What Is America? Essay, Research Paper

John Smith and Jonathan Edwards were two well-respected leaders in the colonial times, but they had very different beliefs. John Smith believed that the colonies were a great place for a man to make something of himself. Jonathan Edwards on the other hand believed that the colonies were just another place for man to sin. John Smith also believed that mankind was good and with work any man could become well off in the colonies. Edwards believed that man should work hard because god could judge them at any time. Along with there obvious differences they also had some great similarities. Smith and Edwards believed that men should work hard for what they believe. They also believed that men need faith in god to survive in the colonies. These two men helped to create what is now the modern day United States. They each helped to create this nation on what they believed an American should be. But what should an American be? Is there any specific form an American should take on? Americans should be a combination of all the ideas and beliefs of all the original leaders of this country. Just like the nation is made up of many different races religions and opinions.

Crevecoeur said in his letter Those who live near the sea feed on fish more than flesh Now with importation people who live on the coast don t feed more on fish. In America the economy is strong and we import and export things between states getting the best foods from each area. Crevecour also said Exclusive of those general characteristics, each province has its own, founded on the government, climate, mode of husbandry, customs, and peculiarity of circumstances. Saying that each colony is extremely different in almost everything. Now the states are all similar in many ways but still equally different. The states all share many characteristics as opposed to early colonies.

Crevecoeur said that America was a melting pot and all people who settled in America became Americans over time. In our times everyone is so eager to have a heritage and culture that they don t call him or her selves Americans. Everyone is Chinese or Italian or Mexican or some other ethnic background. People now take for granite what many people gave there lives for so long ago. He is an American, who, leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new one from the new mod of life he embraces. It would be nice for this to occur like it did in the past. For everyone to live as Americans and together as a whole not segregated. But instead we live as Mexicans or Blacks or other races, which really means nothing to those people, but they all wish to be associated with that.

Crevecoeur said that Americans should love America more than the land that their ancestors are from. He shows his belief in this statement by writing about all the things the colonist should change to make the colonies a better place. If all people in America were to do this everything in America would be and there would be less racism. Now people hate America but don t know how good they have it here. You don t know what you have until it is gone and nobody in America will ever see how great of a country this is until they don t have it anymore. Those strong differences will grow more evident over time. The colonist differences seem small at the time but as the colonies grew and be came a country the differences became more and more obvious. The differences now are so obvious it s scary and yet nobody wants to fix them.

John Smith. Jonathan Edwards, and Hector St. John de Crevecoeur all had their opinions on America and what it is, can, and should be. If they were alive their opinions might be different. John Smith would be very happy with the out come of the colonies and how great of a nation they are now. He would be proud that he was one of the first colonists. Jonathan Edwards would hate modern America. He would hate all of the sinning taking place. He would also be able to prove how unworthy man is for the kingdom of god. His ability to make people fear god would not work in modern America making him probably hate it more and he would think that it was a waste of a perfectly good chances to build a large church just around his religion. Crevecoeur would be happy to see that some of his opinions came true, like the differences between Americans. He would be disappointed that nobody calls them selves Americans and that everyone wants to love their so called homeland more than their land they were born on. In my opinion America is a great nation that is truly unappreciated. Americans are people who are spoiled and don t know what they truly have and may never know. The Americans have the most right and are aloud to speak their opinions but people take that for granite. So what is America? America is the Americans and there actions. Americans are the beliefs they have and how they act on their beliefs. We make America what it is and if we do things like Crevecoeur and smith though we could make America the great nation that it really is.