p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.

0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px ‘Times New Roman’; color: #000000; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); -webkit-text-stroke: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.

87); background-color: #ffffff}p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.

0px; font: 12.0px ‘Times New Roman’; color: #000000; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.87); -webkit-text-stroke: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.

87); background-color: #ffffff; min-height: 15.0px}span.s1 {font-kerning: none} Manifest destiny, the belief or doctrine, held chiefly in the middle and latter parts of the19th century, that it was the destiny of the U.S. to expand its territory over the whole of North America and to extend and enhances political, social, and econ-mic influences.

((Dictionary.com, 2018)).  The westward expansion was the attempt to achieve the above goal of making the land and resources of the West available to the white settlers . The painting above depicts the American expansion as a thing of beauty and success that would go on to form American character and values.

The variation and the dramatic use of light is evident in this painting. The right edge of the painting is bright, while as the painting moves from right to left it turns darker, forming the base to depict the West and the East’s differences. This belief comes from the artist’s perspective and also  from the mindset of majority of Americans.

  In the middle, there’s a lady that  appears to be moving westward and brightening her way in to the West like an angel bringing the light into the dark. In a way it represents the western ideals as a light that guided these people through unexplored terrain, and carried their idea of civilization to a primitive wilderness. This painting draws our attention to wagons, Stagecoaches, trains, and horses as mean of transportation. They are all moving in the westward direction, portraying the technological advancement that the Americans brought to the West. The main argument painted is the belief in the minds of  Americans that it was their sole responsibility and duty to make their way to drive west and driving American Indians out, all the while attempting to civilize them. These actions would make America what it is now, a “clean” America.

With the development of transcontinental railroads, western agricultural products such as coal and minerals, resources could be moved freely and may have been the major reason of East and West uniting, keeping innovation, and advancement in the mind. This painting is a prime example of American’s emotions about Indians, at that time and their belief that the Westward Expansion was correlated with positive national characteristics. Things such as equality and freedom were an important result, but the negative aspects, the violence and destruction, are often neglected.