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Influence of the samurai
Bataan death march dbq
Influence of the samurai
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Uncovering the Causes of the Bataan Death March
On January 1942, the Japanese seized the peninsula of Bataan, cutting off American and Filipino soldiers, both under the command of the United States, from help and supplies. After ninety-nine days of fighting, more than 76,000 men surrendered and were forced to walk to Camp O’Donnell, a prison camp approximately sixty-six miles away.1 This was the first time in American history that an entire army had to surrender to an enemy.2 The Bataan Death March lasted from April 9, 1942 to May 1, 1942. The march was infamous for the 20,000 meaningless deaths that were caused by harsh conditions, malnourishment, the tropical heat, and the deliberate and merciless brutality of the Japanese Imperial Army. The propagandized behavior of most Japanese soldiers and the 14th Army’s failure to implement a workable plan to remove the prisoners from Bataan were the main contributors that turned the march into a chaos of human rights violations.
The culture of the Japanese Army was dramatically changed by Japanese Army leaders who justified cruelty by taking advantage of ancient Japanese concepts. Japanese Army leaders saw an advantage in having every soldier fight to the death and put together the Senjin Kun, or “Ethics in Battle.” The manual used ideas that could be traced back to the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603-1868) and emphasized the shame of surrender. According to the Senjin Kun, being captured was a fate worse than death because it not only permanently disgraced the soldier, but also his entire family. The Army leaders used the samurai’s Bushido, or “the way of the warrior,” code as an excuse to abuse its own soldiers. Ancient ideas like Seppuku and Junsbi promoted a ritual suicide when dishonor to...
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Norman, Michael, and Elizabeth M. Norman. Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2009. Print.
"Samurai and Bushido." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. .
Tenney, Lester I. My Hitch in Hell: The Bataan Death March. Washington: Brassey's, 1995. Print.
"Washington Conference (1921-22)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 2 Apr. 2014. .
Young, Donald J. The Battle of Bataan: A Complete History. Jefferson, NC: McFarland &, 2009. Print.
O’Brien, Tim. “How To Tell a True War Story.” The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston: Bedford St. Martins, 2003. p. 420-429.
Kelman, Herbert C., Hamilton, V. Lee. “The My Lai Massacre: A Military Crime of Obedience”. Writing & Reading for ACP Composition. Ed. Thomas E. Leahey and Christine R. Farris. New York: Pearson Custom Publishing, 2009. 266-277. Print.
Gailey, Harry. The War in the Pacific: From Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay. Novato: Presidio, 1995.
Hynes, Samuel Lynn. "What Happened in Nam." The soldiers' tale: bearing witness to modern war. New York, N.Y., U.S.A.: A. Lane, 1997. 177-222. Print.
Luvaas J., & Nelson H.W. (1987). The U.S. Army War College Guide to the Battle of Antietam The Maryland Campaign of 1862. (pg. 302). 3/21/2014
World War II was a horrific time in not only in the United States, but throughout the entire world. There were horrendous things going on in Europe at this time. World War II began in 1939. The Battle of Midway had a great impact on World War II. The Battle of Midway was a battle between America and Japan; Germany was not involved in this. By examining why Japan attempted to take control over Midway, Japan’s plan, and the battle itself, a connection can be made to The Battle of Midway and its effects on World War II. The Battle of Midway was a huge part in World War II.
Leahy, Stephen M. "The Historical Battle over Dispatching American Troops." USA Today (Farmingdale). July 1999: 10-12. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 07 May. 2014.
King, Rosemary. "O'Brien's 'How to Tell a True War Story.'" The Explicator. 57.3 (1999): 182. Expanded Academic ASAP.
23 .Roger Daniel, Prisoners Without Trial: Japanese Americans in the World War II 1993, Hill and Yang.
O’Brien, Tim. “How to Tell a True War Story.” The Things They Carried. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1990. Print.
Greene, Bob. Homecoming: When the Soldiers Returned From Vietnam . N.p.: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1989.
Cantrell, Robert L., and Lionel Giles. Understanding Sun Tzu on the art of war the oldest military treatise in the world. Arlington, VA: Center For Advantage, 2003. Print.
King, Rosemary. "O'Brien's 'How to Tell a True War Story.'" The Explicator. 57.3 (1999): 182. Expanded Academic ASAP.
O’Brien, Tim. “How to Tell a True War Story.” The Things They Carried. Boston and New York: Mariner Books, 2009. 64-81. Print.
The Japanese leaders of these tragedies included Emperor Hirohito, who gave several military orders such as taking over China; Prince Asaka, who developed brutal ways to kill captives; General Yanagawa Heisuke, who received the orders and enforced them; and lastly, General Nakajima Kesago, who inaugurated the killings in Nanking by beheading two prisoners of war to test his sword (Jones). The motives of these people were to kill soldiers that were seen as a threat by any means necessary (Chang). “Many were shot down like the hunting of rabbits in the streets” (Scarred). The soldiers smiled when they beheaded someone, they laughed when they killed masses at a time, and they slept through the night dreaming about doing it all over again the next day.... ...