Assignment #14

ACIE American History - Cambridge International Examinations

Mr. Anthony Perno and Mr. Victor Wisniski – American Senior High School – 2009/2010 School Year

Syllabus Excerpt: VI The USA’s Rise as a World Power, 1890-1945

. . . acquisition of the Panama Canal. Roosevelt’s policies in the Western hemisphere. The policy of neutrality and the First World War, the failed peace efforts of Wilson, reasons for entry of the USA into the war. The contribution of the USA to victory. Wilson’s role in peacemaking, rejection of the Versailles settlement by the Senate. Return to partial isolationism. War debts and reparations.

Reading Assignment: America, Past and Present, Chapter #24, The Nation at War, pages 689-716

· Assignment: Using the above reading assignment, the student will prepare to answer the following essay questions. (One question will be chosen randomly the day of the exam.) The essay should encompass all pertinent syllabus topics.

· Essay Questions:

1. ‘To walk softly but carry a big stick.’ To what extent is this an accurate portrayal of Theodore Roosevelt’s conduct of foreign affairs, 1901-1909?

2. Why, in spite of President Wilson’s policy of neutrality, did America enter World War I in 1917?

3. How successful in foreign affairs was President Wilson?

4. Why is it that both Congress and the American people rejected the Versailles peace settlement negotiated by President Wilson?