Exercise: John L. O'Sullivan's original editorial on “manifest destiny”

Instructions: Navigate your browser to “The Great Nation of Futurity,” the 1839 editorial from the United States Democratic Review written by O'Sullivan. Read the article, then answer the following questions.

Visit URL: http://cdl.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/moa/moa-cgi?notisid=AGD1642-0006-46

Question 1:  What does O'Sullivan argue that the United States' destiny is, specifically? What reasoning does he use to arrive at these conclusions?

Question 2:  What roles do history and historical precedent play in the destiny of the United States, according to O'Sullivan? How important is past history to America, in his view?

Question 3:  According to O'Sullivan, how should the U.S. perceive the example of foreign nations, past or present? Why does O'Sullivan make this argument? What does it say about his ideas of American identity?

Question 4:  What is “the distinguishing characteristic” of the U.S., according to O'Sullivan? How does that justify American expansion?

Question 5:  Does O'Sullivan's descriptions of the United States, its ideals, and its actions accord with what you know about this period from your reading and class discussions? What differences, if any, exist between O'Sullivan's ideal and the historical reality?