Annexation of Hawaii Essay

The decade of the 1890s marks a diplomatic watershed in American history. During that period the United States embarked upon a very assertive expansionist policy that led to the nation becoming an imperialist power by 1900. The reasons for this change from an essentially low-key, isolationist foreign policy stance to an aggressive involvement in world affairs involved fundamental changes in the American economy and the attitudes of the American people. The industrial revolution of the last quarter of the 19th century was the primary factor in the shifting foreign policy. As the nation became more industrialized it began to look overseas for new markets for its manufactured goods and for new sources of raw materials to feed the growing industrial system. To protect these foreign markets and raw materials the United States began to expand its power and influence overseas through the acquisition of trading centers, naval stations, and coaling ports. Indeed one of the major differences b etween the expansion of the 1890s and previous decades was that the nation did not see these new territories as potential states to add to the nation, but as spheres of influence in the aid of foreign trade. Two other elements entered the expansionist/imperialist equation. One was the closing of the American frontier in1890. When the Census report of that year proclaimed that there was no more frontier it meant that the nation could no longer pursue its twin goals of territorial expansion and isolation from world affairs. One or the other would have to be abandoned since there was no more contiguous territory to annex. The expansionist impulse proved stronger than the isolationist one and the nation began acquire an overseas empire. A second factor was the desire to spread the Christian gospel abroad, which meant securing an opening for American missionaries overseas. â€Å"Militant† Christianity reinforced the mood of American expansionism. A classic example of the intertwining of economic and religious impulses was United States’ annexation of Hawaii. The first Americans to settle in Hawaii were Christian missionaries whose families remained and exerted a growing influenc e over the Hawaiian economy. By 1890 American economic and religious interests in the island kingdom were a permanent feature of the society. When the McKinley tariff bill of 1890 sought to stimulate the American sugar beet industry by placing a duty on imported sugar and giving a two cent a pound bonus for domestically grown sugar, the American-owned sugar companies  faced a serious economic problem. From the standpoint of the American sugar companies in Hawaii the answer to their economc problem was simple: have Hawaii annexed by the United States so that Hawaiian sugar was domestic, not foreign grown. The flaw in that solution was that the Hawaiian people had no desire to become American. This popular aversion to annexation was reflected in the refusal of the Hawaiian leader, Queen Liliuokalani, to request an American take-over. The sugar company executives, with the timely assistance of a contingent of American marines who marched through Honolulu to â€Å"protect American lives and property,† simpl y staged a political coup and asked for annexation. After President Cleveland refused, President McKinley acquiesced in 1898. America’s desire to extend its influence beyond its borders was not limited to overt acts of annexation. In the case of a boundary dispute between Venezuela and British Guiana, United States’ action took the form of a virtual diplomatic ultimatum to England, insisting that Britain send no troops to press its boundary claims. The United States would set up a boundary commission to arbitrate the dispute and determine the legitimate boundaries. After initially declining American â€Å"good offices,† Great Britain accepted after U.S. Secretary of State Olney asserted that the United States was â€Å"practically sovereign† in this hemisphere and threatened military action. This rather high-handed maneuver reflected growing U.S. â€Å"power of persuasion.† The most dramatic example of America’s increasingly imperialistic foreign policy was the Spanish-American War of 1898. After having remained aloof from Cuba’s previous attempts to throw off Spanish rule, the United States adopted a more interventionist policy when another Cuban revolt erupted in the 1890s. The American people were sympathetic with the Cuban cause and their rallying cry became â€Å"Cuba Libra,† free Cuba. A sensationalist American press, led by New York City newspaper publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst, played up Spanish â€Å"atrocities† against the Cubans and ran front page stories about the Cuban â€Å"struggle for freedom.† Hearst even sent a photographer to Cuba with instructions to send back pictures of Spanish atrocities. In addition to â€Å"yellow journalism,† anti-Spanish emotions were stirred up by the publication of a private letter written by the Spanish ambassador to the United States, de Lome, considered insulting to President McKinley. Another event fanning the flames of war fever was the sinking of the American battleship â €Å"Maine† in Havana. Even  though there was no proof of any Spanish involvement the rallying cry for pro-war forces became â€Å"Remember the Maine, and to hell with Spain.† Even though Spain, trying to avoid confontation with the United States, responded favorably to a diplomatic ultimatum from the State Department, McKinley yielded to popular pressure for war and delivered a war message. Congress, sensing America’s mood, declared war. Congress’ declaration of war was soon accompanied by the Teller Resolution promising that the United States would not annex Cuba as a result of American intervention in its behalf. When the brief, successful war ( â€Å"a splendid little war† in the words of our Secretary of State) was ended, however, the Platt Amendment, incorporated in an American-Cuban treaty, accorded the United States the right to intervene in Cuba to â€Å"preserve its independence and maintain law and order.† In effect this amendment gave the United States a qua si-protectorate over Cuba. And while the war did not lead to U.S. acquisition of Cuba it did result in United States’ annexation of Puerto Rico and the Philippine Islands (acquired from Spain). The Philippinos expressed their aversion to becoming an American territory by engaging in a guerilla war against the U.S. when annexation was proposed. Indeed the Philippine insurrection against the U.S. was more costly in terms of money and American lives lost than had been the Spanish-American war. Nor was everyone in the U.S. in favor of Philippine annexation. Anti-imperialists claimed that the Philippines might involve us in a war in the Far East, and that forced annexation violated the traditional American belief in â€Å"government by the consent of the governed.† American labor leaders joined in opposition to acquisition lest it lead to the introduction of cheap Philippine labor. American racism also rallied against acquiring â€Å"yellow-skinned† America’s desire to extend its economic influence to the Far East through opening up trade with China led to yet another diplomatic confrontation. By 1900 China had succumbed to European imperialism in the form of spheres of influence each of the major European powers and Japan had established. Concerned that this would lead to those powers excluding the U.S. from the China trade the U.S. sent a round-robin diplomatic note to all of them asserting that it was the U.S. policy, and assumed it was theirs as well, to provide an â€Å"Open Door† for trade with China. This was followed by a second â€Å"Open Door† note affirming respect for the â€Å"territorial and administrative  integrity† of China. Reluctantly most of the nations gave lukewarm assent.

Character Analysis of Mrs Foster Essay

The short story â€Å"The Way up to Heaven† is written by Roald Dahl, who is a British novelist and a short story author. He was born in Wales in 1916. â€Å"The Way up to Heaven† is a story about Mr. and Mrs. Foster â€Å"sad† life. The story takes place on a January of 1950’ in New York City, on East Sixty- second Street. It also takes place on the New York Airport and in Paris. Mrs Foster herself, is an old-fashioned woman who has a fear of missing a train, a plane, a boat etc. If she is in the situation, her eyes will begin to twitch. She likes to wear a fur coat with a black hat on the top of her head. Mrs Foster wants everything to be fast. Her man, Mr Foster, doesn’t likes to be early, but she would never dare to tell him to hurry. The story became complicated when Mrs. Foster’s flight was delayed until eleven o’clock on the next day due to the fog. Mrs. Foster had to go back home again and come back to the airport the next day. In the second conflict Mr. Foster tried to slow her journey to the airport again. Read more: This is water David foster Wallace summary  essay It started when Mr. Foster asked Mrs. Foster to wait in the taxi while he went inside the house again to find the present that he wanted to give to his daughter in Paris. He claimed that he left the present inside the house, whilst he actually had wedged the present down under the seat, which Mrs. Foster had noticed at last when Mr. Foster went looking for it in the house. Mrs. and Mr. Foster have a frigid relationship. It does not look like they love each other. At some point in the story, she changes. Mrs.Foster stopped to listen for the repetition of some sound at the house door. This happened when Mr.Foster pretended to look for the gift and yet left it in the car on purpose. She left the place without waiting for Mr.Foster. As the reader of the story, I sympathize with her. Mr. Foster knew that his wife couldn’t bare the imagination to miss the flight she was going to take to Paris. In one way, he tortures Mrs. Foster. The climax, or the main turning point, of the story is the moment when Mrs Foster freezes at the front door to listen to a sound. She is a completely changed person after that. When she was in Paris she knew her husband is in danger but pretended not to know. Towards the ending of the story, Mrs.Foster will go to check out the elevator and when she returns, she’ll have a glimmer of satisfaction on her face. This shows that she’s happy that her torturous husband, Mr.Foster is no more and she  can return to Paris with her daughter. Even after what she has done, I sympathize with her because she devoted all her life on him but he couldn’t keep her happy.