Here is the synopsis of our sample research paper on Michael Latham/Modernization as Ideology. Have the paper e-mailed to you 24/7/365.
Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 4 page book review. Michael E. Latham, an associate professor of history at Fordham University, provides provocative insight into the manner in which theories of modernization were highly influential to American policymakers during the Kennedy Administration. The principal argument of Latham's text is that perspective on modernization traveled beyond their origins in academia to become an influential force in shaping both American foreign policy and how Americans perceived of themselves in terms of national identity. Examination of this text shows that Latham's argument is detailed, scholarly and sheds new light on the mechanisms behind the perpetuation of the Cold War. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
4 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khmlath.rtf
Buy This Term Paper »
Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
during the Kennedy Administration. The principal argument of Lathams text is that perspective on modernization traveled beyond their origins in academia to become an influential force in shaping both American
foreign policy and how Americans perceived of themselves in terms of national identity. Examination of this text shows that Lathams argument is detailed, scholarly and sheds new light on the
mechanisms behind the perpetuation of the Cold War. Lathams major points of argument can be broken down into three areas. First of all, Latham examines how a community of
social scientists worked to establish the "political relevance of the knowledge it produced" (Latham 5). As this suggests, he traces the rise of modernization theory within the realms of
American social science and how, in turn, they influenced Kennedy administrators. Latham points out that while American strategists did not believe that the Soviets would risk world destruction through direct
military confrontation, they did believe that the Kremlin was determined to "chip away" at the underdeveloped countries, which would serve to destroy Americas "international credibility, and steadily undermine" US goals
(Latham 2). This is an instructive area for fellow historians, as Latham shows how the ideas first proposed by Edward Shils and Talcott Parsons are altered and adapted
by scholars associated with the Kennedy Administration, such as Walt Rostow and Marion Levy. Latham shows how the heightened state of anxiety that existed in during the Kennedy era relative
to Soviet expansionism contributed to the appeal of constructing a modernization ideology. Secondly, he analyzes the relationship between social scientific theory and foreign policy through examination of several organizations,
such as the Peace Corp (Latham 6). Additionally, he looks specifically at the Alliance for Progress with Latin America and the strategic hamlet program in Vietnam. He argues that the
...