Cold War

Sean O’Donnell

History 339

Exam 1

Autumn 2014

Saying the Cold War began in pre Bolshevik times in fact is comical; however, in theory it is most definitely plausible. There are many factors of the Cold War that have roots dating back into the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Theoretically, when you discuss anything in history you can find a series of cause and effect that leads to a culmination of issues. The Cold War could most definitely be dissected this way. Furthermore, it may not be that outlandish to say, especially in class discussing diplomatic history, that the Cold War has roots that pre-date the end of World War II.

By carefully reading back through history even a novice historian can recognize the ongoing competition for supremacy between the powerful nations of the world. The Cold War was a complex culmination of these struggles between the United States and the former Soviet Union. The common interpretation of this conflict led people to believe that the conflict was cut and dry. Communism vs. Capitalism, but a scholar would argue that there was much more being fought over. In my opinion there were multiple events that support my conclusion.

In my opinion the roots of the Cold War began in the time of imperial conquest of lesser nations by the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union. By colonizing 2nd and 3rd world countries the power nation like the United States and the Soviet Union were attempting to make their worldwide influence more prevalent than their competitors. In Hixson’s Culture, National Identity and the Myth of America, he says “colonialism and imperialism thus flowed from the aggressive expansion of Western European world view that apotheosized its way of life as ordered, reasoned, and providentially sanctioned. I interpret that statement very literally. Hixon believed that the ultimate goal of imperialism was to make other countries act and think the way that westerners wanted them too. This approach to...