Manifest Destiny

Reasons for Moving West

• • There was a vast amount of land that could be obtained cheaply

  • Great reports were continually sent back East about how fruitful and wonderful the West is, sparking a lot of interest.

  • The constraints of European civilization had a lot of people stuck in factory and other low-paid jobs. For the working class it was almost impossible to work themselves up in life, something that was very doable in the New World.

  • Mining opportunities, silver, and the gold rush was a big draw for many

  • The expanding railroad provided easier access to supplies, making life in the West easier.

  • Certain wheat strains were discovered and was capable of adapting to the climate of the plains

  • Being a “cowboy” and working on farms with cattle was romanticized

  • The lure of adventure

Part I

“America is destined for better deeds. We have no interest in the scenes of antiquity, only as lessons of avoidance of nearly all their examples. The expansive future is our arena, and for our history. We are entering on its untrodden space, with the truths of God in our minds, beneficent objects in our hearts, and with a clear conscience unsullied by the past. We are the nation of human progress, and who will, what can, set limits to our onward march? Providence is with us, and no earthly power can. We point to the everlasting truth on the first page of our national declaration, and we proclaim to the millions of other lands, that “the gates of hell” – the powers of aristocracy and monarchy – “shall not prevail against it. Who, then, can doubt that our country is destined to be the great nation of futurity?”

(John L. O’Sullivan, Manifest Destiny, 1839)

1. Read the quote by yourself, and then list key words or phrases (what sticks out to you).

2. Now work with a partner/group and combine your two lists of key words or phrases into one shared list.

3. Next, write a definition of what you think “manifest destiny,” is based on your list of key words and phrases.

Part II

Analyzing a Painting to Better Understand “Manifest Destiny”

American Progress by John Gast

www.ourdocuments.gov

Look at John Gast’s painting, American Progress.Work in your small groups and analyze the picture.

1. Complete the following chart based on what you see in the painting:

1. What might be the painter’s message? How do you know?

2. How does the painting relate to O’Sullivan’s quote on “manifest destiny?” (the reading above)

4. How does it distract from the definition, or contradict it?

5. Add to or adjust your definition of Manifest Destiny

Part III

James K. Polk Lyrics

Artist: They Might Be Giants

Analyze: Do the lyrics in this song relate to O’Sullivans’s Quote on “manifest destiny?”

Extra Resource