Essay Assignment
Prompt
Thus far in our class we have read and discussed a wide variety of arguments for specific foreign policies beginning with the early Republic though the start of the Second World War. Doing so has allowed us to see how certain ideas, arguments, and themes have changed in response to new threats and opportunities. Although all of these arguments were made prior to the advent of modern game theory, they all nevertheless employ implicit or explicit strategic logic. Indeed, given our readings in the intellectual development of US foreign policy, it is clear that the earliest statesman of the United States understood the role of strategy and advocated for policies which they believed were in the best interests of America's strategic place in the world.
In this essay, you are to select 4 selections from previous readings and analyze their strategic logic. You can choose any selections that we have read thus from Ideas and American Foreign Policy. Possible questions to consider include (but are not limited to):
i. Do the early policy-makers advocate for positions which make strategic sense? Why or why not?
ii. Are there lessons from the early history of American foreign policy which can be applied today?
iii. Why do several others seem to point to the same principle but reach different conclusions? Is it because some misunderstood or were misrepresenting the principle, or because the application of the principle changed according to different fact-patterns in the changing landscape of international politics?
iv. Is America safer with a foreign policy of engagement with the world or with a turning away toward insular concerns?
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
i) The answer should be typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides.
ii) The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
iii) Also include a reference page. The Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.