that the country put up a strong fight against the enemy and become involved with the war.

In his book The Best War Ever: America and World War II, Michael Adams tries to dissolve the many misconceptions of World War II. As the title of the book implies, The United States left the war with a great optimistic view of the these “glorious” five years. The United States as a population had been tricked into believing in the, at times, fabricated conditions of its history that had been presented to people as some beautiful stories and myths where nations are viewed as being first-rate in union and morality. These so-called myths were created out of several factors. Because of Hollywood, the vast amounts of government propaganda, and far-reaching economic prosperity, Americans were, for the most part, hidden from the real truth of The Second World War. In this period of time, even, the generation of the Second World War is seen as being top-notch in morality and unity. There was a popular misconception held that there were no problems in terms of ethnicity or gender; it seemed that families were living contented lives and children excelled in school and read all kinds of books (115).

Prior to the First World War, the USA was a flourishing power in terms of having one of the largest economies and military strength, however America had few foreign policy ambitions during this period. Despite purchasing Alaska from Russia in 1867, there was no real interest in expanding America. Before The Great War, it seemed unlikely that America would become involved in war over the conflicts of other western powers. They considered themselves a ‘City on the Hill’, an example to the rest of the world of stability and democracy. The large Navy ensured security of the North American continent and the small professional army, points to the overwhelmingly defensive front they put on. Washington adopted an isolationist policy with regards

America is the home of the free because of the brave. Most Americans know this to be true because of our current armed forces but more importantly our past. Our past militiamen and soldiers have gained us freedoms and homestead of our own religions, families, and the power to make our own decisions. Over the past few weeks I have read many different articles and a narrative by Fred Anderson, “The war that made America.”. Through all these things I’ve come to see how big of an impact our armies have made past and present. The thing people don’t take into consideration is that from the founding of Jamestown until 1785 the American colonial society was in a constant state of conflict.

Swimming against a current of pro-war fervor, McKinley stuck to his guns and persisted on remaining diplomatic with the investigation of the Maine explosion still ongoing. This seemed to infuriate the entire nation. Jingoists in congress, yellow journalists and the American public were clamoring for Spanish blood after the Maine, and to them McKinley came across as a feeble leader. McKinley offered one last chance for Spain to avoid war by agreeing to an armistice. He thought that the Spanish would understand that it would be a foolish decision to engage in war with a rising US power. The negative Spanish response did not leave McKinley with many options.

Andrew Iarocci and Jeffrey A. Keshen, A Nation in Conflict: Canada and the Two World Wars (University of Toronto Press, 2015)

The armies of the United States of America varied greatly from the beginning of America 's independence in 1775 to the end of the War of 1812 in 1815. Different presidents holding office during this period brought different political views towards managing the army. These views affected the size and capability of the army in war and peace, with varying effectiveness. Effective in this case refers to the ability of the army to perform tasks given to them by the government. Opinions differing from the actions performed by the government provide insight into alternative ideas for the military, which had varying degrees of viability.

There were many factors that contributed to the United States abandoning its policy of isolation and entering into the First World War in 1917, some of these factors include the election of 1916, the Russian Revolution and the actions of Woodrow Wilson as well as many more that will be examined throughout this essay. The United States prided itself on its concept of remaining neutral and staying out of avoidable dispute, they were able to achieve this to a certain extent due to its tradition of isolation, the fact that America was such a vast distance geographically from other European countries meant that at times involvement in war was very difficult. This is highlighted by Hugh Brogan (1990) “The world was so large…it was impossible for

Every year, one million immigrants settle in the United States hoping for a new beginning, new opportunities, and a new life; however, they are welcomed by animosity, injustice, and discrimination. Even the president of the United States finds these immigrants to be troublesome despite their dedication to work hard to sustain themselves in their new home. Race related crimes continue to increase and the government is clearly making efforts to prevent more immigrants from seeking refuge in America as evidenced by the recent Muslim ban put into place by the Trump administration. Individuals fleeing from discrimination in their homelands are welcomed to a new form of discrimination here in the land of the free. Muslim

Although there are many defining years in the making of the United States as a nation, 1776 is the most important year due in majority to Washington and his decisions during the war.

one 's society. It existed during the early stages of civilization when hunter-gatherers came of age

It is fair to refer to the United States as the stray seed of Great Britain’s Earlier Empire, yet even with this relationship their executive leaderships and institutions are vastly different. Like an abused child, the United States vowed to, and successfully created a system of governing completely different from the monarch they were previously ruled under, giving birth to a presidential system that would become the leading example of political democracy.

Before World War I, America had been primarily an isolationist nation with little dealings with the world. As time went on America took more of a role in world affairs. With World War II and the post war, America took its place as one of the most dominant nations in the world. Post war, America’s economy led the world and helped rebuild war ravaged nations. Government efficiency in the economy and increased production led America to emerge as one of the biggest economic powerhouses in the world.

Laurence Binyon said “A man is only missing if he is forgotten” in his poem For the Fallen, these words stayed with me during the entire experience at the exhibition. The exhibition is dedicated to those who did not return from World War I, it is a moving and important exhibition that commemorates those who did not return and Alabama’s part in the war. Before visiting the exhibition, I understood America’s role in the Great War, however, I did not know the role that Alabama played in the war. When America entered the Great War, Alabama had 95,000 people that were included in the military’s 4 million personnel; I found that to be a shockingly high number due to the lack of enthusiasm about the war from the south.