Name: ______________________________________Date: ______________________
Chapters 10 and 11: American Imperialism and World War I
Reading and Study Guide
Directions:
Identify the key terms that appear in parentheses, as you answer each of the following questions.
Highlight or underline each term as it appears in your response. Record your answers on a separate sheet of loose leaf
paper. You may answer the questions in note form, paragraph form or as a graphic organizer.
Chapter 10 section 1: Imperialism and America
1. What were four reasons that the United States pursued an overseas empire? (Imperialism, Alfred T.
Mahan, raw materials, Social Darwinism)
2. How did the United States acquire Alaska? (William Seward)
3. Why did many Americans want to annex Hawaii? (Pearl Harbor)
4. How did Hawaii come under the control of the United States? (Queen Liliuokalani, Sanford B. Dole,
William McKinley)
Chapter 10 Section 2: Spanish-American War
1. Why did many Americans support Cuban independence from Spain?(Jose Marti, Valeriano Weyler)
2. What factors caused the outbreak of the Spanish-American War? (yellow Journalism, De Lome Letter,
U.S.S. Maine)
3. How was the war fought in in the Philippines and in Cuba? (George Dewey, Rough Riders, San Juan Hill)
4. What were the consequences of the Spanish-American War for Spain and the United States? (Treaty of
Paris)
Chapter 10 Section 3: Acquiring New Lands
1. What were the provisions of the Foraker Act and the Platt Amendment? (Foraker Act, Platt
Amendment, protectorate)
2. What were the causes and the effects of the Philippine-American War? (Emilio Aguinaldo)
3. How did the United States acquire trading rights in China? (John Hay, Open Door Notes, Boxer
Rebellion)
4. Why were many prominent Americans opposed to imperialism? (Anti-Imperialist League)
Chapter 10 Section 4: America As a World Power
1. What role did Theodore Roosevelt play in ending the Russo-Japanese War? (Treaty of Portsmouth)
2. What events led to the building of the Panama Canal? (Panama Canal)
3. What were the foreign policies of Theodore Roosevelt, Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson? (Roosevelt
Corollary, Dollar diplomacy, Missionary Diplomacy)
4. Why did the United States become involved in the Mexican Revolution? ( Francisco “Pancho” Villa,
Emiliano Zapata, John J. Pershing)
1.
2.
3.
4.
Chapter 11 Section 1: World War I Begins
What were the four underlying causes of World War I? (nationalism, imperialism, militarism, alliances)
What event sparked the outbreak of World War I? (Archduke Franz Ferdinand)
What was it like for soldiers fighting on the Western Front? (“no man’s land,” trench warfare)
Why did the United States declare war on the Central Powers? (Allies, Central Powers, Lusitania,
Russian Revolution, Zimmerman note)
Chapter 11 Section 2: American Power Tips the Balance
1. How did the United States mobilize for World War I? (Selective Service Act, u-boats, convoy system)
2. What new weapons did American soldiers face once they arrived in Europe? (American Expeditionary
Force, General John J. Pershing)
3. How did American forces help the Allies win the war? (Alvin York, conscientious objector)
4. How did World War I finally end and what was the final toll of the war? (armistice)
Chapter 11 Section 3 and 4: The War at Home and Wilson Fights for Peace
1. How did the United States mobilize the economy and sell the war to Americans? (War industries Board,
Bernard M. Baruch, Propaganda, George Creel)
2. What was the effect of the war on American society? (Espionage Act, Sedition Act, Great Migration)
3. What were the major objectives of Wilson’s peace plan, and why did the Allies reject it? (Fourteen
Points, League of Nations, Georges Clemenceau, David Lloyd George)
4. What were the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles? (Treaty of Versailles, reparations, war-guilt
clause)
5. How did Americans react to the treaty? (Henry Cabot Lodge)
Critical Thinking Questions: Use your textbook as well as primary source documents to create an outline to serve as a
response for each question. We will construct practice essay responses to several of the critical thinking questions during class.
1. What arguments made by interventionists and non-interventionists were most convincing?
Think about: imperialists, anti-imperialists, “ Seward’s Icebox,” Queen Liliuokalani, Spanish-American War, Philippine
Insurrection, Emilio Aguinaldo
2. What were the positive and negative consequences of American Imperialism for the United States and
for the territories acquired by the United States?
Think about: Pearl Harbor, Foraker Act, Platt Amendment, protectorate, Panama Canal, Open Door Notes, World War I
3. Why did the United States join the Allies instead of the Central Powers during World War I?
Think about: British Blockade, unlimited submarine warfare, u-boats, propaganda, Zimmerman note, Lusitania
4. What were the political, economic, and social effects of World War I at home and around the world?
Think about: 19th Amendment, great migration, rationing, Creel Committee, Alvin York, conscientious objectors, espionage
and sedition acts
5. Why did both the Allies, and Congress reject Woodrow Wilson’s plan for peace?
Think about: Fourteen Points, League of Nations, Big Four, War-guilt clause, reparations, Henry Cabot Lodge, Woodrow
Wilson
*See Tennessee Electronic Encyclopedia or “Raise the Children the Best You Can” A History of Tennessee Since 1870