By the late 19th century and early 20th century the United States had transformed itself into one of the world's leading mechanical powers. They became the world's leading economic, mechanical, and agricultural power, thanks to their new technologies (e.g., the telegraph and steel), a growing rail network, and an abundance of natural resources. But this was only possible thanks to an ideology called “isolationism” under which the United States decided to “isolate” itself from the rest of the world and become self-sufficient, implementing new tariffs that helped the American economy itself. As the 20th century began, that ideology went from wanting to be self-sufficient to wanting more resources and power, so the United States went through its period of imperialism. This change led to many political changes within and outside the country, but also influenced its social views. The most important reasons why the United States decided it was a good idea to move from isolationism to imperialism were economic, military, and ideological. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayIsolationism and imperialism were two very complex and different policies. Isolationism was a policy that aimed to avoid permanent ties and alliances with other states. In the United States it all began with George Washington's "Farewell Address" (1796), which proposed commercial relations to the nation, but not permanent political alliances with the rest of the world. «While therefore every part of our country feels an immediate and particular interest in the union, all the parts together cannot fail to find in the united mass of means and efforts greater strength, greater resources, proportionally greater security from external dangers, less interruptions frequent requests for their peace from foreign nations." The "Monroe doctrine" (1823) went in the same direction, which established a sort of non-intervention between the United States and the European states. “With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered and will not interfere. But with respect to the governments which have declared their independence and maintain it, and whose independence we have recognized, with great consideration and on the basis of just principles, we could see no interposition with the aim of oppressing or otherwise controlling them their destiny. , by any European power in any light other than as a manifestation of a hostile disposition towards the United States." Monroe in his doctrine takes away power from Europe, and then says that America is a force to look up to. Imperialism, on the other hand, is a policy in which the priority is the economic and political expansion of those countries of industrial capitalism, which were looking for low-cost primary markets and outlets for industrial products and investment capital. With imperialism, people began to cultivate nationalist feelings and began to believe in the superiority of European civilization and the white man's civilizing mission; furthermore, social Darwinism, i.e. the application of Darwinian theories to human society, interpreted the cultural differences between peoples in terms of evolution and justified (on the basis of the principle of natural selection) the competition between peoples and the domination of stronger peoples and evolved on an evolutionary level. the weakest and least evolved ones. It should be noted that the phenomenon of colonization, understood as an instrument of humanity's progress, was also justified by many exponents of the socialist movement (including Marx himself). Imperialism experienced its peak from the late 1800s until the years that followedSecond World War. As explained in the introduction, the transition from isolationist to imperialist politics was caused by three main factors. The first factor would be the economic factor. In 1893 an ahistorian named Frederick Jackson Turner published “The Significance of the Frontier in American History” and in this piece he discusses the 1890 census. “That coarseness and strength combined with acuteness and curiosity; that practical, inventive mentality, ready to find expedients; that masterly mastery of material things, devoid of artistic aspects but powerful for achieving great ends; that restless, nervous energy; that dominant individualism, which works for good and evil, and at the same time that liveliness and exuberance that comes from freedom: these are the traits of the frontier”. He claimed that the frontier was over or closed, in fact the superintendent of the census said there was no longer a visible frontier to the west. In the same year (1890) Wounded Knee, a war between Indians and Americans, marked the end of the major Indian Wars. In the essay Jackson talks about the importance of the frontier in American history. He didn't appreciate the resistance of the natives to Anglo colonization, he doesn't even talk about race or class, but that establishes it. Idea that the border is closed. Expansion advocates took this idea and decided that since the border had been closed, the. The only way for America to expand was to go abroad, overseas. Many imperialists cited economic opportunity as justification for greater involvement. The United States in world affairs. Between the Civil War and 1890, the industrial manufacturing capabilities of the United States exploded in such a short space of time. This rapid industrialization caused the United States to produce more than its citizens required, and this led to the belief among American imperialists that the United States needed new markets for its manufacturing and agricultural products. The United States also decided to expand abroad because it wanted cheap raw materials, and many foreign countries were able to supply them, and this would help fuel the industrial revolution. Many people believed this when there were economies. Recession, like the Panic of 1893, that if we had these foreign markets to provide raw materials and as places to trade, they would have come out of these economic recessions much more quickly. So, they believed that the best way to do this, and to maintain a strong economy, was to take over the lands of people abroad. In addition to taking over people's lands, they also wanted to take over their lives to integrate them into the American economic system. , so that they could have these “new” markets to sell the goods they were producing. There were also strategic reasons why some Americans supported expansionist and/or imperialist policies. One of the things that was happening was that the U.S. Navy was extremely weak and not very impressive, and the United States, as it expanded during this period, was largely getting areas that were islands, because it wanted to be close to foreign markets like the China. There were also strategic reasons why some Americans supported expansionist and/or imperialist policies. One of the things that was happening was that the U.S. Navy was extremely weak and not very impressive, and the United States, as it expanded during this period, was largely getting areas that were islands, because it wanted to be close to foreign markets like the China. In early 1893, the merchant community of the Kingdom of Hawaii deposed the queen and requested annexation from President Harrison, who submitted the proposal.