Synthesized answer
Harding's statement about having "dwelt amid menaces of war or as participants in war's actualities" for ten years [implied by the context of the 1922 address referencing the end of the World War four years prior] likely influences his priorities by emphasizing the need for stability both domestically and internationally. The passages suggest that "heroic remedies" are needed for "menacing conditions" and that "disordered conditions are so well-nigh universal" that permanent readjustments require consideration of global affairs in finance and trade [Passage 1, Passage 2]. This suggests that international stability is a prerequisite for domestic progress.
The recent history of war shapes the tone of his message of peace by highlighting the desire for normalcy and the avoidance of future conflict. Harding notes that the world is "passing through of a great crisis" and that the "conduct of war itself is not more difficult than the solution of the problems which necessarily follow" [Passage 3]. He also mentions the ongoing International Conference on the limitation of armament, a "naval holiday," and the settlement of disputes, indicating a focus on preventing future wars and…
Synthesized from the book passages below. Chat with the book on Feynman for follow-up.
From the book
he heroic remedies for the menacing conditions under which they are struggling, then we can help, and we mean to help. We shall do so unselfishly because there is compensation in the consciousness of assisting, selfishly because the commerce and international exchanges in trade, which marked our high tide of fortunate advancement, are possible only when the nations of all continents are restored to stable order and normal relationship. In the main the contribution of this Republic to restored normalcy in the world must come through the initiative of the executive branch of…
ent which adequately can not be appraised except by, those who are in immediate contact and know the responsibilities. Our tasks would be less difficult if we had only ourselves to consider, but so much of the world was involved, the disordered conditions are so well-nigh universal, even among nations not engaged in actual warfare, that no permanent readjustments can be effected without consideration of our inescapable relationship to world affairs in finance and trade. Indeed, we should be unworthy of our best traditions if we were unmindful of social, moral, and political…
f the old order came the war itself, and the new order, established and made secure, never will permit its recurrence. It is no figure of speech to say we have come to the test of Our civilization. The world has been passing--is today passing through of a great crisis. The conduct of war itself is not more difficult than the solution of the problems which necessarily follow. I am not speaking at this moment of the problem in its wider aspect of world rehabilitation or of international relationships. The reference is to our own social, financial, and economic problems at home. These…
tries, manufacturing, agricultural, and carrying, until we are discouraging the very activities which make our wealth. Agreeable to your expressed desire and in complete accord with the purposes of the executive branch of the Government, there is in Washington, as you happily know, an International Conference now most earnestly at work on plans for the limitation of armament, a naval holiday, and the just settlement of problems which might develop into causes of international disagreement. It is easy to believe a world-hope is centered on this Capital City. A most gratifying…
ee from every threatening cloud, but we have contributed our larger influence toward making armed conflict less likely. Those who assume that we played our part in the World War and later took ourselves aloof and apart, unmindful of world obligations, give scant credit to the helpful part we assume in international relationships. Whether all nations signatory ratify all the treaties growing out of the Washington Conference on Limitation of Armament or some withhold approval, the underlying policy of limiting naval armament has the sanction of the larger naval powers, and naval…
More questions about this book
- Harding states, "It is not my purpose to bring to you a program of world restoration," yet he immediately emphasizes "our inescapable relationship to world affairs." How would you explain this seemingly contradictory stance to someone unfamiliar with post-World War I American foreign policy, highlighting the subtle balance Harding is trying to strike?
- Harding frames American assistance as both "unselfish" (consciousness of assisting) and "selfish" (restoring commerce and trade). How would you differentiate these two motivations and explain how both could simultaneously drive US policy in the pursuit of "restored normalcy"?
- The address touches upon "excessive grants of authority and all extraordinary concentration of powers in the Chief Executive" during wartime. How does Harding's call for Congressional "sanction and cooperation" reflect a post-war effort to re-establish the balance of power within the government, and what does this suggest about the challenges of transitioning from war to peace?
- Harding frequently uses the phrase "restored normalcy." Based on his descriptions of "disordered conditions," what specific elements do you think constitute Harding's vision of "normalcy" for both the United States and the wider world in 1921?