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1. World War II. Explain how the U.S. got involved in World War II. What interests were considered especially important? What factors were critical in winning the war? What lessons could we learn from this experience?
The U.S. got involved in World War II due to the aggressive actions of Japan. The U.S. got involved in World War II on December 7, 1941, when Japan unexpectedly attacked American military forces in the Pacific. The Battle of Pearl Harbor was the official reason for entering the war. Japanese military forces damaged nearly 18 warships, destroyed 164 aircraft, and 2,400 people died. As the result, Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war against Japan to got involved in World War II (America goes to war).
It should be noted that the Second World War had a purpose to radically reorganize the political system in Europe. Talking about lessons learned it should be noted that there is no reason to believe that people have changed because the experience of the XX century warns about such threat. There is even a belief that the First World War and the Second World War were a one war with a large inter-war period. It is believed that it was due to conflicts that caused the global economic crisis: the crisis in the 1900s, and the crisis in 1929-1933. Both wars were provoked by the bourgeoisie to get profits despite the numerous human victims.
There were some critical factors in winning the war. They include increased military and economic potential and the power of the armed forces, a victory of the Soviet Army and successful operations that were carried out by the Western Allies. The next idea is that domestic and international situation in the fascist bloc countries has deteriorated, there were contradictions between them, and allies of Nazi Germany in Europe began to seek a way out of the war and the economy of Germany and allied countries could hardly satisfy the needs of the armies.
Canon de 194 modèle GPF. N.d. Retrieved from
http://ww2db.com/image.php?image_id=22166
2. World War II and American Society. How did Americans adjust to changes during the war years? Describe some of the social, cultural, and economic impacts of the war. In what ways did the war leave a lasting impact on America?
The important idea is that World War II helped the U.S. to recover its financial climate from the Great Depression and provide an economic leadership in the world for many years. While Europe and Asia were devastated by the war, the United States, by contrast, experienced a successful economic development. The society experienced shocks due to mobilization and demobilization, the military build-up, an increase in military and naval construction, massive equipment, and ordnance production, an expansion of civilian and military employment in the government. The US automobile industry was reconverted to defense production, people worked in defense factories and the military because billions of dollars were spent on new plants and on their equipment (Field).
The next factor means that there were labor shortages when the men went off to war. Thus, women had to work hard full time and to take care of home life. Teenagers also had to work and even federal inspectors didn’t control the employment of children. The war resulted in a separation of family members, stress, shock and the American family has changed since that time (The American Family in World War II). Talking about the cultural impact it should be noted that the war inspired people to create new things. Faulkner, Hemingway, Steinbeck and others wrote great books, Wallace Stevens, Frost, Marianne Moore, William Carlos Williams and others published a great poetry. American political novel His All the King’s Men won the 1947 Pulitzer Prize that proves that many impressive creative people emerged after the war (Dickstein). Thus, the war left a lasting impact on America because it made the U.S. the leading country, improve its financial climate and brought benefits to businesses.
AP Photo. Members of the Women's Army Corps (WAC) pose at Camp Shanks, New York, before leaving from New York Port of Embarkation on February 2, 1945. 1945. Retrieved from
http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2011/09/world-war-ii-women-at-war/100145/
3- Cold War. What was the Cold War about? Describe some of the key events related to the Cold War between 1945 and 1960. Was the conflict avoidable? In what ways might the conflict appear different to us now than it did to people at the time?
The Cold War means the struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union after the defeat of Hitler. The USSR changed its policy and it became an ally of the Western democracies. The United States and the USSR divided the world that contributed to a global conflict among world countries. Countries of Western Europe supported the United States, and the countries of Eastern Europe supported the USSR. The main idea is that the countries didn’t fight, but they provided policies to provoke a nuclear war. The Yalta Conference in 1945, the Potsdam Conference in 1945, the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan and the establishment of the OEEC, the Zhdanov Doctrine, the death of Stalin in March 1953, the building of the Berlin Wall and the agreement on Austrian neutrality were key events related to the Cold War between 1945 and 1960 (The Cold War (1945–1989)).
Everything comes from the idea that the Soviet Union enormously sacrificed during the war and this country believed that all countries in the world should respectively treat it. Any criticism was considered as disrespect to the victims of the war. Thus, the conflict wasn’t avoidable because the U.S. and the USSR were two great countries and they couldn’t divide the world.
This conflict appears different to us now than it did to people at the time because modern people are not able to understand the political views and the current situation in the country. Nevertheless, it is believed that the Cold War is the phenomenon of the XX century that took place in the years 1946-1991 while nowadays there is a new phase of the Cold War between Russia and the United States.
Loading face of the X-10 graphite reactor, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, United States, date unknown. Retrieved from
http://ww2db.com/image.php?image_id=19202
4- Post-War America. What major social, economic and cultural changes do you see in America following World War II? Do you see these developments as new and remarkable, or as a continuation of trends that started earlier?
There were many social, economic and cultural changes in America following World War II that are a continuation of trends that started during the World War II. The main idea is that the United States was the only country that was much stronger after the World War II than before. Moreover, the country's national income has doubled during the war. The first four years of the Second World War gradually increased industrial production in the U.S. Industry grew by almost 2.5 times because of a large number of military orders. As the result, millions of unemployed Americans made the weapons of war. The war had a positive impact on people and society. Americans had aim to destroy totalitarian dictatorships and follow democratic ideals (Winkler).
Cultural changes after WW II happened due to a baby boom that contributed to a youth culture. Then, young people became advocates and activists and inspired adults to change their lifestyle. The changes that happened in that period pushed the culture into a post-modern era (Richardson).
The main idea is that World War II changed the whole course in the country. It improved the economic climate after the Great depression, contributed to the growth of ordinary and military business. People changed their attitudes towards political power, a federal government and considered the presidency as a powerful institution. Americans had a new vision of the future that looked like the improved version of their previous order. The American dream was alive. The wars have always been reasons for changes and World War II has significantly changed the political and social views of people in the U.S. (Winkler, Allan).
Westcott, Ed. Aerial view of K-25 uranium enrichment plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, United States. N.d. Retrieved from
http://ww2db.com/image.php?image_id=19207
Works Cited
«America goes to war». The National WWII museum. Web. 7 April. 2016.
Dickstein, Morris. American literature. N.d. Web. 7 April. 2016.
The Cold War (1945–1989). CVCE. 2015. Web. 7 April. 2016.
Field, Aleksander. The impact of the Second World War on US productivity growth. Economic History Review. 61. pp. 672–694. 2008. Web. 7 April. 2016.
«The American Family in World War II». United States history. N.d. Web. 7 April. 2016.
Winkler, Allan. The World War II Home Front. The Journal of the Gilder Lehrman Institute. N.d. Web. 7 April. 2016.
Richardson, Theresa. The Rise of Youth Counter Culture after World War II and the Popularization of Historical Knowledge: Then and Now. Historical Society 2012 Annual Meeting “Popularizing Historical Knowledge: Practice, Prospects, and Perils”. 2012. Web. 7 April. 2016.
