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AlexisOswald
ProfessorBurrows
History112
24November2015
ThomasNast’sDepictionofBigStickDiplomacy
PoliticalCartoonist,ThomasNastcreatedananimationtitled,“TheBigStickinthe
CaribbeanSea,”publishedinTheGrangerCollection,in1904.ThisillustrationdepictsTheodore
RoosevelteffortlesslypullingalineofNavyshipsstrungtogetherencircledbyforeigncountries.
ThroughthisimageNastisconveyingRoosevelt’sforeignpolicyactionsaspresident.
Roosevelt’sgoalwastothemaketheUnitedStateanexampleforothercountriestofollow,he
didthisthroughhis“BigStickDiplomacy,”whichleadtotheRooseveltCorollary.These
initiativesenabledRoosevelttostrengthentheUnitedStates’diplomaticrelations.
RooseveltbecametheUnitedState’s26thandyoungestpresidentattheageof42in1901
upontheassassinationofMcKinley.HewasarepublicanduringtheProgressiveEra,and
initiallyvoicedhisprogressivebeliefsintheFirstAnnualMessagetoCongress,December1901,
declaringthegovernment’sresponsibilitytomaintainastableAmericansocietybymediating
conflictingforces.RooseveltwantedtotransformtheNavytoaninternationalforceatseain
ordertobringtheUnitedStatesfromastateofisolationismtoregaintheresponsibilityasa
worldpower.Thankstohischarisma,hewasgreatlyfavoredamongAmericans;thisallowed
himtoaccomplishaplethoraofgoalsspecificallythosetargetingforeignpolicy.
NastintentionallycenteredRoosevelt;insinuatingtheotherpieceofthepoliticalcartoon
revolvearoundhim.Additionally,histoweringsizealoneinproportiontootherobjectsportrays
Oswald2
thepowerandstrengthheembodiedaspresident.Rooseveltiswalkingconfidentlywithhis
shouldersbackanduprightshowingnofear.Heiscarryingabigstickandpistolholsteredinhis
beltdemonstratingnofearinutilizingmilitaryintervention.
Rooseveltwasaconfidentindividualwhoutilizedhispastoccupationalexperiencesto
shapedecisionmakinginlegislationwhileinoffice.PriortoRoosevelt’semploymentinthe
WhiteHouse,hewasPoliceChief,inNewYorkCity.AsPoliceChief,heorderedhomeless
individualstobebeatwithbaseballbatsduringthenight.Thiswasanattemptto“cleanup”New
YorkCity’sstreetscombatingthecompoundinggrowthofthehomelesspopulationinthestreets.
Thiswasthebaseforhispresidentialforeignpolicyof“BigStickDiplomacy.”Aplantoprotect
theUnitedState’sintereststhroughdiplomaticrelations,butshowingzerohesitationofmilitary