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Difficulty: Very hardImperialism and the Spanish-American War

"We have beaten Spain in a military conflict, but we are submitting to be conquered by her on the field of ideas and policies. Expansionism and imperialism are a golden tribute which we are paying to Spain. Why, it is Spain-ism, if I may say so, which we are importing into our own country. The Spanish nation is a nation of conquistadores; it is a nation that has lived by plunder and by taxation of subject peoples. We have risen against Spain to put an end to that system. And now, we are proposing to take up the very system which we have condemned."
— William Graham Sumner, Yale University professor, "The Conquest of the United States by Spain," 1899

Based on the excerpt, the ideas expressed by Sumner most directly challenge which of the following justifications for United States expansionism during the late nineteenth century?

  1. The claim that the acquisition of overseas territories was a benevolent mission to spread democratic values and self-government.Answer
  2. B
    The argument that the Monroe Doctrine required the annexation of Pacific territories like the Philippines to protect the Western Hemisphere from European colonization.
  3. C
    The belief that the United States had a moral obligation to conquer Spanish colonies to avenge the sinking of the Lusitania.
  4. D
    The position that the United States should adopt absolute isolationism by withdrawing from all trade and diplomatic agreements with Asian nations.

Answer

The claim that the acquisition of overseas territories was a benevolent mission to spread democratic values and self-government.
The correct answer is the claim that the acquisition of overseas territories was a benevolent mission to spread democratic values and self-government. Sumner's essay argues that by acquiring colonies, the United States was adopting the imperialist, anti-democratic methods of Spain. This directly refutes the expansionist argument that imperialism was a moral duty to civilize and bring democracy to foreign peoples.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus to determine William Graham Sumner's core argument.
Sumner argues that by engaging in imperialism and annexing colonies, the United States is adopting the oppressive 'Spain-ism' system of subjugation and taxation it fought against.
Understanding the author's point of view is essential to identifying what justification the argument challenges.
2
Evaluate the options to identify which justification for expansionism is directly countered by Sumner's argument.
The claim that imperialism is a benevolent mission to spread democratic values and self-government is directly challenged by Sumner's assertion that annexation is an oppressive system of conquest.
This aligns the author's critique with the target justification.
3
Examine and eliminate the distractors by identifying historical inaccuracies and misconceptions.
Eliminate the Monroe Doctrine option (wrong geographic scope/policy nature), the Lusitania option (wrong war/cause), and the isolationism option (misrepresents anti-imperialism as absolute isolationism).
Ensures that the other choices are historically incorrect or inappropriate context.

Key Concept

The ideological debates surrounding American imperialism at the turn of the twentieth century, specifically the conflict between expansionist claims of benevolence and anti-imperialist critiques of democratic hypocrisy.
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Topics

Imperialism and the Spanish-American War

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