How does the theme you chose show the dramatic transformation of the United States and how Americans view their country?

Over the course of this semester, you have learned about the last 150 years of American historical development, and explored events, transformations and debates that have shaped how Americans view their country and what it stands for. For your final essay, reflect on the United States’ development by choosing one of the following themes and tracing its evolution from the 1870s through the early 2000s:

Themes:

 – Role of Government in Society

– Citizenship and Civil Rights

– U.S. Foreign Policy and International Role

How does the theme you chose show the dramatic transformation of the United States and how Americans view their country? How would you characterize that transformation? Throughout your essay, please be sure to clearly outline change over time, address major historical turning points, and reference relevant debates among Americans related to your topic. This essay is cumulative and requires you to use your chosen theme to reflect on the whole time period covered in this class (1870s-early 2000s) – so you should use information and examples from the beginning, middle and end of the course. Students who only focus on one time period/part of the course will not earn full credit for the essay.

Finally, this essay should be five substantial paragraphs long, and you may use any material available to you from the course, focusing on the lectures and the textbook. Do not use outside material, and please cite any quotes/specific information you use! General information learned in the course does not have to be cited.