Debunking the Myth of American Exceptionalism: A Comparative Analysis of Historical and Geographical Approaches

Abstract

Comparison of Key Lessons from Geographical Approach and the Historical Approach. Historical and geographical approaches provide a framework for different perspectives. History uses time and chronology to denote human experience's temporal dimension on matters entailing Geography, Economical, Political, Intellectual, and Environmental History. At the same time, the geographical approach explains human expertise based on spatial dimensions, including aspects like space, place and region, physical, human, and the environment. History and geography are both sciences devoted to preserving and recording past and present information and occurrences. Historians collect relevant and factual information from the past to harness the truth about something. Historical writings have always been based on the issues of war, conflicts, conquests, and political figures. These issues have defined history, pushing various narrations about their implications. History upholds that the United States is a nation that other countries admire and emulate. The United States is deemed a country of liberty and democracy, but its history is conflicting. The historical appraisal of the US began in 1630 when Governor John Winthrop branded the US a city upon a hill. The history compilation of the United States is overwhelming, yet today the country is seen as the center of excellence and a benchmark of various democracies worldwide. The atrocities performed by the US amid the expansion of territories and quest for supremacy are massive. The history that the United States is a divine country has been used as a weapon of manipulation and dominance. History has seen American presidents invoke God in their manifestations during the war. Divine ordination has purportedly been used as a weapon to destroy its opponents. George Bush confirmed this analogy, alluding that God implanted his conquest of Al Qaeda, and his take on the Middle East and Saddam were God's ideals. American exceptionalism and the idea of the divine ordinance are historical, but the yieldings are fatal since they do not conform to the ideals of humanity. The United States has used these concepts to expand its global dominance. Historical beliefs have made the United States penetrate various democracies such as the Middle East and establish its military bases in countries such as Japan and Korea. History has prompted the US to...