The Monroe Doctrine, James Monroe to Congress 12/2/1823

Prior Knowledge: The Monroe Doctrine was a U.S. document urging European nations to no longer colonize and interfere with the affairs of the Americas (This is including South, North, and Central) and in turn the Americas would remain neutral in the wars and conflict between European nations and their colonies.

In terms of the Monroe Doctrine, the first word that comes to mind is hegemony. A statement like the Monroe Doctrine seems like a ploy by the United States to dictate certain events to their advantage. Can someone say: the beginning of an era? In my Government book, there is a belief that the Monroe Doctrine was leaning more towards a public policy of isolationism. I'm not sure I agree with this since later, most of Latin America believed it to be a bit of an insult as if they could not handle their own affiars.