The Global Republic

November 15, 2014

Since this country's birth as a nation, Americans in general have believed that their homeland is exceptional and their way of life is unique and worthy of export. In its fullest expression, "Manifest Destiny" meant that the United States would reign supreme in foreign affairs as well in the Western hemisphere--peace, prosperity, and democracy would prevail. In his conceptual history of America's rise as a superpower, Ninkovich (professor emeritus, history, St. John's Univ.; Global Dawn) challenges this exceptionalist view. He asserts that America's climb as a world power was not driven from its conception by an abiding missionary quest. Rather, the author says it was an inadvertent consequence of responding and adapting to the pressures of fast-moving globalization in the 19th and 20th centuries in an effort to keep alive the American dream and way of life. Although the country responded like other leading governments, it revolutionized foreign policy by defining national security in global terms. VERDICT Ninkovich's interpretation explaining America's ascension to world dominance will intrigue readers of the history of American foreign policy.--Glen Edward Taul, Campbellsville Univ. Libs., KY

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