Dbq Essay On Hiroshima And Nagasaki

The United States entered WW2 after the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl harbor in 1941. To inspire the Japanese surrender in 1945 , and ultimately end the war, the US dropped the world's first two atomic bombs on the civilian population of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Since the surrender, there has been debate over whether the decision to use atomic weapons was justified and whether it was the only way to end the war. The use of this atomic weapon was not justified and it was not the only way to inspire surrender and allow the U.S to win the war.

In the United States, it is often taught that the use of nuclear weapons in Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the deciding factor for the Japanese to surrender during World War II. However, upon closer inspection that may not be the reason why. For example, by the time both cities were destroyed Japan had already lost dozens of cities to American fire bombs and conventional raids. As a result, the only difference between the cities that were previously burned and Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the type of weapon used. Therefore,the Japanese government was aware and accustomed to loosing cities and large number of civilian lives.

Atomic Bombs DBQ Imagine you are a WWII pilot that is about to drop an enormous atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. What are your thoughts? On August 6th and August 9th, 1945, two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.

Wilfred Burchett, an Australian Journalist visited the once thriving Japanese city of Hiroshima, just one month after the devastating atomic bomb and did not approve of the devastation it caused. The bomb (little boy) was dropped over the city, killing over 70,000 people and injuring the same number. He was the first correspondent to enter Hiroshima after the bomb was dropped. “I was people in who … are dying … from these effects of bombing … They lost their appetites, their hair fell out … their flesh began rotting away from their bones” (Source A.).

The deployment of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki by President Truman during WWII is a contentious issue still debated today. With an aim to achieve victory over Japan without any further loss of life or military resources, some say that his decision was logical and ultimately successful in accomplishing national goals. However, others regard this act as immoral claiming that such violence could never be justifiable under any circumstance. In support of dropping the atomic bomb, proponents asserted that it was crucial to quickly end the war and avoid further loss of American lives. According to Document 3, Secretary Stimson believed that deploying the bomb was crucial to quickly end the conflict and avoid a land invasion of Japan, which would have caused more American lives to be lost.

On August 6, 1945, the course of world history was permanently altered when the first ever atomic bomb to be used in warfare was dropped. Over five years into World War II, the United States made the decision to use atomic bombs in their fight against Japan in an attempt to get them to surrender. The first atomic bomb, made of uranium 235 and nicknamed “Little Boy”, was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945. This attack seemed to have no effect on Japan’s willingness to surrender. So, three days later, the United States dropped another atomic bomb, this one made of plutonium 239 and titled “Fat Man”, on Nagasaki, Japan.

It was a calm August morning in the year 1945, and citizens were out living their lives as normal, getting groceries, playing at the park, and walking to work, little did everyone in what was the beautiful town of Hiroshima know, there was an atomic bomb right above their heads. Boom. Simultaneously 70,000 innocent lives were lost. 30,000 more lives were taken later on due to the atomic bomb. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the two Japanese cities that the United dropped the Atomic Bomb on in 1945 to try & bring an end to World War 2.

We had given the Japanese plenty of opportunities to surrender and they didn 't. We had warned them that if they didn 't surrender there would be utter mass destruction placed upon them. They chose to ignore it and brush it off. Japan still didn 't surrender after the first bomb was dropped, the emperor of Japan stepped in and gave the final decision of surrendering only after the second one was dropped. This war would’ve gone on for who knows how

If the United States never dropped the atomic bomb then soldiers would have had to invade Japan which would result in a large number of casualties. “I have been convinced that we saved more lives than we took. It would have been morally wrong if we’d have had that weapon and not used it and let a million more people die”(Source 8). Due to the Japanese bushido mentality, they were never going to surrender, and they would fight until the last man was standing. “The Japanese had demonstrated near-fanatical resistance, fighting to almost the last man on Pacific islands, committing mass suicide on Saipan, and unleashing kamikaze attacks at Okinawa”(Source 11).

The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a very controversial event in history that led to the inevitable end of WWII. Some think that the bomb was necessary to end the war and without it, the war couldn’t end. But others think the bomb was overkill because the Japanese were already on the brink of surrender. Dropping the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had positive and negative effects.

From only trying to help end a vicious war, to killing a total of 215,000 people with two atomic bombs. The Manhattan Project, developed by President Harry. S Truman the 33th president of the United States began a project alongside J. Robert Oppenheimer by bombing the two cities of Japan, Hiroshima and Nagasaki causing complete eradication and slaughtering many innocent people. The development of the atomic bombs started in Los Alamos, New Mexico during World War 2 in Sep 1, 1939 – Sep 2, 1945, a project called The Manhattan Project to end World War 2 by dropping two atomic bombs in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki of Japan to get the Japanese to surrender and to show the power of the atomic bomb, but also the destruction it could cause

Japan was weakening, “The food situation gradually becoming worse and worse…” Stated in source H. America had many industrial resources to use against Japan and so Japan had essentially been defeated. Japan pushed only for the sake of their countries honour as the shame of unconditional surrender goes against their code of honour. Furthermore a warning was given to Japan with America promising to drop the atomic bomb, however there was no evidence and so it could have easily been deemed a bluff. An American nuclear scientist stated, “A demonstration of the bomb best be made… Japan could then be asked to surrender.” This source seems somewhat reliable as it is from one of the American scientists and they would know the strength of the bomb.

After all, Japan knew better than to retaliate against the United States after the attack on Hiroshima because they knew the United States would come after them again, seeking an act of worse revenge. The United States did the right thing on August 6, 1945, by bombing Hiroshima because Japan had first bombed Pearl Harbor. America's decision to drop the Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during the latter years of World War II was justified because, America had to deal with a suprise attack as well, the bombing saved more lives than it took, and it showed our strength to those who doubted us.

In the twentieth century, the United States dropped two atomic bombs, which were the most powerful weapons at that time, on Japan. It happened on August 6 and August 9, 1945. The atomic bombs killed 226,000 Japanese and ended the war. However, America should not have dropped the atomic bombs for two reasons. First, it was not necessary to drop the bomb to win the war militarily or to get the Japanese to surrender.

The dropping of the atomic bombs on World War II on the city of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a very important part of World War II. The atomic bomb ended the war between America and Japan. This was just one of the important events during the battle in World War II. The Battle at Pearl Harbor, where the Japanese attacked U.S. soil was also why the americans bombed Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Some believe that the United States was correct in dropping these bombs on Japan because of the attack on Pearl Harbor while others believe that it was very wrong to dropped the bomb.