The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Manifest Destiny

I can see how the concept of manifest destiny is connected with The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Mankind's colonization of the moon in the novel can be seen as an extension of the American idea of manifest destiny. In the novel the entire world is populated so that just leaves the moon as the only great unexplored and uncolonized area. In this way it relates to the American West of the 1840s. However, there is one glaring difference between the moon and the American West. The moon in the novel is unowned by anyone, it is simply empty territory there for the taking. Although many Americans may of thought of the West in this way back in the 1840s, the reality was that that territory belonged to other nations and that it had to be purchased or taken by force. The other big difference of course is the manner by which people settled the West versus the way they settled the moon. The west was settled by choice. The people who moved out there chose to do so. No one forced them to go, instead they wanted to make a new start for themselves. Those who settled the moon in the novel took a completely different path to settlement. They were forced to move to the moon, and had absolutely no choice in the matter. In my mind this is a major distinction.

Yet in the end I still feel that the moon is an apt parrallel to the spirit of manifest destiny. In fact I think it still fits even in our own time. Even during the Cold War the moon represented the great unknown and there was the sense that it was America's destiny to make it to the there. (Sure the Cold War rivalry with the Soviets played a large role in our desire to go to the moon as well but I still think my point is valid) Thus, I can see how the two book we had to read for this theme relate and how the theme of Space as the Final Frontier ties in with the idea of Manifest Destiny.