The Attack on Pearl Harbor and World War II

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The Attack on Pearl Harbor and World War II

"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant" (Pierce 43). That is just what the Japanese did- awaken a "sleeping giant." The United States had tried for a long time to stay out of World War II. Finally, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the United States had no choice but to enter the war. The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, affected the United States greatly and also changed the course of events that followed in America's history.

Admiral Yamamoto said, "A brilliant man will find a way not to fight a war" (23). Most countries do not attack another country without a valid reason. The Japanese reason for the attack was to dominate all of Southeast Asia, the Pacific islands, China, and Australia (Remembering Pearl Harbor 2). In the 1880s and the 1890s, Japan began to spend more money investing in a stronger army and nation (Pierce 10).

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