This painting, entitled 'Westward the Course of Empire Takes
Its Way' by Emanuel Leutze in 1861 seems to represent what many view as
'manifest destiny'. Displayed in the United States Capitol Building in
Washington D.C., this painting clearly idealises the westward expansion in America
during the 19th century. It shows a large group of men, women, children, wagons
and horses leading the way to what appears to be a 'Promise Land', thus giving
the impression that the journey they are making is an ordained pilgrimage to
the western frontier.
The mountains and valley seen to the right of the painting
represents the troubles these voyagers have been through and what they intend
to leave behind by heading to the much brighter and opportunistic west. The
left hand side of the painting emphasises this idea by showing the sun rising
and therefore enforcing the idea of a new dawn and new beginnings. It reveals
the entrance to the San Francisco Bay or Golden Gate which is being pointed to
by the pilgrim on top of the foremost rock. The swarming crowd of travellers
and the figures on the edges of the painting (such as Moses) represents how
they are ready to 'fulfill what many nineteenth-century Americans believed
was God's plan for the nation.'
Interestingly, the
title of the painting, from a 1726 poem by Bishop Berkeley, was a phrase often quoted
in the era of 'manifest destiny', revealing a widely held belief that progress
from east to west is something that has happened throughout all of history.
(Verses on the
Prospect of Planting Arts and Learning in America:
Westward the
course of empire takes its way;
The first four Acts already past,
A fifth shall close the Drama with the day;
Time's noblest offspring is the last.)
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westward_the_Course_of_Empire_Takes_Its_Way
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