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American Origins
Navy captain Alfred Thayer Mahan's recognition that Americans "must now begin to look outward" to foreign lands reflected not only new dimensions of foreign policy in the late nineteenth century but also new cultural opportunities. As increasing numbers of Americans traveled abroad, expatriate author Henry James found himself "tempted to ask if the hotel-spirit may not just be the American spirit most seeking and most finding itself." The United States' increasingly global vision extended well beyond Europe as the Far East and other lands became increasingly accessible, opening new markets and raising new political concerns. The closing decades of the nineteenth century brought unprecedented opportunities and challenges for those born in the United States and for the hundreds of thousands of immigrants who arrived here. Gathered together in this room are individuals who both affected and reflected upon these sweeping transformations. |