Miller makes clear the impact of wilderness on early American life. While the Old World mentality presented wilderness as mysterious and filled with demons, the new American nation viewed it differently. Rather than possessing a sense of fear, their belief in the divine mission to spread democracy and civilization inspired them to journey west. Accordingly, they did so with a sense of excitement and a thirst for discovery. As such, I wholeheartedly agree with Miller’s view that the early romantic images of the American landscape were expressions of a new cultural nationalism. According to Miller, these early countrymen viewed the new nation as “...a place apart, an unpeopled wilderness where history, born in nature rather than in corrupt institutions,
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It was completed in 1853, at the height of American expansion across the continent. This painting stands out as one of the most outright declarations in support of Manifest Destiny, an idea highly prominent until the Civil War. Firstly, it is no accident that this work is named “Progress”. The name was meant to describe the transformation of unconquered land into an American project of developing civilization. Accordingly, the painting shows a prominent contrast between the wilderness occupied by Indians in the foreground and the developing American settlement in the …show more content…
The Native American Indians were often the focus of this insulting artwork, as demonstrated through another painting called “Death of Jane McCrea”. This 1809 work depicts a clear indictment of Native Indian culture. The painting is based on events which occurred in 1777, at the height of the American Revolution. In it, two native men have kidnapped a white woman, and are restraining her. One of the men seems to be holding a hammer, and is about to execute the woman. His face expresses intense anger. The woman, depicted with great beauty, has eyes filled with fear in her final moments. Additionally, the use of darkness in the background of the image adds to the overall negative
It was completed in 1853, at the height of American expansion across the continent. This painting stands out as one of the most outright declarations in support of Manifest Destiny, an idea highly prominent until the Civil War. Firstly, it is no accident that this work is named “Progress”. The name was meant to describe the transformation of unconquered land into an American project of developing civilization. Accordingly, the painting shows a prominent contrast between the wilderness occupied by Indians in the foreground and the developing American settlement in the …show more content…
The Native American Indians were often the focus of this insulting artwork, as demonstrated through another painting called “Death of Jane McCrea”. This 1809 work depicts a clear indictment of Native Indian culture. The painting is based on events which occurred in 1777, at the height of the American Revolution. In it, two native men have kidnapped a white woman, and are restraining her. One of the men seems to be holding a hammer, and is about to execute the woman. His face expresses intense anger. The woman, depicted with great beauty, has eyes filled with fear in her final moments. Additionally, the use of darkness in the background of the image adds to the overall negative