Manifest Destiny - Image Analysis

Source: American Progress, 1872. ​By John Gast

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Columbia, the female figure of America, leads Americans into the West and into the future. What does that future look like according to Gast?

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​Objective: What does this source tell us about American ideas about Manifest Destiny?

Multiple Choice

Review: The 19th century belief that white Americans were chosen by God to take over all of North America.

• Republicanism

• Territorial Fate

• Federalism

• Manifest Destiny

Open Ended

Make two observations about the right side of the painting. What do you see? What colors? How is the weather? What stands out as important?

Open Ended

Make two observations about the center of the painting. What do you see? What is she carrying? Who is she leading? What stands out as important?

Open Ended

Make two observations about the left side of the painting. What do you see? What colors? How is the weather? What stands out as important?

​School book -

​Telegraph wires -

​Toga -

​Light sky -

​Dark sky -

​Buffalo -

​Oxen -

​Railroads -

​Symbols

Multiple Choice

What does the following symbol represent?

Railroad

• Education

• Transportation

• Communication

• Religion

Multiple Choice

What does the following symbol represent?

Buffalo

• Native American Ways of Life

• White Agricultural Practice

• Christian Religion

• Advances in Communication

Multiple Choice

What does the following symbol represent?

Telegraph Wires

• Education

• Transportation

• Communication

• Religion

Multiple Choice

What does the following symbol represent?

School Book

• Education

• Transportation

• Communication

• Religion

Open Ended

Exit Ticket: What does the painting American Progress reveal about U.S. Manifest Destiny? Use at least two symbols from the painting to support your response.