Atomic Bomb Morality
explanatory Essay
1771 words
The development of the atomic bomb and chemical warfare forever changed the way people saw the world. It was a landmark in time for which there was no turning back. The constant balancing of the nuclear super powers kept the whole of humankind on the brink of atomic Armageddon. Fear of nuclear winter and the uncertainty of radiation created its own form of a cultural epidemic in the United States. During these tense times in human history officials made controversial decisions such as the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Dangerous biological experiments and bombs tests were carried out in the name of the greater good and national defense. Some historians and scientists argue that the decisions and acts carried out by the U.S. during World War II and the Cold War were unethical because of the direct damage they did. The United States' decisions were moral because it can be proven their actions were aimed at achieving a greater good and those that were put in potential danger volunteered and were informed of the risk.
The dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan were ethical decisions made by President Harry Truman and the United States government. By the time of the atom bomb was ready, the U.S. had been engaged in military conflict for over four years and lost over 400,000 soldiers. Truman claimed, "We would have the opportunity to bring the world into a pattern in which the peace of the world and our civilization can be saved" (Winkler 18). The bomb was aimed at ending the war immediately and avoiding prolonged battle in the Pacific Theater and the inevitable invasion of Japan. President Truman hoped that by showing the Japanese the devastating weapon the U.S. possessed, that the war could be brought ...
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...these tests ensured a long, relative peace between the U.S. and Soviet Bloc and greatly benefited the scientific community.
The dropping and the atomic bomb and the continued use of human subjects during scientific testing in the 20th century continues to be a controversial subject. It is because the actions carried out saved many lives and that those hurt were informed and volunteered that these methods were moral. It is because of the debate surrounding these actions that science has continued to evolve. From these earlier practices, more rigid experimental methods are enforced. These new regulations protect the patient and continue to ensure that those sacrificing their safety to aid others are not injured without fully understanding the risks involved. The modern world will continue to benefit from the actions taken by the United States during the 20th century.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the development of the atomic bomb and chemical warfare forever changed the way people saw the world.
- Explains that the dropping of atomic bombs on hiroshima and nagasaki were ethical decisions made by president harry truman and the united states government.
- Explains that the early 20th century was marked by a rise in nationalism, which is defined as an embracement to one's own country.
- Explains that nuclear weapons were used by the soviet union and the united states during the cold war.
- Explains how physician walter reed established the ethics of modern testing that ensured future experiments would be fair and moral to those subjugated.
- Explains that during world war ii, the american committee on medical research was faced with confronting malaria. the feeling of nationalism and national pride was at its peak.
- Explains that atomic bomb testing was ethical because of the amount of publicity it was given.
- Opines that the dropping and the atomic bomb and continued use of human subjects during scientific testing in the 20th century continues to be a controversial subject.
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- Was The Dropping Of The Atomic Bomb Justified?analytical essayOn August 6, 1945 the United States dropped the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. This was an extremely controversial military strategy in the United States. Was the United States justified in the dropping of the atomic bomb? The U.S. feared the rise of communism and gave aid to any country against it. The U.S. also fought countries threatening the spread communism. One of these countries was Japan. We began a harsh and brutal war against Japan and against communism. This war was killing many soldiers and Japan was not backing down. President Truman decided to use the atomic bomb when things were getting worse. The decision to use the atomic bomb was a difficult one and many people wonder if it was the right choice.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how robert lifton studied the effects of the atomic bomb on the survivors. he identifies five psychological themes of survivors, including overwhelming images of grotesque forms of death, guilt for living through the tragedy, psychic numbing, and the struggle for meaning.
- Narrates how yasushi haraki, a second grader during the bombing, remembers the flash of light and darkness, the ceiling went tumbling down, and his foot was hurt. they returned to hiroshima to find his mother.
- Asks, "was the atomic bombing of japan justifiable?" the pacific war 1941-43.
- Explains that the united states dropped the first atomic bomb on the japanese city of hiroshima, which was an extremely controversial military strategy.
- Explains that the effects of the injuries can be divided into four stages according to the summary report of investigation of atomic bomb casualties.
- Narrates how a young girl named takako okimoto was affected by the bombings. she lost her parents and all her siblings, and the united states government wanted to end the war quickly.
2763 wordsRead More - The Nuclear Bomb: The Controversial Devision in World War IIexplanatory essayThe United States had been in war for almost four years. Over 416,800 American lives were taken, and four percent of the world's population was killed in World War II. America needed a way to end the war as quickly as possible with the fewest U.S. casualties. A Japanese invasion was considered, but it would put American lives at stake. With the invention of the atomic bomb, President Truman made the most debated decision: the decision to use the most deadly weapon ever invented- the nuclear bomb. It was a very controversial decision. On one hand, the nuclear warheads ended World War II as quick as possible. On the other hand, it created mass destruction and devastated the two cities targeted: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Some say that the United States did not have the right to deploy the two atomic bombs in Japan. The two atomic bombs killed more Japanese than the amount of Americans killed in the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Others think that dropping the nuclear bombs was the right choice. It ended World War II quickly and did not put American lives at stake.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that president truman's decision to use the nuclear bomb ended world war ii quickly and created mass destruction and devastated the two cities targeted.
- Explains that the united states was planning an invasion after capturing two major islands- iwo jima and okinawa. the first atomic bomb was tested in new mexico.
- Describes how the first atomic bomb ever used in combat was dropped from an american b-29 superfortess, known as the enola gay, at 8:15 local time.
- Opines that the united states had every right to drop the bomb on japan. if there was an invasion instead of bombing, over 500 thousand u.s. lives would be lost, and over a million japanese people would have been killed.
- Explains that president harry s. truman authorized the use of the atomic bomb because if japan surrendered to the soviet union, it would have changed japan into a communist country.
898 wordsRead More - Morality Of The Atomic Bomb Essayexplanatory essayThe Morality of Using Nuclear Weapons The Manhattan Project was one of the largest scientific collaborations ever to have taken place, tapping the minds of the world’s greatest chemists, theoretical physicists, nuclear scientists, and at it’s peak utilized the resources of as many as 125,000 people. The product of the $2 billion project was the implementation of nuclear fission in a weaponized form, producing what is known today as the ‘Atomic Bomb’. On July 16th, 1945, the US Army Corps of Engineers, accompanied by many of the project’s scientists and members of the press, executed ‘The Trinity Project’, detonating the first Nuclear Weapon at the White Sands Missile Testing site near San Antonio, New Mexico. Shortly thereafter while attending the Potsdam Conference, President Truman was informed of the successful test. When Japan refused to surrender under the terms set forth at said conference, The President authorized the use of the atomic bomb against Japan.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the manhattan project was one of the largest scientific collaborations ever to have taken place. the trinity project detonated the first nuclear weapon at the white sands missile testing site near san antonio.
- Explains that 12 scientists from the manhattan project sent a letter to president truman expressing their concerns regarding the use of atomic weapons against japan.
- Argues that morals are a set of values held by each individual, on his own accord, and do not necessarily have evidence to back them.
- Explains that becquerel discovered radioactivity by exposing a photographic plate to various phosphorescent salts. ionizing radiation is composed of subatomic particles which are moving with enough energy to steal electrons from other atoms
- Explains that ionizing radiation can have sever health effects on biological organisms.
- Explains that radiation poisoning can be caused by x-rays. dr. hawks, a columbia college graduate, was exposed to ionizing radiation in 1896.
- Explains the connection between x-rays and uranium, and radioactivity and ionizing radiation. the first atomic bombs were created using nuclear fission.
- Explains that physicists were experimenting with radioactive decay to change and manipulate atoms throughout the 1920s and 30s.
- Explains the importance of the fourth and fifth bullet points. the fourth solidifies that there was prior knowledge of radiation and fallout, and the fifth goes towards showing that it was known that radioactive material was dangerous.
- Describes the manhattan project scientists' "a petition to the president of the united states."
- Describes sansare, khanna, and karjodkar's tribute to the early victims of x-rays.
1999 wordsRead More - The Atomic Bombsanalytical essayAs World War 2, came to a close, The United States unleashed a secret atomic weapon upon the enemy nation of Japan that was quickly recognized as the most powerful wartime weapon in human history. They completely destroyed the entire Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and essentially vaporized countless innocent Japanese lives. Some historians believe that it was a foolish, brutal decision to use the atomic bomb on a weakened Japan, and that the civilians of the country did not deserve that kind of mass-annihilation. On the opposite side, other historians assert that dropping the bomb saved countless American and Japanese lives by ending the war faster than a regular invasion would have. What is undisputed is that this sad event dramatically changed the course of human history.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the united states unleashed a secret atomic weapon upon the enemy nation of japan that was quickly recognized as the most powerful wartime weapon in human history.
- Analyzes how truman's decision to use the atomic bomb was the most difficult decision of his life.
- Argues that atomic bombs should have been dropped on iwo jima to demonstrate its power before dropping them on innocent japanese civilians. they argue that president truman was just showing the united states’ nuclear power to the soviets, making the nuclear arms race that followed world war 2.
- Argues that using the atomic bomb to quickly end the war saved millions of japanese and american lives that would be wasted on the battlefield.
- Opines that the use of the atomic bomb was harsh and rash, but necessary to end the war and protect american lives and interests.
734 wordsRead More - The Atomic Bombsopinionated essayWorld War II, which took place from 1939 until 1945, is the most destructive war in terms of destruction and lives lost in all history. At the end of World War II, America made the decision to drop two atomic bombs on Japan to end the war quickly, and this has been a very controversial issue ever since. After the fact, many questioned the decision made by American military leaders, wondering if they had well enough considered the Nuclear Era they would bring about by dropping the atomic bombs. In discussions of dropping the atomic bombs to end World War II, one controversial issue has been whether the United States was morally justified, and there are two basic schools of thoughts in this debate. On the one hand, some argue that dropping the bombs on cities, therefore targeting civilians, makes the bombs morally wrong. On the other hand, some contend that dropping the bombs to end the war quickly saved hundreds of thousands of American lives and therefore was morally justified. My own view is that dropping the bombs was the best decision for America to make with the information that they had at that time and the enormous number of lives that were saved.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that world war ii was the most destructive war in terms of destruction and lives lost in all history.
- Disagrees with gar alperovitz's claim that dropping the bombs was the best way to end the war quickly and avoid the loss of many more american lives.
- Opines that dropping the atomic bombs on hiroshima and nagasaki in august 1945 has sparked one of the most controversial arguments of all time.
- Explains that dropping the bomb was unjustified. world history: the modern era.
633 wordsRead More - The Decision To Drop The Atomic Bombexplanatory essayPresident Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the direct cause for the end of World War II in the Pacific. The United States felt it was necessary to drop the atomic bombs on these two cities or it would suffer more casualties. Not only could the lives of many soldiers have been taken, but possibly the lives of many innocent Americans. The United States will always try to avoid the loss of American civilians at all costs, even if that means taking lives of another countries innocent civilians.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that president truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on hiroshima and nagasaki was the direct cause for the end of world war ii in the pacific.
- Explains that president harry truman was a huge proponent of the atomic bomb on hiroshima and nagasaki on august 6 and 9 of 1945.
- Explains that james byrnes, secretary of state, was truman's right hand man. he didn't want the russians to get involved in the war in asia.
- Opines that william leahy, chief of staffs to the president, saw the bombings as barbaric and unnecessary as he believed the war against the japanese was already won.
- Explains that general douglas macarthur believed that the dropping of the atomic bombs was militarily unjustified. it was a wise decision in diplomatic and political terms, but not in ethical terms.
- Explains how the use of the atomic bomb put an end to the japanese military dictatorship and put in place a constitutional monarchy, similar to britain's.
- Opines that it is difficult to make a case for the ethics in the use of the atomic bombing of japan.
- Explains that the use of the atomic bomb on japan was an awful way to bring about the end of world war ii in the pacific, but it was not a terrorist attack.
- Opines that it is hard to justify the acts by the united states against japan. people like tamiko tomonaga and sachie tashima did not deserve to carry dead bodies and have their belongings destroyed.
- Opines that the use of atomic bombs is justified because of what took place at pearl harbor and the threat of the war being moved to american soil. truman did what he believed
- Explains that there hasn't been a downward spiral with weapon usage since the two bombings so the united states has not caused an even more violent earth.
884 wordsRead More - Atomic Bomb Essayanalytical essayAfter the first few days of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Americans, without knowledge of the aftermath of these cities, began cheering and celebrating as the bombings marked the end of World War II. Also, this event showed that Americans would be the ones who would lead the world into the nuclear age. In a Gallup Poll taken from August 10-15, 1945, Americans were asked whether or not they approved or disapproved of the use of atomic bombs on Japanese cities, 85 percent approved, ten percent disapproved and five had no opinion.30 then when asked if the development of the atomic bomb was a good or bad thing, 69 percent said it was a good thing, 17 percent said it was bad, and 14 percent had no opinion (Steele).
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki showed that americans would lead the world into the nuclear age. americans were asked whether or not they approved or disapproved of the use of atomic bombs on japanese cities.
- Explains that americans felt terror after the bombings, since they wondered what could be done with nuclear weapons. they praised the creation of the atomic bomb as a positive thing for future conflicts.
- Analyzes how americans questioned whether dropping the bombs was the right thing to do after the nuclear bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki.
- Opines that the bomb drops ended the war quickly and brought back the many americans that went to fight.
- Explains that americans were faced with moral dilemmas after the dropping of the bombs in hiroshima and nagasaki.
- Opines that america must confess its sin and apologize to the world for its misuse of the atomic bomb.
- Explains how the government covered up the positive effects of the bombings, including the medical effects, and the radiation that killed so many japanese.
- Explains that america was affected by the bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki. american reactions varied due to many factors.
1488 wordsRead More - Essay On The Atomic Bombanalytical essayWorld War II brought up many new technologies for warfare. Advanced on existing developments such as weaponry, ships, vehicles air crafts, navigational devices and medicine are just a few broad examples of developments in warfare during this time in United States and World history. One development, however, changed the entire way of warfare. The Atomic bomb was developed during this time out of fears that the Germans had the same technologies, or at least were working to obtain it. Once the United States had this technological capability of producing atomic weapons, the way of fighting was changed. Two bombs were dropped on Japan in August of 1945, one on the city of Hiroshima and the other on the city of Nagasaki. Afterward, the ear of atomic diplomacy came up in American international relations, which as we have seen today, has led to the development of even stronger, more deadly weaponry and bombs. The bombing of Japan also brings up the still prevalent debate of whether the bombings were justifiable or not. Historians Gar Alperovitz, Robert P. Newman and Barton Bernstein all have written essays expressing their opinions in the matter.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that world war ii brought up many new technologies for warfare. the atomic bomb was developed out of fears that the germans had the same technologies.
- Analyzes how gar alperovitz, robert newman, and barton bernstein argue that the bombing in japan was unjustifiable.
- Analyzes how gar alperovitz and bernstein's essay "dropping the atomic bomb was neither necessary or justifiable" could have been utilized in the conquering of japan
- Opines that american and japanese lives could have been saved if other tactics were considered.
- Analyzes how robert p. newman, in his essay "dropping the bomb was necessary and justifiable", strongly agrees with the bombings.
- Describes the manhattan project, a comity of scientists whose goal was to quickly research and develop an atomic bomb.
- Analyzes newman's argument that the bombings were not raced fuled, stating that they would have been considered in the defeat of germany.
1722 wordsRead More - Essay On The Manhattan Projectanalytical essay... in American history’, there is much evidence to suggest otherwise. Nevertheless, Strickland’s study does offer a valuable guide to the development of ideas, organizations and associations the formed by atomic scientists immediately after the World War II. It, however, not does include an extensive analysis of the Manhattan Project scientists’ wartime messages, nor does it investigate the tenets behind them. Correspondingly, Robert Gilpin’s study extensively covers the scientists’ role in atomic energy policy-making in the post-war decades. Although his study in useful for evaluating how scientists can be more successfully integrated into matters of nuclear weapons policy, it fails to consider the varying forms of the atomic scientists’ wartime movement and its relevance for considering their successes and failures in influencing post-war nuclear weapons policy.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the study will explore the shape and scope of the manhattan project scientists’ political movement between 1942 and 1945.
- Explains how scientists, engineers, and the army raced to build the first man-made atomic bomb in 1941 — the manhattan project provided the united states with wartime military advantage.
- Analyzes how edward teller and richard feynman's attitude towards politics is not wholly indicative of the zeitgeist among the other scientists.
- Analyzes donald strickland's study scientists in politics: the atomic scientist movement 1945-1946 as a valuable guide to the development of ideas, organizations, and associations formed by atomic scientists after the world war ii.
699 wordsRead More - Morals of the Atomic Bombopinionated essayOn August 6th 1945 the first atomic bomb as dropped in an attempt to end the war efforts in the pacific. This year will mark the 69th anniversary of the dropping of the bomb, and even after all this time there is still much debate over if dropping the bomb was the right thing to do or not. One of the main reasons I have seen arguing for the dropping of the bomb was that it saved American lives, and that it saved more people than it killed. However, saving American lives was not the only motivation for dropping the atomic bomb, the argument could even be made that saving the lives of soldiers was not even first on the list of reasons for dropping the atomic bomb. Among the reasons for dropping the bomb was to justify the cost of the Manhattan Project, to impress the Soviets, a lack of reason not to use the bomb, and responding to Pearl Harbor.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the first atomic bomb was dropped in 1945 to end the war efforts in the pacific. the reasons for dropping the bomb were to justify the cost of the manhattan project, to impress the soviets, and to respond to pearl harbor.
- Explains that general macarthur believed that the war could be won in as little as 6 months with little danger to american troops. in january 1945 japan offered terms of surrender.
- Opines that a lack of reason to drop the bomb is not, in fact, an excuse to do something. the allies didn't give hitler any reasons to stop invading, and so he created the holocaust.
- Opines that the destruction at pearl harbor and hiroshima and nagasaki were not comparable.
- Opines that to make up for the cost of the manhattan project is not a good reason for killing two entire cities of people.
- Opines that dropping the bombs to impress the soviets was the only reason that holds any merit. the cold war made the two super powers more hesitant to use nuclear weapons against each other.
- Opines that the atomic bomb killed thousands of people in mere seconds, and it would have been more defensible had it happened on a military base.
- Opines that people are disturbed by the atomic bombing, but the sheer level of destruction is part of it. denying destructive power does nothing to change it or prevent destruction.
1263 wordsRead More