Distinctive Or Exceptional

American exceptionalism is a ubiquitous theme of US politics from local to national arenas with deep cultural roots. The idea of American exceptionalism suggests America’s uniqueness of its origin, history, political system, social organization and cultural characteristics. It also implies moral and institutional superiority and a special sense of mission to spread its unique gifts to the rest of the world. As the core of the self-image and self-identification of Americans, American exceptionalism is a recurring motif in American history, and has been constantly cited by politicians to justify and legitimize domestic and foreign policies. But this thesis focuses more on the critique of American exceptionalism. While there have been distinctive and original elements in American history and society, its uniqueness or "exceptionalism" has been systematically and dangerously exaggerated. American exceptionalism exists more on a mythical level.than on a realistic basis. America is not as exceptional as Americans would like to think. It is a complacent expression of nationalism which has been caused by blindness of its history and which may result in a disastrous tendency for America to alienate itself from the rest of the global community.Chapter One focuses on the origin of American exceptionalism in Protestantism. It expounds how the idea of moral superiority and sense of mission was molded in the experience of the New England colony, and argues that the religious exceptionalism has been greatly exaggerated. Chapter Two discusses Republicanism as a new dimension of American exceptionalism in the early periods of the nation. It tries to illustrate how the ideal of ’exceptional’ equality and freedom faded against the reality of that era. Chapter Three examines the Manifest Destiny and Turner’s frontier thesis, and endeavors to illustrate that the westward expansion in American history is not unique and that the westward movement failed to bring democracy to the new territories as the Manifest Destiny ordained. The dramatic process of globalization, industrialization and urbanization was transforming America as well as the world. The egalitarian, democratic American society envisioned by Turner’s thesis was highly questionable. Chapter Four focuses on one of the manifestations of American exceptionalism------the weak working-class radicalism------and tries to argue that the conditions of American workers were not as superior to that of their European counterparts as generally held. Moreover, variants of socialism did exist in America------take the New Deal for example. The conclusion part analyzes the value and significance of American exceptionalism in the context of American politics today. American exceptionalism is still a central issue during Obama Administration, and its momentum will not diminish in the foreseeable future.