Thomas DeAscentis

The Rise of a Great Power: America’s Emergence on the Global Stage

Abstract:

This project analyzes the emergence of the United States as a great power in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. With the western frontier closed, policymakers realized that in order to continue to progress and flourish as a society, it was necessary to look outwards. Policymakers enabled the United States to realize great power by utilizing social and racial constructs, a need for new markets, along with the Spanish-American War of 1898 to implement policies which enabled the United States to ascend to the ranks of great powers. Indeed, the United States’ involvement in foreign affairs rapidly increased in the twentieth century. However, policymakers sought to be involved on their own terms in order to avoid entanglement in foreign affairs. The United States’ foreign policy approach shifted in accordance with the best interests of the country, which facilitated the country’s sustained great power.