Astoday 2007.Pub

Issue 16 September 2007 Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the American Studies Resources Centre 2 In this year’s issue Rhetoric and the 35 Loreto Goes is the official journal of the 3 toWashington American Studies Resources Spanish- Centre, The Aldham Robarts American War an account of a 6th Centre, Liverpool John Moores form trip to the University, Mount Pleasant Liv- Michelle Munton ex- American capital. erpool L3 5UZ amines the role of rhetoric, both by the Tel & fax: 0151-231 3241 press and by govern- e-mail: [email protected] ment, in gaining public web site: support for the Span- www.americansc.org.uk ish-Amer icanWar. 37 The Barringer Fel- Editor-in-Chief: Ian Ralston lowship, Sum- Painting It Black? Editor: David Forster mer2006 Editorial assistant: Helen Tam- 14 An optimistic and light- burro hearted look at how the Kathryn Cooper of Loreto Layout and graphics: David Sixties democratised al- College Manchester has Forster most everything written this account of her The views expressed are those By Ed Weeden studytrip to Virginia. of the contributors, and not nec- essarily those of the centre or An Appeal to Fear News and events the university. 18 Ain’t Nothin’ © 2007, Liverpool John Moores University and the Contributors. New 38 'Hard Times and Articles in this journal may be Ralph Donald examines George W. HardTravellin' freely reproduced for use in Bush’s Middle East War Rhetoric Shonagh Wilkie reports on subscribing institutions only, and Territoriality in American Celebrating 20 years of the provided that the source is ac- Propaganda Films of World War II knowledged. American Studies Re- source Centre The journal is published with Captain America: the aid of financial assistance 28 The United States from the United States Embassy. 39 Students learn about Please email us at versus itself, the Depression, Roo- [email protected] with sevelt and the New any changes of name or ad- through the Eyes Deal dress. If you do not wish to con- of a Wartime Fic- tinue receiving this magazine, Schools Conference Re- please send an e-mail with the tional Hero port by Helen Tamburro word Unsubscribe and your Christian Dailly shows subscription number in the sub- Book Reviews ject line. how the changing in- carnations of the Photo credits comic-book hero from 40 Literature his beginnings as the American History Slide Collec- all-American heroin tion: the struggle against 43 Politics Helen Tamburro Nazism in 1971 to the troubled and reflective 47 Race, Slavery and warrior in the post Civil Rights 9/11 era, have re- flected America’s 52 Culture changing views of their own society and 59 History 3 similar throughout the nation’s history and, with a glance at Rhetoric and the their current foreign policy, it is clear that it is still very much in use. Since the birth of America as a nation, its citizens have had fixed ideas on the divinity of Spanish-American their country and its people, feeling that their country, as op- posed to all others, had a reason for being and that God had a War purpose in guiding them there. As early as the 1600s, there were rhetorical speeches being made ar, as a concept, about the subject. In 1616, a has many facets: colonisation agent told an Eng- aggression, brutal- lish audience about this wonder- W ity, courage and ful land and ended, ‘What need determination, to name just a wee then to feare, but to goe up few. One important facet, how- at once as a peculiar people ever, is often overlooked; rheto- marked and chosen by the finger ric. Often, before a single shot is of God to possess it?’ fired, nations will engage in an almost obligatory war of words. These ideas flourished in the An effective waging of a war of new country and it was with words between two nations will regards to the question of Amer- always depend, to some degree, ica gaining control of Oregon on rhetoric and it could be sug- from the British in 1845, that gested that the more successful journalist John O’Sullivan de- the rhetorical talents of a na- clared that it was, Michelle Munton tion’s politicians and journalists, The right of our manifest examines the role the more successful that nation destiny to overspread and will be in a physical conflict. This to possess the whole con- of rhetoric, both stems from what rhetoric is and tinent which providence by the press and the effects it has on an audience. has given us for the devel- Rhetoric is a double – edged opment of the great ex- by government, in sword. On one side, it inspires periment of liberty and the listener or reader; it high- federated self govern- gaining public lights qualities and capabilities ment. support for the and instils pride in themselves, Manifest destiny their country and their accom- Manifest destiny became the Spanish-American plishments. On the other side, basis for Americans to explain War. She examines rhetoric as a skill of weaving their superiority over other races spurious arguments, relies heav- and countries and agreeably the belief in Amer- ily on sophistry and therefore dealt with the Indian question, can be used to justify things that suddenly making it completely ica’s “manifest would not normally be justifi- acceptable to take their land, as destiny” to bring able. Both features of rhetoric it was the divine right of the An- then, can mobilise the people of glo-Saxons to do so. It becomes civilisation to the a nation into being far less apa- clear then that rhetoric, and in uncivilised world, thetic than they may otherwise particular, that of religious ori- have been. The Spanish- gin, can lend even the most infa- and draws com- American War provides sterling mous adventure a cloak of re- examples of both of these as- spectability and we see the parisons with the pects. The causes, events and same pattern repeated with the rhetoric used by repercussions of a war which Spanish-American war, with the lasted less than a year, were added dimension of new loca- the Bush admini- steeped in rhetoric from both tions. Carl Schurz , who had stration to justify perspectives but, for the pur- been Secretary of the Interior poses of this article, I will con- under Hayes in the late 1870s, the invasion of centrate on the American use of summed up the revised purpose this literary device. of Manifest Destiny in 1893 Iraq. when he wrote that the concept American rhetoric has been was forever being declared to 4 make any expansion of power powers from the area surround- American jurisdiction as the is- appear unavoidable. After a ing America, including Spain. lands where thousands of miles quiet period successive to the Indeed, some expansionists from the coastline of America. Civil War, ‘it was being revived claimed that Cuba had been cre- At the time, the only explanation now in the form of demands for ated by silt from the Mississippi offered was that ‘the spirit of territory no longer contiguous which had been carried out into generosity expressed in the with the U.S., but far away.’ the Caribbean as the river left Monroe Doctrine vis-à-vis Latin The Monroe Doctrine New Orleans which meant it was America was now merely being A very significant piece of for- actually American soil. President extended.’ In 1904 then, Theo- eign policy, borne from Presi- Cleveland even remarked during dore Roosevelt came up with the dent Monroe’s seventh Annual his time in the White House that ‘Roosevelt Corollary’ as a corol- message to Congress in 1823, ‘Cuba is so close to us as to be lary to the Monroe Doctrine. In it was the Monroe Doctrine. Presi- hardly separated from our terri- he stated, dent Monroe stated that, tory.’ There was also talk of Chronic wrongdoing, or ..the American conti- Cuba ending up in the hands of an impotence which nents, by the free and one Spain’s allies, which of results in a general independent condition course would be a threat to loosening of the ties of which they have assumed American security and therefore, civilised society and maintain, are hence- intervention in Cuba was justi- may...ultimately require forth not to be considered fied. For any who felt that this intervention by some as subjects for future reasoning was not enough to civilised nation, and in colonization by any Euro- justify American intervention in the Western Hemi- Cuba, Captain Alfred T. Mahan, sphere the adherence of pean powers. .. We a prominent figure in the Navy the U.S. to the Monroe owe it, therefore, to can- and leading intellectual on Doctrine may force the dour and to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powers to de- He believed that the clare that we should con- sider any attempt on their ‘transcendent right and duty to part to extend their sys- tem to any portion of this establish political and legal or- hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. der everywhere’ gave rise to ‘a In the lead-up to the Spanish- American War, the Monroe Doc- great world duty’ on the part of trine was cited as one of the rea- sons for American interference in what Spain saw as her affairs. civilised nations. Spain argued that since Cuba was her colony, the island did not fall under American jurisdiction. Americans however, had a global navalism, was on hand U.S., however reluc- different view. To the imperial with a suitable analogy.

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