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The Uncommon Commoner: William Jennings Bryan and his Opposition to American Imperialism in The Commoner

Basista, Dante J.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1566913229449622

Abstract Details

2019, Master of Arts in History, Youngstown State University, Department of Humanities.
This is a study of the correspondence and published writings of three-time Democratic Presidential nominee William Jennings Bryan in relation to his role in the anti-imperialist movement that opposed the US acquisition of the Philippines, Guam and Puerto Rico following the Spanish-American War. Historians have disagreed over whether Bryan was genuine in his opposition to an American empire in the 1900 presidential election and have overlooked the period following the election in which Bryan’s editorials opposing imperialism were a major part of his weekly newspaper, The Commoner. The argument is made that Bryan was authentic in his opposition to imperialism in the 1900 presidential election, as proven by his attention to the issue in the two years following his election loss. Following Bryan's loss to William McKinley in the presidential race of 1900, the anti- imperialist cause which dominated his campaign seemed lost and his position in the movement was questioned. Despite this “low ebb,” as historians have termed it, in his political career, Bryan’s anti-imperialist articles in The Commoner remained central to the movement’s rhetoric and his correspondence suggests that he continued to receive support for his stance on imperialism. Analysis of Bryan’s thoughts on imperialism during this period illuminate his commitment to the issue and further provide evidence of a sizable minority of the American who supported Bryan’s views.
David Simonelli, PhD (Advisor)
Martha Pallante, PhD (Committee Member)
Donna DeBlasio, PhD (Committee Member)
118 p.
American History; American Studies; Asian Studies
anti-imperialism; American Empire; Yellow Journalism; William Jennings Brian

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Basista, D. J. (2019). The Uncommon Commoner: William Jennings Bryan and his Opposition to American Imperialism in The Commoner [Master's thesis, Youngstown State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1566913229449622

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Basista, Dante. The Uncommon Commoner: William Jennings Bryan and his Opposition to American Imperialism in The Commoner. 2019. Youngstown State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1566913229449622.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Basista, Dante. "The Uncommon Commoner: William Jennings Bryan and his Opposition to American Imperialism in The Commoner." Master's thesis, Youngstown State University, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ysu1566913229449622

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ysu1566913229449622
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© 2019, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Youngstown State University and OhioLINK.