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- Created by: cesca.sharp
- Created on: 04-09-19 14:30
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- Revisionist historians
- Revisionist historians attribute greater responsibility for the Cold War to the United States.
- According to Revisionists, US policy after World War II was neither passive nor benign.
- It was driven more by economic considerations and national self-interest than the principles of democracy and self-determination.
- According to Revisionists, US policy after World War II was neither passive nor benign.
- American policymakers pushed to contain Soviet communism in Europe for selfish reasons: they wanted a European continent populated with capitalist nations open to trade and American exports.
- Policies such as lend-lease, post-war loans and the Marshall Plan all worked toward this objective.
- Some Revisionist historians also point to America’s “atomic diplomacy” in 1945.
- Gar Alperovitz, for example, argues that Truman used nuclear weapons against Japan, not for military reasons but to flex America’s diplomatic muscle when negotiating with Stalin.
- Justifiably or not, the Soviet Union felt threatened by America’s policies and diplomatic approaches of the mid to late 1940s, which contributed to the collapse of their alliance and a lost opportunity for post-war conciliation.
- Gar Alperovitz, for example, argues that Truman used nuclear weapons against Japan, not for military reasons but to flex America’s diplomatic muscle when negotiating with Stalin.
- William Appleman Williams‘ The Tragedy of American Diplomacy, published in 1959.
- In this thorough but controversial book, Williams concluded that since the 1890s, the overriding function of US foreign policy has been to secure foreign markets for American-made goods and services.
- He calls this the ‘Open Door policy’ because it seeks to open up other nations for American capitalists by removing tariffs and other trade barriers.
- Williams’ analysis shattered two popular illusions: first, that the United States was an isolationist, anti-imperialist neutral power, and second, that US foreign policy during the Cold War was reactive, peace-seeking and not agenda-driven.
- He calls this the ‘Open Door policy’ because it seeks to open up other nations for American capitalists by removing tariffs and other trade barriers.
- In this thorough but controversial book, Williams concluded that since the 1890s, the overriding function of US foreign policy has been to secure foreign markets for American-made goods and services.
- Revisionist perspectives gained traction and popularity in the United States during the 1960s, a period when the failures of Vietnam led many to question America’s foreign policy.
- Aside from Williams and Alperovitz, other notable historians of the Revisionist school include Denna Fleming, Christopher Lasch, Walter LaFeber and Lloyd Gardner.
- During the 1960s and 1970s, these historians were often referred to as the ‘New Left’, though this label oversimplified their perspectives.
- Aside from Williams and Alperovitz, other notable historians of the Revisionist school include Denna Fleming, Christopher Lasch, Walter LaFeber and Lloyd Gardner.
- Revisionist historians attribute greater responsibility for the Cold War to the United States.
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