Even at the time, people recognized that Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points were a break from the past (source). Wilson imagined a world in which countries would treat each other fairly, like colleagues.
But, as anyone who has seen The Godfather knows, even reasonable people sometimes want to kill each other.
Critics said his vision required people to be angels. Maybe, as a former university president, he had it in mind that world leaders would always act like Princeton professors. Unfortunately, dictators and imperialists don't always want to toss the football on the quad.
Questions About Visions of the World
- If you were trying to sell the League of Nations to someone, what arguments would you use?
- What, if anything, did Woodrow Wilson leave out of the Fourteen Points that would have made them stronger?
- The Fourteen Points suggest balancing the interests of colonial powers and their subjects. Do you agree or disagree with this idea? Why?
- Do powerful nations have an obligation to protect less powerful nations from invasion?
Chew on This
The Fourteen Points had a pretty specific vision of the world, but without much detail on how to achieve it.
Wilson's goal was to slow down or stop conquest and aggressive imperialism—at least as it related to Europe and the West.