Chapter 21: An Emerging World Power 1877-1914
Extended Response Questions
Instructions: On a separate sheet of paper answer the following
questions in an extended response format. Answers must be handwritten.
1. Examine the economic and ideological roots of American expansionism. Was
Frederick Jackson Turner correct in linking the closing of the frontier in 1890
to subsequent expansion overseas?
2. Describe the sequence of events that led to the Spanish-American War and
the negotiations that concluded it.
3. Summarize the most important interventions of the United States in the
Caribbean and Mexico during the presidencies of Theodore Roosevelt, Taft,
and Wilson. How did each president justify his actions?
4. What was Alfred T. Mahan's thesis concerning national power? How did the
Congress and President Roosevelt respond to Mahan's book?
5. Why did Americans have an interest in annexing Hawaii? How did the
Cleveland administration handle the annexation issue?
6. What is meant by "yellow journalism?" How was it spurred by the SpanishAmerican War? What was its legacy?
7. List the provisions of the Teller Amendment. Why was it added to the bill
declaring war on Spain?
8. What was the role of the Anti-Imperialist League in the public debate over the
acquisition of the Philippines? Why did the annexation of the islands
prevail?
9. What were the principles of John Hay's Open Door Policy? How was it
calculated to provide maximum commercial and diplomatic advantage at a
minimum cost? What did the costs turn out to be in the end?