Blog #32: Wilson's 14 Points of Peace

Wilson opens his 14 points by stating that the world should no longer keep secrets from each other, but rather be open to achieve peace. He mentions that the United States entered the Great War to create a world fit to live in, and that the war must immediately be ended. He goes on to list the only ways he believes that peace can be achieved- his 14 points.

I believe that Wilson's 14 Points are somewhat idealistic. For example, his second point mentions that the sea should be free for navigation by all nations in both peace and war. This is not realistic, because during times of war, rules are often bent, and certain forces can take control of parts of the sea or prevent others from going certain places in order to defend themselves. Another example is when Wilson sums up every point by stating that the nations cannot be "separated in interest or divided in purpose." This is not realistic considering that people have varying opinions and often do not agree on how to do certain things.

Point #14 calls for "a general association of nations" that would be useful to form agreements about political independence as well as territorial rights for states. This was later called the League of Nations.

Within the Treaty of Versailles, some of Wilson's 14 Points can be found. Although the Treaty is harsher on the Germans than the 14 Points, there are still many similarities between the two. One of these similarities is the requirement for Germany to give back the territory it had taken, which is also listed in point #8. Another similarity is that Germany was required to join the League of Nations once it proved its peace. This is similar to point #14, which called for an international committee made up of nations that would maintain peace. Finally, point #13 (free sea navigation for Poland) is found in the Treaty of Versailles, because a Polish corridor was built so that Poland could have access to the sea.

This political cartoon represents Wilson's 14 Points.  Many people saw them as the only way to peace.

Wilson's 14 Points remind me of Benjamin Franklin's 13 virtues, because just as Wilson believed his points were the way to peace in the world, Franklin believed his virtues were the way to peace in personal life.