How America Became a Global Superpower Essay

The unify States of America is the pieces last remaining business leader. However, this was not always the case. The linked States toiled in relative obscurity on a spheric measure for around of its history. As the demesne evolved, so too did the young nation. The coupled States seek to stay step for state of ward of world affairs, but a time came when that was no longer possible. Neces razzy dictated that the unite States become a study player at the global level. The wedlock States entered into World warfare II a nifty indicant and emerged a global superpower.What is a superpower?In order to properly examine the events that led to the egress of the fall in States as a superpower it is important to understand exactly what constitutes a nation gaining the status of that title. According to Lyman Miller of the Stanford Journal of International Relations, A superpower is a country that has the capacity to project dominating power and influence anywhere in the world, and or sotimes, in more than than one argona of the globe at a time, and so whitethorn plausibly form the status of global (2006). at that place take in been some global superpowers throughout history. The join Kingdom, France, Germany, the Soviet conjunction, and the linked States live all spent evidential time in the past as global superpowers.The collapse of the Soviet Union give uped the united States to become the only nation with a decriminalize claim to the title of global superpower. However, in that location are opposite nations that may be able to lay claim to the title at some point in the future. Perhaps the to the highest degree visible, and closest, of these countries is the Peoples res publica of China. everyplace the past 20 years, China has grown into some(prenominal) a military and economic power. China has the second largest GDP in the world, conterminous to the unify States, according to the International Monetary Fund. However, Miller does nt expect to believe China will be evolving anytime soon. At a broader level, in global affairs, its stature and power are growing, but in virtually respects it stiff a regional power, complementing the cast of other great powers under the overarching dominance, however momentary, of the coupled States (Miller, 2006).Focus on Domestic IssuesThe unify States stayed out of foreign affairs throughout most of the 19th ampere-second and the first half of the 20th century. These policies actually served the country quite good as the young nation had many domestic problems that needed to be resolved before it could take a prominent position in global affairs. This did not stop the joined States from intervening when it was necessary.Aside from this, the citizens of the get together States did not really suck in the stomach for foreign powers. This could perhaps not be better stated than it was by George Washington, the first President of the fall in States, in his furtherewell a ddress in 1796. The great rule of ingest for us in regard to foreign nations is in ext closureing our commercial relations, to have with them as little semipolitical connection as possible. So far as we have already formed engagements, let them be fulfill with perfect good faith. Here let us stop. Europe has a set of primary interests which to us have none or a very remote relation. Hence she must be engaged in frequent controversies, the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves by artificial ties in the medium vicissitudes of her politics, or the ordinary combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities.The first major problem the United States wanted to tackle was the belief that the country was destined to expand crosswise the continent. This led to a focus on expansion. The dream began with Thomas Jeffersons purchase of the Louisiana Territory. This purchase doubled the surface of th e United States. amongst 1811 and 1912 the United States went from 17 to 48 states spanning from the Atlantic Ocean to the pacific Ocean. It took speed of light years, but the United States dream of manifest destiny was realized. (World Book, 2011)One slue which evolved from the nations rapid expansion and precluded the United States from becoming voluminous in global affairs was the countrys relationships with Native Americans. The United States would move Native Americans off of their the three estates and moved them to reservations. It was a very tenuous relationship.There were other issues indoors the ensuing years. The most significant of these problems was the Civil state of war. Between 1861 and 1865 the United States was locked in a brutal Civil War. South Carolina seceded from the union on declination 20, 1860. Ten other southern states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi in January Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia subseq uent in 1861) followed South Carolinas lead and formed the Confederate States of America. Over the next four years Americans killed each other in assail. This resulted in over 600,000 American deaths. The Civil War remains the deadliest contend (in terms of American deaths) in United States history. The war did have a couple of positive outcomes. The war preserved the United States. Additionally, the war led to the abolishment of slavery. (World Book, 2011)The Civil War led identifyly to other major issue. The issue of reconstruction was not just about rebuild the ravaged the south, but withal rebuilding the nations unity. Laws were passed to allow African-Americans to have the same opportunities as white Americans, though they often werent enforced. Former Confederate states were required to ratify the 13th, 14th, and fifteenth amendments to the Constitution in order to be readmitted to the Union (World Book, 2011). Reconstruction stop in 1877, 12 years afterwards the Civil War ended. converse ProblemsDomestic problems were not the only affaires rest in the way of the United States becoming a world power. There were numerous communication barriers that prevented the United States from having any significant influence on issues of a global scale. The most obvious of these issues is the proximity of the United States to the other Great Powers of the world. There are hundreds of miles of ocean between the United States and Europe and Asia across the Atlantic and Pacific respectively. Until the advent of the telegraph the only form of communication between the recent world and the old world was via letter or personal contact. confabulation in this manner could take weeks to complete.Superpower AbilityThere were many positive things happening domestically for the United States. The United States has a change climate, a diverse amount of rude(a) resources, and geographic barriers that make it more difficult to attack the country. These issues placed t he United States in a ludicrous position to become a global superpower.The climate of the United States gives it the tycoon to grow several different examples of crops. Corn grows in the plains, cotton in the south, and dairy in the north. It also allows for many different types of animals co-exist as there are several different items for them to graze on. This gives the Unites States the expertness to reliably go its entire domain, at least at the current population levels.The United States also has a plentiful supply of natural resources. These resources include both renewable resources, such as the aforementioned food and animals, and a large array of nonrenewable resources, such as coal, oil, and metals. The vast amount of natural resources have allowed the United States to create an economic floor that is capable of sustaining the populace without outside assistance from other nations. bandage the nations geographic barriers have make it onerouser to communicate with o ther world powers (at least initially), they also make it harder for a country to maintain a sustained offensive once morest the United States. It is hard to keep supply lines stocked when the venue of war is halfway across the globe. Most countries do not have the resources to keep up that type of attack for an extended period of time, and even fewer have the ability to maintain an occupying force over the course of several years to combat insurrection.Effect of WarWars had a profound effect on the emergence of the United States as a global superpower. Not only did these wars come on that the United States had a military worthy of global recognition, but they also helped to give the United States more clout on the world political stage. World War I and World War II plausibly had the largest effect, but the Korean and Vietnam Wars, while smaller in size, had large do on the United States sphere of influence. This gave Americans the wherewithal to become more involved in world pol itics.World War I was the first major overseas conflict in which the United States became involved. The United States attempted to stay out of the war. When German submarines began sinking United States merchant vessels shipping supplies to Europe, however, it became impossible for the United States to maintain its neutrality. These and other acts of aggression convinced Wilson and other Americans of the need to join the war against Germany to make the world safe for democracy (World Book, 2011). The United States connexion the war was enough to tip the scale in the allies favor. A little over a year and a half after the United States joined World War I it ended with the extradite of the Central Powers. The European countries in the war spent nearly 60% of their GDP on the war. This number was much lower for the United States. This gave the United States a much needed economic boost over the European powers. (World Book, 2011)After World War I there was a comparatively short live d peace between the powers. In the late 1930s war sentiments in Europe began brewing again. In 1939 Germany invaded Poland sparking World War II. over again the United States took a militarily neutral stance. They did support the Allies (the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union) against the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan) economically by sending supplies. slightly American soldiers even volunteered to go fight for the United Kingdom. It once again took an unprovoked act of aggression (this time Japans rob attack on Pearl Harbor) to provoke the United States to join the conflict. dapple the United States intervention in World War I helped inviolate an allied victory, the United States intervention in World War II helped change the course of the entire war.The United States did not recede pole into isolation following World War II unlike the end of World War I. With most of the combat happening in Europe, Africa, and Asia the United States again suffered very little damag e to their infrastructure. Europe was quite the opposite. With dickens major conflicts in less than 50 years European infrastructure was decimated. Japan was forbidden from keeping a large enough standing military to have any true significance on a global level thanks to their treaty with the United States. The Soviet Union stopped cooperating with the western Allies before the ink was dry on the peace treaties ending the war. The Soviets refused to unite their portion of Germany with the rest of the country, effectively resolveting the country in two.The Cold War had begun.The Cold War necessitated that the United States remain on the forefront of global affairs because neither France nor the United Kingdom were in a position, economically or militarily, to defend against the Soviet threat. While the Cold War didnt have any direct combat between the two remaining superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, it did have conflict. The United States was involved in combat i n Korea (which resulted in the split of Korea into two countries) and Vietnam. The Soviets were involved in combat in Afghanistan. The Cold War caused the United States to continue its military growth. As seen in the following chart, subject field Defense expenditures peaked in 1954 at almost 70 per centum of the nations total budget (U.S. Government, 2009).Global InfluenceThe size of the United States military put them in a position of global dominance, but it takes more than a large military to become a global power. It also takes influence in foreign matters. This is another thing the United States has developed over the two and a half centuries since macrocosm founded. There have been more than a few global matters that the United States has influenced other than wars.After World War I the League of Nations was formed. While United States President Woodrow Wilson was an advocate of the League the United States Senate was not. They voted down the proceeding for the United Sta tes to join the League of Nations. Many Americans believe that had the United States joined the League of Nations it would not have failed. This could have helped stop the Nazi transmit through Eastern Europe. Decisions made by the United States influence the economies of every nation on earth. The world also looks to the United States for action in times of need. I think that the authorities would do better to sit down with Ambassador Thomas and take advantage of whatever self-imposed help the only superpower in the world today has to spin the Philippines to put a stop to the worldwide problem of women trafficking (Vitas, 2011).Without the United States the library paste of communism would have continued unabated following World War II. To this end the United States helped to create the North Atlantic Treaty judicature to create the Soviet Unions Warsaw Pact. This helped to ensure the synthetic rubber of democracy for the world. It also helped to curb the spread of communism. The United States also sets the distinction culturally. Hollywood is the predominant film industry in the world. Perhaps the landing field where the United States had the largest cultural impact on a worldwide scale was with regards to space. It was a large achievement for all members of the human race when the Americans land on the moon.ConclusionThe United States went into World War II as a world power and emerged as one of two superpowers. There were many things leading up to the nations emergence. The United States has the worlds largest economy, largest military, and the decisions made by its President have far arrive at impacts. It has given the country a large sphere of influence that is chill out evident in the world today.ReferencesEinhorn, R. L., & Schulman, B. J. (2011). History of the united states. In World Book AdvancedRetrieved from http//www.worldbookonline.com/advanced/article?id=ar576000 Imf Report for selected countries. (2011, September). Retrieved from ht tp//www.imf.org/ outside(a)/pubs/ft/weo/2011/02/weodata/weorept.aspx Miller, L. (2006). China an emerging superpower? Stanford Journal ofInternational Relations, Retrieved from http//www.stanford.edu/ separate/sjir/6.1.03_miller.html U.S. Government. (2009). The budget for fiscal year 2009, historical tables. Retrieved from U.S. Government Printing mooring website http//www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2009/pdf/hist.pdf Vitas, H. M. (2011, November 15). The revelation of the real harry thomas. Philippine insouciant Chronicle. Retrieved from http//campus.westlaw.com/ Washington, G. (1796). George washington farewell address 1796. Retrieved from http//avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/washing.asp