Name:
Date: May 3, 2016
HIS 300: Varieties of History
1) Statement of topic
The topic under research is whether the United States was justified in the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. This topic relates to the bigger historical picture of the two World Wars. The research will start from January 1945 when the Japanese tried to seek peace to until august of the same year when two separate bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
. The protagonists of the research will be the Japan officials who had made attempts to end the war before the atomic bombs were dropped.
2) Statement of significance
This topic is worth investigating because there has been a lot of arguments on whether the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing was necessary. The research will help in understanding whether it was necessary or not. The topic is relevant to the larger historical questions of the morality of using atomic bombs
. The research is also relevant to contemporary issues affecting today’s society for example the claimed testing of hydrogen bomb my North Korea early this year.
3) Research questions
i. *Was the United States Justified to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
ii. What motivated the United States to make the decision to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II?
iii. What was the Effect of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombing on Japan and on the World War II in general?
iv. In which other way would the United States have approached the Japan situation in ending the World War II?
4) Hypothesis
The United States was not justified in the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. Japan was already weakened and they had already made three attempts to end the war peacefully. The evidence to support this evidence is that in April and May 1945, Japan had made three attempts
to end the war peacefully thorough the neutral Portugal and Sweden. The evidence that may cause to rethink the argument is that Japan did not want to surrender unconditionally and this may have pushed the United States to use the atomic bombs
.
5) Description of method
To do the research I will consult both the primary and secondary sources so as to try and find out evidence that points to the argument that the United States was not justified to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I will also try to find evidence that the disapprove my argument by pointing out that the United states was justified to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in world war two. I will use the evidence that Japan had been so much weakened and were willing to end the war peacefully and therefore, it was not necessary for the United States to use the atomic bombs on it.
The type of history am doing is the military history. The research examines the military action in the World War II by looking at the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States.
6) Annotated Bibliography
i. Secondary sources
Wainstock, Dennis D. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki:
August
1945. New York: Enigma Books, 2010.
In this book, Wainstock takes a looks at the factors that led to the decision to drop of atomic on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The book looks at the events that came before and after the bombing of the two cities. Wainstock argues that the atomic bombs were not necessary in defeating Japan since the effective naval blockade would have starved the Japanese into surrender. This book will be useful in providing evidence for the argument that the U.S was not justified to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I found this source in the ProQuest database by typing my research question in the search bar.
Newman, Robert P. Truman and the Hiroshima cult. East Lansing: Michigan State
University Press, 1995.
The book discuses the decision by Truman to drop atomic bombs on Japan and whether the decision was morally right. Newman argues that the decision was not morally right as Truman new very well that the bomb would kill many non-combats; including the women and children. This book also states that Japan had made attempts to surrender and therefore, the bombing was completely unnecessary. This book will be helpful in providing evidence that the United States was not justified in dropping the atomic bomb on Japan. I find this source by searching my main research question in the Google search engine.
Verma, Avindra. Political Science: Class XII.New Delhi, Vaibhav Printers, 2011.
The book looks at world politics. Avindra’s argument is that the decision by the United States was fueled by the cold war. Avindra argues that the United States dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki deliberately so as to stop the Soviet Union from making any political and military inroads in Japan. This helps to answer the research question that the US was not justified to drop atomic bombs on Japan as the Japan was already on the course of surrendering. I found this source on Google books by typing my research question in the search bar.
Shin, Gi-Wook and Daniel Sneider C. History Textbooks and the Wars in Asia: Divided
Memories. London, Routledge, 2011.
This book looks at the rationale behind the decision the United States decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The book argues that the majority of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki were civilians and the US did not need to kill them. The book further argues that the Soviet invasion of the Manchuria and the struggle for postwar power between the USSR and US played a considerable role in the US decision making. The book argues that US was would still bomb Japan regardless of the Japan’s governments decision. This helps to provide evidence on the research question that the US was not justified to drop atomic bombs on Japan. I found the book by using the Google search engine.
“Hiroshima 1945.” Commonweal, August 18, 1995., 3, Literary Reference Center Plus,
EBSCOhost (accessed May 3, 2016).
This journal article by commonweal, talk about the reasons to why the United States used the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The article argues that the war was nearly won and the decision to use the bomb was unnecessary. It further argues that the U.S that the U.S only invented the bomb because the Germans were going to invent it and that Japan was only a testing ground. This article will help provide evidence that the United States deed not need to use the atomic bombs on Japan and there not justified. I found this article in the EBSCOhost database by searching the main research question in the search area.
Sant, Van John, Peter Mauch, and Yoneyuki Sugita. The A to Z of United States-Japan Relations.
Lanham: Scarecrow Press, 2010.
This book explores the U.S and Japan Relations and the events that followed the decision by the United States to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It gives two perspectives of arguments with one justifying the use of atomic bombs on Japan by the use. The other argument states that the U.S was not justified using such bombs since Japan was already very weak and collapsing. This source will help to evaluate the real reason behind the U.S use of atomic bombs on Japan. This book was found in Google books by searching on the key words Hiroshima + Nagasaki.
ii. Primary sources
Memorandum from Vannevar Bush and James B. Conant, Office of Scientific Research and Development, to Secretary of War, September 30, 1944, Top Secret
Source: Record Group 77, Records of the Army Corps of Engineers (hereinafter RG 77), Manhattan Engineering District (MED), Harrison-Bundy Files (H-B Files), folder 69. http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/1.pdf
This source is a document a memorandum that was sent by James Conant and Vannervar Bush from the Scientific Research and Development Office to the Secretary of War. The source details the concerns about the possibility of enormous hydrogen bombs and the dangers of arms race. The source clearly indicates that the United States and Great Britain were concerned about them being overtaken by other countries in the arms race. This will help provides evidence to the research question that the US was only interested in winning the arms race and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings were not necessary. I found this source in the on the National Security Archive website by searching for primary sources on the use of atomic bombs in the World War II.
Memorandum discussed with the President, April 25, 1945
Source: Henry Stimson Diary, Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library, Henry Lewis Stimson Papers (microfilm at Library of Congress). http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/3b.pdf
This source is a document is a memorandum that was discussed with President Harry Truman. It explores the destructive of the power of the atomic bomb and that its secrecy should be maintain since it has the power of wiping out the whole civilization. It further states that Russia had the capability of manufacturing such a weapon. This source will help in providing evidence that the US was only in the arms race with Russia. Additionally, if the U.S knew that the weapon had the capability of wiping out the entire civilization, then there was no any justification to use it on Japan. I found this source in the on the National Security Archive website by searching for primary sources on the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing.
Albert Einstein: on My Participation in the Atom Bomb Project http://www.atomicarchive.com/Docs/Hiroshima/EinsteinResponse.shtml
This source is a short essay that was written by Albert Einsten on his participation in the atomic bomb project. Eistein says that he had signed a letter to the U.S president Roosevelt stressing the necessity of the large scale experimentation so as to ascertain the possibility of atomic bomb production. Eisten said that he was aware of the danger of the atomic bomb for all mankind if the experiment succeeds but then the fact that Germany could succeed in the production of the atomic bomb prompted him to take that step. This source to provide evidence that the United States just wanted to experiment their atomic bomb and that it was not necessary to use it on Japan so as to end the war. I found this source on the atomicarchive.com website.
President Truman Speech after the Bombing of Hiroshima http://www.c-span.org/video/?294914-1/president-truman-speech-bombing-hiroshima
This source is a video from the Harry S. Truman Presidential library. It is a press release video sixteen hours after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Truman states that the Japanese brought the war to the Far East. He states the United States will completely destroy the Japanese capability to create war as it will destroy all its productive resources. Truman also boasts about the U.S success in producing such a weapon. This source provides evidence that the united states were not interested in ending the war peacefully. It was interested in destroying Japan. The source was obtained from the C-Span TV network website.
Bibliography
Wainstock, Dennis D. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki:
August
1945. New York: Enigma Books, 2010.
Sant, Van John, Peter Mauch, and Yoneyuki Sugita. The A to Z of United States-Japan Relations.
Lanham: Scarecrow Press, 2010.
“Hiroshima 1945.” Commonweal, August 18, 1995., 3, Literary Reference Center Plus,
EBSCOhost (accessed May 3, 2016).
Shin, Gi-Wook and Daniel Sneider C. History Textbooks and the Wars in Asia: Divided
Memories. London, Routledge, 2011.
Wainstock, Dennis D. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki:
August
1945. New York: Enigma Books, 2010.
Verma, Avindra. Political Science: Class XII.New Delhi, Vaibhav Printers, 2011.
Memorandum from Vannevar Bush and James B. Conant, Office of Scientific Research and
Development, to Secretary of War, September 30, 1944, Top Secret
http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/1.pdf
Manhattan Engineering District (MED), Harrison-Bundy Files (H-B Files), folder 69.
http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/1.pdf
Memorandum discussed with the President, April 25, 1945
http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB162/3b.pdf
Albert Einstein: on My Participation in the Atom Bomb Project
http://www.atomicarchive.com/Docs/Hiroshima/EinsteinResponse.shtml
President Truman Speech after the Bombing of Hiroshima http://www.c-
span.org/video/?294914-1/president-truman-speech-bombing-hiroshima
? Dennis, Wainstock D. The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki: August 1945. New York: Enigma Books, 2010. np.
? Gi-Wook, Shin and Daniel Sneider C. History Textbooks and the Wars in Asia: Divided Memories. London, Routledge, 2011, p.120.
? Robert, Newman P. Truman and the Hiroshima cult. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1995, 132.
? Avindra, Verma. Political Science: Class XII.New Delhi, Vaibhav Printers, 2011, 3.
