The Manifest Destiny

Introduction

There are some beliefs that exist among people of the same region. Manifest destiny was a common term in America in the 19th century. The term was coined in the United States Democratic Review by John N. O’Sullivan.  It was a belief among the Americans that The Unite States would expand across the whole continent. This was a belief that had some advantages but more disadvantages. It made people think that expansion into people’s territory was not wrong.

How it Divided the Nation

This term was mainly used by democrats back in 1840. They believed that expansion was a wise thing and that it was destined to happen. There was nothing that could be done to stop expansion. Most Americans did not believe in Manifest Destiny. Through the manifest theory, the democrats justified their war with Mexico. It eliminated any guilt within them, and that believed that expansion was a must (Jarnow 2005). The 11th president of America, Polk, had expansion plans. Manifest destiny was used to justify these intentions.

Therefore, this belief led to divisions in the nation. This division was mainly between the federal northerners and the southerners. For example, the southerners wanted the country to annex Texas. This would add another state to the congress. They wanted this so that they could have more representation in the congress (Stephanson 1996). On the other hand, the northerners claimed that they should also take Washington, Oregon and many more states. This led to division of people from the north and south. As time went by, Americans stopped believing in The Manifest theory. During the era of Jacksonian democracy, the Whig party denounced this theory. Therefore, after the mid nineteenth century, it was not used any more (Longyear 2002).

Conclusion

Therefore, there are many theories and beliefs that exist among people in the everyday life. Some of the theories are constructive. They bring the people of a nation together. However, some beliefs are divisive to a nation. The manifest theory is one such example.