A Day that will Live in Infamy: How Pearl Harbor was important to United States History. And how it changed the course the United States was on. December 7th 1941 “A Day that will live in Infamy” -Franklin Delano Roosevelt The picture above captures aftermath and the rescuing of sailors from the USS West Virginia, one of the ships attacked in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii that occurred on December 7th 1941. This attack was a turning point in the way the United States views wars, prepares defenses, and the way the country responds to acts of war upon its people. It is important to United States History as it marks the first time war had been brought to the country’s shores.
After the Attack on the United States by the Japanese, the citizens of the United States viewed the world differently. Even after Japan concluded that it seemed useless to continue existing diplomatic negotiations just one hour after Japanese air squadrons bombed the American Island of Oahu. After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy gave his speech to the nation using ethos, logos, and pathos to convince the nation that going to war with Japan was necessary. ! !
Both I think backfired somewhat because they caused America to come together and fight the enemy. On a calm Sunday morning on December 7, 1941, the Japanese shocked the world by bombing the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. The bombing happened because the U.S. Pacific Fleet based in Pearl Harbor could foil their plans to attack the American mainland. As insurance, the Japanese navy undertook an operation to cripple the Pacific Fleet by a surprise air attack. It succeeded.
earA Rhetorical look at Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation Given by Franklin Delano Roosevelt David Thayer English 112 This speech was in relations to the horrible and reprehensive attack on Midway. It was the start of the Unites States in World War II (WWII). The influence this speech had on the American people was of great importance to the acceptance of our entrance to the war. It showed that by allowing the people to know the gravity of this incident it would get their approval. President Roosevelt used Pathos and Logos to attract the nation to the idea that if we did not act swiftly with force we would get attacked again and many more innocent lives would be taken.
The United States reaction to the bombing on Pearl Harbor leads to the fall of the Japan Empire, due to the United States involvement with the Doolittle Raid, Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and the Atomic Bombs. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt told the Joint Chief of Staffs to bomb the Empire of Japan. He wanted the Japan Empire to be bombed as soon as possible to boost patriotism throughout the United States. Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle planned and led the attack. Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle’s plan to attack the Japan Empire was to use B-25 aircrafts to drop on Japan and then to land in China were there would be Chinese Aircrafts to help guide and refuel the B-25s to the Chongqing Chinese military base.
Japan was preparing for war as it was negotiating peace. In November 1941, an aircraft carrier air strike force secretly set sail toward the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The incident, which shocked the U.S. Pacific Fleet, confirmed that the United States would turn out to be a major trouper in the war. On November 29, the Japan government and the military chief met, and discussed the cause and effect of the war. They decided to attack the pearl harbor.
Was the United States Justified in dropping bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki? I believe that the United States was justified in dropping the atomic bombs on Japan. It all starts on December 7. 1941. This was the day that the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.
Leading up to Pearl Harbor, the U.S., along with Britain, East Indies and the Netherlands, formed an oil and steel agreement against Japan that did not allow these materials to be traded with them, this embargo later caused major panic in Japan due to the restricted resources. The attack on Pearl Harbour occurred on the island of Oahu, Territory of Hawaii. It was here that the seven naval ships (of eight) were heavily damaged by the torpedoes and bombs dropped from the Japanese’s aeronautic surprise attack. The attack on Pearl Harbour was a major tactical victory by the Japanese, however as a result of the attack, the United States declared war on the Empire of Japan, resulting in the declaration of war from Germany and Italy; opposing the United States. This tactical feat included multiple significant leaders; Chuichi Nagumo and Isoroku Yamamoto were the Commanders/Leaders of the attack.
Rather than employing the atomic bombs, the Allies could have continued with incendiary bombings, planned an invasion of the home islands, and employed the strength of the USSR in order to force Japan into surrender. Each of these alternative methods would have also resulted in Japanese surrender, albeit over a longer period of time and putting more Allied soldiers at risk. As such, the course of the Pacific War resulted in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, however the employment of these bombs to conclude World War II was not inevitable. The surprise attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941 resulted in the entrance of both Japan and the United States into World War II. The bombing of Pearl Harbour was seen as a victory for Japan, as it resulted in the destruction of 5 battleships, 3 aircraft carriers, 170 aircraft and the death of 2,403 U.S servicemen (MacDougall, 2005, p.161).
The decision to drop the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had many influential factors effecting the decision. There certainly was the possibility of success for an invasion, but the decision not to invade far outweighed the decision to invade. Conventional bombing and Blockade were considered in the effort to force Japan into surrender. But, the fact that the Japanese military were controlling the Government and were in a state of mind of absolute refusal to surrender, meant that this was not a reasonable option. Political factors were greatly influential of Truman’s final decision to drop the bomb and the threat of Russian military who were soon to advance in the region had its impact.