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Hi everyone. We are a group of danish high school students who are writing an assignment about american history. Our subject is the westward exspansion and we want to know the opinion of today's american citizens. it woulb be a great help to us if the readers of this post would share their thoughts with us about this historic event.if you want to you can also tell us about how this subject is taught in schools and perceived among the general population in America.Thank you in advance! 😉
Hello 2.LHistory. It has been a while since I learned about this subject in class, but I can tell you the way I think of it in broad terms. The westward expansion was a natural result of the desire of the American people who started to prosper shortly after the birth of the nation. The west offered the potential for resources, land, and new opportunities. It was a land that was not completely understood, but the American spirit was such that the dangers out there could be overcome. There may have been some type of belief that westward expansion was a providential and natural result of the founding of the new nation.Those who went westward did so with much courage, the same type of courage which characterized the early colonists who came to America's shores in the 17th century. The west offered much, but it demanded much as well. Pioneers had to know that there was hardship ahead, but the extent of it may not have been clear to them. In any case, many suffered to move west and carve out their piece of the American dream. Many died. But in the end, they established their families and left what they had to their descendants.
I suggest you look up the term Manifest Destiny, which was the belief it was our God given right to expand our nation to the Pacific and as far north and south as possible. Also research President James Knox Polk, 1845-1849, and you will learn more about that concept.
