The savage wars of peace: rhetorics of imperialism from the white man's burden to the war on terror

摘要

FROM THE INTRODUCTION:As the nineteenth century drew to a close, the United States was engaged in fierce debate over whether to engage in expansionist and unilateral military action employing massive military superiority for material gain in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Phillipines. Mark Twain, a member of the Anti-Imperialist League, rewrote the Battle Hymn of the Republic:Mine eyes have seen the orgy of the launching of the swordHe is searching out the hoardings where the stranger’s wealth is stored;He has loosed his fateful lightning, and with woe and death has scored;His lust is marching on. (Cited in Paterson et al, 1995, 20-24)Twain’s faction lost the argument. After the sinking of the USS Maine at Havana, Congress voted for war against Spain and the United States became, albeit not in name, an imperialist power. One of the leaders of the war party was Theodore Roosevelt who resigned his post as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in order to lead his Rough Riders into battle.