Turners thesis an argumentative piece by Jackson Fredrick Turner is an 1893 piece that describes the American Frontier experience in conjunction with the detailed process by which frontier line is moved. An analysis of the thesis reveals the ideas that Turner was airing out about the American frontier. For instance, it explains four essential concepts like there was no frontier, the shape of the American institutions was shaped by the frontier, the West depicts the real point of view of Americas history, and lastly, it reveals that the Western frontier was a closed frontier.
Turner outlines that there was no frontier since the thesis statement that, in 1880, the country had a frontier of the settlement, but in the present situation the unsettled areas have been split by isolated bodies of settlement that fail to be termed as a frontier. Therefore, Turner uses this thesis to point out that American Frontier was just a conglomeration of the isolated settlements that show different characteristics. Turner also outlines that the individual frontiers offered a new field of opportunity which makes it acquire a distinct sense.
Turners outlines the importance of American frontier and ties it to the overall shaping of American institutions. It is stated the peculiarity of American institutions is the fact that they have been compelled to adapt themselves to the changes of an expanding people . . . And in developing at each area of this progress out of primitive economic and political conditions of the frontier into the complexity of city life. The American frontier thus helped America to adapt to the changes that made it possible for Americans to participate in practices that improve the Wests primitive political and economic development present conditions. Turner made his point clear by making a comparison of the Atlantic Coast development by outlining that the Atlantic Coast was fortunate since it involved limited areas.
The strengths in the frontier is that it was made it possible to promote composite nationality of America. Also, frontier led to a mixture of race in America since there was widespread immigration that involved Scottish-Irish and Germans. Frontier led to establishing a standard English in America, promoted nationalism, mobility, individualism, and democracy. Frontier helped in diversifying banking services that involved inflation of foreign currency and the development of the wildcat banking sectors.
The weakness of frontier is that it made Westward expansion to end hence causing American expansion movement to end. There was colonialization of the West just after frontier was closed thus led to a painful transition in America. Therefore, the thesis outlines that Western frontier was a closed frontier. Western frontier has impacted America until the current situations that have put restrictions on immigration due to increased wrangles in sharing of social amenities.
Bibliography
Turner, Frederick Jackson. "Statement of the Frontier Thesis." From The Significance of the Frontier in American History (1893): 74-84.
Turner, Frederick Jackson. "Statement of the Frontier Thesis." (1893): 60-68.
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