Explain the change in American foreign policy since the Civil War.

Instructions: You must respond to two of the three following prompts. You can choose which two you want to answer. Your responses should be three to five paragraphs in length and include a thesis statement. Be sure to use specific examples and information from this semester’s lectures and assigned readings. The use of outside sources is not prohibited but will not result in a higher grade.

1. We’ve talked a lot about the evolution of American foreign policy in this class. Explain the change in American foreign policy since the Civil War. Do you think American foreign policy has successfully adapted to the changing world? To receive full credit for this response, you will need to at minimum discuss the Monroe Doctrine, the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, isolationism, the Marshall Plan and the Truman Doctrine, the Nixon Doctrine, and Ronald Reagan’s approach to foreign policy. Your response should be three to five paragraphs in length.
2. While the United States was a traditionally isolationist nation, it has repeatedly been sucked into long, costly, limited wars overseas in the 20th Century. The three most famous limited wars in American history are the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the War in Afghanistan. How should we remember each of these wars? In your response, be sure to give a brief history of each conflict. It is okay to suggest that we should remember each of the wars completely differently or as examples of the same thing. Your response should be three to five paragraphs in length.
3. The Cold War might be the most important aspect of American history in the 20th century (with the possible exception of the Civil Rights Movement and Women’s Movements). Different presidents approached the Cold War very differently. In a three to five paragraph essay, discuss some of the different ways American presidents engaged with the realities of the Cold War. To receive full credit, you must discuss at minimum Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Reagan.

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