During the mid to late 1800s, the United States felt two waves of expansion, Manifest Destiny and Imperialism. Manifest Destiny, as a definition, stands for the westward expansion to reach the Pacific coast during the mid-1800s; Imperialism stood for the external expansion into locations beyond the North American continent. During the years of Manifest Destiny, with government support, the United States expanded and went on to add eighteen states through advances such as the Louisiana Purchase, the Mexican War, and multiple treaties and deals with foreign governments. Such expansions towards the Pacific Coast brought the United States great resources and a large portion of land, propelling the country into an industrial age of progress and prosperity. Later in the century, Imperialism began and sought to expand the United States beyond …show more content…
These were significant controversies because insular cases were held up on purpose and not solved because the United States simply denied the territories any chance of achieving statehood, even to the modern day. Moreover, the fact that the United States became similar to an empire risked democracy as it stood because the country began mimicking the Great British Empire with its territories, acting as a hypocritical point to the values of the U.S. All in all, each expansionist movement had its points of uniqueness; however, the greater point is that Manifest Destiny and Imperialism shared the value of the morality of expansion and the lash back from the conquered people, contributing to the controversies over each movement. In conclusion, Manifest Destiny and Imperialism were far more similar than different; sharing many of their points of motivation and controversies, their efforts were far more identical despite their results. Even though both expanded the country, they differed in external and internal