Chapter 5-1 Summary

From 1890-1917, the United States joined the race in the attempt to extend their
influence across the world by emerging world powers. The United States were among
many other nations that took part in this race and used imperialism, in which a strong
nation extend their political, military, and economic control over weaker
territories. One imperialistic idea is to seek economic benefits abroad in other
colonies. These economic benefits include raw materials and natural resources (tea,
rubber, iron, petroleum, etc). These colonial economies are examples of extractive
economies because imperial countries would extract, or remove, raw materials from the
colony and shipped them to the homeland. Possession of these colonies gave nations
the lead in competition for global resources. However, for America, the problem was not
a shortage materials; it was rather the surplus of goods. Therefore, American
industrialists urged the expansion in trade in new overseas markets to sell American
commodities. Otherwise, American factories would close down and unemployment rates
would rise. To continue to expand their interests around the world, imperialist nations
would have to stress military strength. Alfred T. Mahan, a military historian and an
officer in the United States Navy, played a key role in stressing the importance of
military strength. Mahan argued that the United States would need to acquire foreign
bases where American ships could refuel and gather fresh supplies. Influenced by these
ideas, the United States expanded and modernized its navy by building new steel
plated, steam-powered battleships (USS Maine). By the early 1900s, the United States
has the third largest navy in the world. Imperialist also believed in national
superiority which influenced Americans to play a more active role in the role. Ideas of
racial, national, and cultural superiority were accompanied by the ideas of Social
Darwinism, the belief that life consists of the competitive struggles in which only the
fittest will survive. Americans embraced Social Darwinism because they had long
believed that God had granted them the right and responsibility to settle the frontier, a
way to keep the safety valve open and avoid internal conflict.

Chapter 5-4 Summary

As the United States tentatively asserted its interests in East Asia, Americans

called for a more aggressive role in Latin America by pursuing big stick diplomacy.
The big stick diplomacy was Roosevelts policy of creating and using, when necessary,
a strong military to achieve Americas goals. Roosevelt felt he needed to pursue the big
stick diplomacy because he viewed the United States as a special nation with a moral
responsibility to uplift weaker nations. Roosevelt practiced the big stick diplomacy in
the building of the Panama Canal. In 1903, the United States government bought the
Panama route for $40 million. However, before it could be built, the United States
needed the consent of the Colombian government. Unfortunately, Columbia demanded
more than what the United States was willing to pay. Therefore, in order to get the
United States the right to build the canal, Roosevelt dispatched U.S. warships to the
waters off Panama to support the Panamanian rebellion against Columbia. Soon,
Panama was able to declare its independence from Columbia and the United States
was granted the rights to build the Panama Canal. Roosevelt continued to retain the
aggressive role of America by updating the Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine
was a declaration by President Monroe in 1823 that the United States would oppose
efforts by any outside power to control a nation in the Western Hemisphere. Roosevelt
updated the Monroe Doctrine because in the case of any chronic wrongdoing by a
Latin American nation, the United States would assume the role of police power,
restoring order and depriving other creditors the excuse to intervene. This change
reasserted Americas long-standing policy of keeping the Western Hemisphere free from
European intervention. However, the people of Latin America showed their opposition
clearly through their reaction to Roosevelts corollary. Latin Americans disagreed with
the Roosevelt belief that they could not police themselves. Peruvian Diplomat,
Francisco Calderon believed that the Monroe Doctrine had taken on an aggressive
form with Mr. Roosevelt. Nicaraguan spokesman, Augusto Sandino, felt that the United
States threatened the sovereignty and liberty of the Latin American people. Therefore,
Sandino led an army of guerillas against the U.S. Marines in Nicaragua in the 1920s. To
contribute to the growing powers of the United States, new President Taft switches
from the big stick diplomacy to dollar diplomacy. Dollar diplomacy was
President Tafts policy on expanding American investments abroad. This policy aimed to
increase American investments in businesses and banks throughout Central America
and the Caribbean. These investments included plantations, mines, oil wells, railways,
and other ventures in those regions. Of course, dollar diplomacy sometimes required
the big stick diplomacy and military intervention such as when President Taft
dispatched troops to Nicaragua in 1909, as well as in 1912, in order to protect the
formation of a pro-American government there.