Truman Doctrine

Communism is an economic system rooted in the theories of Karl Marx, in which property and the means of production are communally owned. In the Truman Doctrine Speech, communism is only once directly mentioned, but communist, “totalitarian” regimes act as the ideological counterpart to the free democracies Truman insists America must support. Truman presents communism as forming from “human want and misery” (7), which is exploited by minority groups to enforce totalitarian regimes upon the majority.

Containment was a key strategy of American foreign policy during the Cold War. The idea was to prevent the spread of communism by containing its influence to areas where it already existed, stopping further expansion but avoiding open confrontation with already-existing communist systems. The Truman Doctrine speech presents the main method of containment as economic and financial aid to stabilize nations and ensure groups threatening the status quo did not gain large followings.

The Domino Theory was a central part of American foreign policy theory during the Cold War. It suggested that the spread of communism in one country could lead to its rapid spread in neighboring nations in a similar manner to falling dominos. The theory manifests in Truman’s speech through his warnings that Europe and the Middle East would be endangered if America failed to save either Greece or Turkey.

In his speech, Truman frequently uses the term “Free Peoples” to describe nations that uphold democratic principles. This phrase is used to emphasize the morality of the American cause while creating a common identity among those resisting communism. Truman positions the United States as the only possible leader of the free peoples of the world, reinforcing his claim that it is America’s duty to provide aid to democracies.

Isolationism was a foreign policy strategy influential in the United States until the Second World War that advocated for the avoidance of entanglements in wars unrelated to the territorial defense of the United States. Following the Second World War, isolationism remained popular among Republicans, who had won control of Congress in the 1946 mid-term elections. The Truman Doctrine’s focus on foreign intervention ran counter to this view, so to enact it Truman was required to contend with a long-standing tradition of American politics.