More handpicked essays just for you.
Justification for dropping the atomic bomb
Effects of the atomic bomb on the world
Reasons for dropping an atomic bomb
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
With Germany surrendering on May 7th, 1945 this left the Allies as predominate victors of World War II. Though only one thing stood in the Allies way, the Japanese had not yet surrendered. With time passing, and no surrender from Japan, Harry S. Truman must act to try and bring WWII to an end. Truman having access to two powerful weapons, he now has the decision whether to use them or not. On August 6th, 1945 the USA drops the first ever atomic weapon on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Without a surrender from the Japanese, 3 days later another atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki. Not only did the atomic bomb have an massive effect on the day they were dropped, they continue to have a massive effect on generations of Japanese. Although the dropping …show more content…
If the Japanese did not surrender, an invasion of Japan would have to take place, extending WWII and increasing the death toll for both sides. Though this was a valid argument for dropping the atomic bomb, it has been revealed that the Japanese Army and Navy spokesmen had approached Army officials in trying to negotiate a surrender settlement. The surrender settlement would allow the Japanese to retain the Emperor, who the Japanese viewed as a God. The Japanese Government were unwilling to compromise to an unconditional surrender due to the retention of the Emperor being involved with the surrender. The Japanese pleaded assurance in retaining the Emperor once they had surrendered. If the Allies accepted these terms the Japanese would have undoubtedly surrendered. The USA pursued in dropping the atomic bombs. Once the Japanese surrendered the Allies accepted the terms of Japan retaining their Emperor. If the Allies were willing to accept the terms of allowing Japan to retain the Emperor, why would they not accept it earlier? The USA only created extra bloodshed, which is what they wanted to “avoid”. This bloodshed would have been avoided if they had accepted the Japanese’s terms earlier and not after the bombings. The atomic bomb was not required in getting the Japanese to surrender in …show more content…
Though, the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor was inhumane, which many would use in defense of dropping the atomic bombs. The atomic bombs exponentially had a greater short-term and long-term effect compared to the attack on Pearl Harbor. When the atomic bombs were dropped they immediately vaporized, killed or burned civilians close enough to the bomb. Buildings and homes were destroyed, and thousands were buried within the scattered debris. Long-term, radiation haunts the survivors of the atomic bombs. It brought sicknesses, an increase in the rates of cancer, and the offspring of survivors had birth defects that continue to pass down each generation. Those survivors who could not cope with the trauma committed suicide. Hundreds of thousands of civilians including women, children and the elderly suffered from the atomic bombs. The atomic bomb continued to kill even after World War II was over. In total, the two atomic bombs killed a total of 240,000+ civilians. The USA knew how powerful the atomic bombs were and even continued to drop the second bomb on Nagasaki although they seen the effects of the first bomb on Hiroshima. The atomic bombs left Japan and their citizens crippled and in despair, and should not have been
In discussion of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, one controversial issue has the dropping of the atomic bombs being justified. On the other hand others believe that there were other ways of getting Japan to surrender and it was not justified, the only way we could get Japan to surrender was to invade them. Our strategy was to island hop until we got to Japan. Many more lives were at steak when doing that. Not only would just Americans would die, but a lot of the Japanese would have died as well, and the death toll would have much greater. 199,000 deaths came after the dropping of the atomic bombs. However, many American lives were saved, what the Japanese did to Pearl Harbor, and the treatment of our American soldiers while
On August 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped the world’s first atomic bomb over Hiroshima. Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. On August 15th, the Japan announced unconditional surrender in World War II. To this day historians still discuss why the U.S. decided to use the atomic bombs. Orthodox historians argue that the decision to drop the bombs was a military one designed purely to defeat the Japanese.
...ecessary to end the war, because the Japanese were not going to surrender. In August of 1944 the war in Europe was over and the face off between the United States and Japan had finally arrived. The United States had to choose between sending hundreds of thousands of US soldiers, to invade Japan killing and being killed by the hundreds of thousands, OR dropping a newly developed weapon called the atomic bomb on two cities in Japan which would result in tens of thousands of civilian lives with little cost to US servicemen. The only hope of ending the war quickly and honorably was to drop the bombs. Calls for surrender were ignored and the Japanese hierarchy, Okinawa and Iwo Jima had shown clearly what an invasion of Japan would be like. The decision was made, the bombs were dropped, the war was ended and both military and civilian lives were saved by both countries.
Nuclear warfare was the main factor in Japan’s decision to ultimately surrender from the war. On August 15th, 1945, after losing more than 100 000 civilians to the atomic bomb, Emperor Hirohito announced the Japanese surrender which was immediately accepted by the United States and then formalized on September 2nd of that year , ending World War II approximately one year earlier than the United States military planners were suggesting it would have had they been forced to put soldiers on the ground in the eastern hemisphere .
On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped the first atomic bomb used in warfare against the city of Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later on August 9th, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan. Just six days after the second atomic explosion, Japan announced its unconditional surrender to the United States after almost four years of war. Philosophers have argued that President Truman took a utilitarian point of morals when deciding to use nuclear weapons: do what is best for the largest number of people. Others say he blatantly ignored Kant’s teachings regarding the morality of attacking non-combatants. Regardless, President Truman was faced with one of the most morally difficult decisions any
During World War II a bombing was made against Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. In retaliation to this bombing the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs in Japan. The Fat Man was dropped on Nagasaki, and next the Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima. These bombs devastated the people of Japan. Along with this it has left large amounts of nuclear radiation behind. For this DBQ you will learn how this bombing affected the people of Japan them, and even now.
In May of 1945, with Germany’s surrender, the Allied forces achieved victory in Europe. However, World War II was not over, and fighting continued against the Japanese in the Pacific. To finally end the war, United States president at the time, Harry Truman, made the decision to drop the newly invented Atomic Bomb on two navel bases in Japan: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although this did lead to the end of the Second World War, President Truman’s decision has faced much controversy in subsequent years, mainly surrounding the morality of his actions. I believe that given the Japanese mindset and the fundamental nature of war, that the dropping of the atomic bomb was justified.
In 1945 on August 6 and 9 the United States army air force under the orders of President Truman dropped two atomic bombs one on the city of Hiroshima and the other on the city of Nagasaki killing roughly two hundred twenty-six thousand people. The dropping of the atomic bomb was a very controversial event in the United States from the events that lead up to the dropping, the complex decision to dropping the bomb on an actual city, and how the dropping of the bomb helped shaped the way nations fight wars, and how they determine the damage that could be done if they were to use a weapon of mass destruction on civilians.
On August 6, 1945 to August 9, 1945, during World War II, an American bomber dropped the world's first two deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which resulted in an explosion that wiped out 90 percent of the city. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was known for the following two things: the mass murder of a million innocent lives, and the end of World War II. After analyzing the sources provided, it is evident that the use for atomic bombs was equally argued for and against because on one side, many believe that a purely technical demonstration of the atomic bombs would have also caused the war to cease, and on the other, countless do not and view direct military use the most efficient. On side
Japan refused to accept an unconditional surrender, which was demanded by the allied powers in order to stop the war against them. On August 6, 1945 Truman allowed Enola Gay to drop the atomic bomb on top of Hiroshima and later Nagasaki to end the war. The revisionists and the orthodox views have different opinions on President Truman’s decision to use the atomic bomb. The revisionists believed that Truman’s decision was wrong and that there could have been alternatives. They say that the bomb was unnecessary and it was only used as a “diplomatic tool” and to show the power of the US to the world....
On the 6th of August 1945, during the Second World War, an American B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first well-positioned atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The explosion wiped out ninety percent of the city and immediately killed 80,000 people. Tens of thousands of more people would later die due to radiation exposure. Three days later, a second B-29 bomber dropped another A-bomb on the city of Nagasaki, Japan. Approximately 40,000 people were killed.
When the atomic bomb was dropped, the destructive weapon disintegrated and claimed innocent lives in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. On August 6th, 1945 in Hiroshima, around 83,000 people were deceased in an instant and tens of thousands of more died in the following year due to wounds and radiation poisoning. In addition to this, food became scarce and most could not find shelter in Hiroshima, which encouraged civilians to migrate from Hiroshima to other rural areas. Three days later, on August 9th, Nagasaki also suffered the same fate as Hiroshima. The explosion of the atomic bomb destroyed anything within a half-mile radius. Moreover, around 40,000 to 75,000 citizens were killed by this blast. Survivors of the atomic bomb left the city and fled to any other villages near it. Although Japan announced its surrender a few days later, the United States...
One alternative might have been to arrange a demonstration of the bomb. If representatives of the Japanese government, military and its scientific community could have seen the bomb, it might have been enough to convince them of the foolishness of continued resistance. Had the atomic bomb not worked the United States would have looked weak and foolish. Also, if America was trying to show that they had more power they should have at least dropped it in less populated area still showing what the bomb could do instead of killing more than 200,000 innocent lives. The people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not criminals they were not guilty of what was going on. Their was many diplomatic options available that could have changed this action. Like for 9/11 their was many Americans killed and all of a sudden it became World Tower Day. The nukes were a hundreds of times worser than those of 9/11. Everyone was innocent so why was it okay to kill hundreds of people in Japan there's really no
Admittedly, dropping the atomic bomb was a major factor in Japan's decision to accept the terms laid out at the Potsdam agreement otherwise known as unconditional surrender. The fact must be pointed out, however, that Japan had already been virtually defeated. (McInnis, 1945) Though the public did not know this, the allies, in fact, did. Through spies, they had learned that both Japan's foreign minister, Shigenori Togo and Emperor Hirohito both supported an end to the war (Grant, 1998). Even if they believed such reports to be false or inaccurate, the leaders of the United States also knew Japan's situation to be hopeless. Their casualties in defending the doomed island of Okinawa were a staggering 110,000 and the naval blockade which the allies had enforced whittled trade down to almost nothing. Japan was quickly on the path to destruction. (Grant, 1998). Of course, the Allies ignored this for the reason that dropping the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would intimidate Russia. Had they truly been considering saving more lives and bringing a quick end to the war in Japan, they would have simply waited them out without the major loss of life seen at both Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
On August 6, 1945 the first of two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan by the United States in order to finish World War II. The first one landed over the heavily populated city of Hiroshima. The second bomb was dropped, not only three days later, on August 9, 1945 on another Japanese city called Nagasaki. Both atomic bombs made terrible impacts on the cities they were dropped on. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed beyond belief leaving a trail of dust where once families lived a normal life. The U.S. should not have dropped the Atomic Bomb on Japan because it affected the climate and world’s mindset, targeted two sites that were not military bases, and killed a profuse amount of innocent citizens.