Painting Is American Progress By John Gast

The term “Manifest Destiny” was, in part, an expression of a genuine ideal on the part of Americans. Yet it was also a justification to a push and to assume territory. The idea of Manifest Destiny was sparked by revolutionary American writings that encouraged appropriation of Canada. These writings rationalized that the Louisiana Purchase and the Untied States’ annexation of Texas ordained American complete domination of the North American continent. More broadly stated, Manifest destiny was a conviction that God intended North America to be under the control Americans. It’s an assertion of Anglo-Saxon supremacy.

It is said that “The true content of a photograph is invisible, for it derives from a play not with form but with time”. This makes me think that the real content of a picture, which is what the photographer tried to express, is not evident to perceive unless an explanatory text is provided. In fact, I believe that our perceptions of pictures changes over time as the historical context do. In addition, our opinions are never fixed as they are influenced by our environment. Therefore, when looking at a particular picture at a given time, it is certain that our perception of it will be different in the future based on what happen between the first time and second time we saw it.

Manifest Destiny is a term for the American expansion that the united States not only could, but was destined to, stretch from coast to coast.

Manifest Destiny is a term coined by John L. Sullivan in 1845 when talking about the annexation of Texas. He believed, along with other expansionists, that it’s inevitable that the US population would spread across North America because the land is given by Providence to the United States and that it’s natural that the land should be part of the country [Doc 1]. The idea of westward expansion and Manifest Destiny had positive and negative effects on the politics, society and the economics of the United States and

Manifest Destiny is the belief during the 19th century, that the United States of America not only could, but was destined to, stretch from coast to coast. The idea of Manifest Destiny helped to fuel the war with Mexico and the removal of Indians from the United States. The American people and government lived by this belief. Manifest Destiny had many good results like the expansion of the American territory. It also had many poor results like the killing of Indians who were "in the way" of the belief of Manifest Destiny. The president that followed through with the belief of Manifest Destiny the most is that of James K. Polk. His war with Mexico and strong stand against the British about the Oregon territory solidified Manifest Destiny.

Manifest Destiny was an idea expressed during west ward expansion. It was the belief that God ordained that Americans must travel from coast to coast. Americans were also supposed to share their “light” to the primitive natives. Natives in the photo are showed in the darker side of the painting. They are fleeing from the giant angel heading towards them. The angel in the middle of the painting carrying a book and telegraph wires to insinuate their intellectual dominance. The painting tries to show how in the early to mid-19th century Americans believed God is always on their side and justifies everything they do from taking land to racism.

The Manifest Destiny was the attitude prevalent during the 19th century period of American expansion that the United States not only could, but was destined to, stretch from coast to coast. Manifest Destiny was mainly accomplished by the Monroe Doctrine, the annexation of Texas, and the Mexican-American War, but we were not a true continental power yet. After 1850, the Civil War, westward expansion, and the rise of big business made the United States a true continental power.

It is hard to read anything about the history of the United States without coming across the term “Manifest Destiny”. Manifest Destiny is a term, which was first coined by John L. Sullivan in the summer 1845 issue of the Democratic Review. “Hence it was carried into the debate on the Oregon question in the House of Representatives and proved to be such a convenient summing up of the self-confident nationalist and expansionist sentiment of the time that it passed into the permanent national vocabulary.” (Pratt, 798). The term voiced the idea that God had destined America to spread westward to the pacific. “It meant expansion, prearranged by Heaven, over an area not clearly defined.” (Merk, 24) Expansion westward seemed perfectly natural to many Americans in the mid-nineteenth century as they saw it was their destiny to expand their thriving country. This attitude that it was Americas destiny to expand helped fuel the drive to push west and begin the removal of Native Americans. Manifest Destiny is an extremely important aspect of American History and has ultimately helped to shape The United States into the successful country that is today.

Manifest Destiny is a belief that United States was destined by God to stretch across the continent from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and into Mexican Territory. Manifest Destiny came into act as a result of political pressure on slavery issue and fear of foreign threats. This idea provided opportunity for Americans to spread their beliefs of freedom, liberty and democracy across the continent. Manifest Destiny began with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, expansion plans of Polk (annexation of Texas in 1845), and dispute with Great Britain over Oregon Territory.

Manifest Destiny is a belief in the 19th century that was both justified and unavoidable is the expansion of the US throughout the American continents. The idea of Manifest Destiny changed the American landscape by the 1860’s, how? Things that led to the change of the American landscape is to annex Texas, the declaration of war on mexico, and the treaty of guadalupe hidalgo.

Manifest Destiny was a period in American history where citizens progressed westward into freshly attained territories. In that location were both noble and depraved experiences that were felt through the advancement of the country. The notion of Manifest Destiny was getting more common and prevalent throughout the United States. The imprint that would be left upon America was deliberated and heartened by the citizenry, which would be the start of a growth of colonialist observing the entitlement to bear their own destiny. Without regard of how far away or with no concern for who or whatever was in their path.

The visual ‘American Progress’ and the written resource on Manifest Destiny by John O’Sullivan are significant. Both of these resources are based on the idea of westward expansion. The visual symbolizes Americans going westward, to the unknown. The unknown is symbolized by dark clouds covering the west, which is where the Americans are headed. The title of the visual supports the idea that the image is about expanding westward. ‘American Progress’ implies that Americans are advancing, and the image shows Americans moving west. This must mean that the visual is about Americans advancing to the west. The written resource on Manifest Destiny is an article claiming that our destiny was to expand westward and take control of the continent that

Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was destined to expand from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean; it has also been used to advocate for or justify other territorial acquisitions.

The painting, House by the Railroad, by Edward Hopper was completed in 1925. The house he painted was in the style of a Victorian house. The house was built next to railroad tracks. He painted House by the Railroad with oil based paint on a canvas. The artwork is a twenty-four by twenty-nine inches in a frame. When I look at this painting, the first thing I think of is where is it located? It looks like it is in the middle of nowhere but then again it looks like it is in a town because of the railroad tracks. The house is built next to the railroad tracks but there are no trees. The house contains several windows which I think would be neat. In this painting, he uses vertical and horizontal lines. He used vertical lines for the columns of the house and parts of the house. He also uses horizontal lines for parts of the house and the railroad tracks. Many of the lines Edward Hopper painted were medium size. The painting is painted with several figures lined up. If you look at the front of the house, you can tell that it is square on top of another square. The one on the bottom left is also a square but it is bigger. The picture and the lines are very soft. The lines in the picture never seem to overlap each other. The way the sun is in the picture makes it look absolutely beautiful. The sun could be either rising or setting by the look of the artwork. House by the Railroad was painted in the United States. Edward Hopper painted this picture after he came back

The Manifest Destiny was the name given to the Anglo-American (white) expansion into the West. The Manifest Destiny was based on an idea that white Americans were superior people who believed in God. Americans were to populate North America “sea to shining sea” and spread the religion of Christianity. The Manifest Destiny displayed American’s confidence. Americans moved west for more land, the Manifest Destiny also uplifted American’s freedom and democracy. And it encouraged independence. The United States used the Manifest Destiny to start a war with Mexico from1846 until 1848. The Manifest Destiny communicated American claims to western lands, at once highlighting the nation’s superiority and offering a solution to national anxieties. Ironically, the new territories exacerbated sectional divisions and caused the civil war (Bailey et al., 2015, p 319, and Hardesty 2015).