week4, territorial expansion into the continental interior

for this weeks blog, i choose to look at the territorial expansion into the continental interior. i found this website which has information on the history of territoral exspansion and problems with boundaries, along with a map of americawhich shows different territorals and a chronological timeline of the exspansion of america. some fo the information on this website is very useful.

i hope you also find it helpful

Lucy

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award99/icuhtml/fawsp/sp1.html

Week 4 - Documents of the West into 'Ghost Riders'

Thanks to Lucy for an interesting site which can be of much use now and later in the module. Otherwise, we need to step up the intensity of this blog.
For week 4, I'd like you ALL to post material which follows up the theme of the opening weeks - territorial expansion into the continental interior, America's sense of its special destiny to occupy the entire continent, and the first displacements of the native peoples West. In particular, it would be useful to focus on two interrelated things - the idea of 'Manifest Destiny', and one of the most explicit political manifestations of that idea, the 'Monroe Doctrine'. So please post blogs and links that give historical detail on 'Manifest Destiny' and the 'Monroe Doctrine'. In particular, I would like you to follow up the following questions:
1. What was the 'Monroe Doctrine'?
2. To what was it a response?
3. How far did it determine the political policies of the USA in the century after it was first issued?
(It is beneficial for you to research these now, as for week 5's presentations, I will be asking you to choose a section of 'Ghost Riders' and relate it to a specific element of the documents of the West.)
For week 4's small group, please finish reading 'Ghost Riders'. In the group, after reviewing the documents of the West, we will look especially at Chapter 1 and Chapter 5. When reading, please keep these questions in mind:
In what ways does Richard Grant appear an "outsider" in his experiences of America, and how does that let him perceive issues and make criticisms of America that an insider could not?
In Chapter 1, what vision of the scale of the West and travel across it is given and how has it shaped character and personality?
In Chapter 5 how does Grant see the Western landscape as affecting himself, white Americans and Apaches?

Week 3, The Settlement of the West

For this weeks blog, i found this website about the settlement of the West. the start of the material begins with the part pf the topic which we have already covered, but is good to look at as a review of the topic. at the bottom of the page there is a link to another page containing information on the encountering of the first american west, which also has some useful information.
i hopwe you find this helpful

Lucy

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award99/icuhtml/fawsp/sp1.html

Week 2, The Great American Desert

for this weeks blog, i found this website which has a short description about the Great American West, as well as more indepth writings about it. there is a timeline which i found useful as it helped to clarify the exact dates of movement. there is also information on some of the topics which the reading for this week covered, which you may find useful. there is also the manifest destiny, which we will be looking at next week, which you may also find useful to look at.

i hope this website is useful for you all

Lucy

http://www.historyonthenet.com/American_West/great_american_desert.htm

Manifest Destiny

Click here for John L Sullivan's 1839 description of America's destiny."For this blessed mission to the nations of the world, which are shut out from the life-giving light of truth, has America been chosen; and her high example shall smite unto death the tyranny of kings, hierarchs, and oligarchs, and carry the glad tidings of peace and good will where myriads now endure an existence scarcely more enviable than that of beasts of the field. Who, then, can doubt that our country is destined to b the great nation of futurity?

Welcome to semester 2

How to manage your contributions to the Blogs!

1. Number of postings

You should make at least one post of your own and one comment on someone else’s post each week. The posting should be of a critically valuable item and should consist of the link and your views on it. The item might be a link to a web site, an image, museum, library, an article, a video. Your comment should also make a helpful and critically evaluative statement about someone else’s posting.

2. Kinds of postings

When you post something, you should make it clear to your reader why you have chosen the material. State how it links to the topic of the week. State what your reader should look for in the posting. Evaluate it - do you agree with the opinion or point of view given in the material you have posted? When you comment on another person’s post, you should offer a substantiated opinion – back up your comments with evidence.

3. Kinds of writing

Part of the task in the Blog is to sharpen your writing/debating skills. You must get used to reviewing and editing what you have written. Please check your spelling and punctuation. Don’t write in txt spk.

4. Length of postings

The Blog is not a message board. It’s for sharing your developing and researched ideas on the topics and issues on your module. Please don’t gossip, update us on your TV watching (unless its relevant and is critically evaluated) or the latest on Brangelina. Your messages should be between 25 – 50 words long.

5. Creating a narrative

Think of the Blog as developing over the semester. Go back and review the previous week before a new post. Add comments as to how and why your opinion has changed. The major aim of the Blog is to encourage you to become self-critically aware. You should be able to look back at the end of the semester and see how your views on ideas and debates developed. Go back and review semester one’s Blog - can you see such a development? If not, why not?

6. Marking the BLOG

We will use all of the above when we mark your contribution. You therefore need to check when you make each post, comment on other posting and review your narrative over the semester that you have followed these directions.