World War II by David M. Kennedy

On page 49 the setting is just outside of Holling’s house. The weather during November was like it alway had been, with a sky so gray and damp, “November ... The day turned gray and damp, and hovering mist licked everything” (Schmidt 49). Also, the rain continued on and on without the slightest of breaks, “The perfect white cement sidewalk in front of the Perfect House was always wet” (Schmidt 49). Not only, the gray sky’s carried away what used to be the azaleas bright blossom,”The azaleas lost the remnants of their white and pink blossoms, and then many of theirs leaves ... half naked and embarrassed” (Schmidt 49).

Richard Overy’s book “Why the Allies Won” is a great read for those who are intrigued by World War II alternate histories. Overy gives unique insights on the large scaled picture regarding how the war went throughout each of his chapters. The book identifies that the resulting Allied victory was not inevitable, and then it points out the factors that contributed to making the Allied victory possible.

The art of survival is something that is not easily learned. For some, however, it is something that comes from a natural desire to be defiant and rebellious. In the novel Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand, protagonist Louie Zamperini fights for survival through a number of trials that are presented to him. His life takes him from being a troubled child, to an Olympic runner, to a bomber lost at sea, to POW in some of the worst camps Japan could conjure. Louie not only survives these trials, he stands up and goes directly against the normality and ease of submission and faces his adversity head on. Throughout the novel, Louie shows that his ability to survive stems from his natural urge to rebel and defy anything that he deems too controlling in his life.

To the United States, World War II is believed to be a good war, and why wouldn’t it be considered as such? During World War II, in addition to stopping mass genocide and stopping the spread of Nazism and Fascism, the United States beat Japan after their attack on Pearl Harbor. As a result, the U.S. was no longer in the Depression and the United States became a world power. However, in “The Best War Ever,” Michael C.C. Adams argues that as a result of Hollywood’s glamorization of the war, government propaganda/censorship, and the widespread of economic prosperity, Americans were kept in the dark about the truth regarding World War II resulting in the popular belief and myth that World War II was a good war.

Over 150 years, the Civil War had been the bloodiest war in the American history, also known as “The War Between the States” or “Brother Against Brother”, it was fought between the Union or the United States of America and the Confederate States of America. The war lasted four years from 1861 to 1865. What motivated these men to fight and what is the cause of the Civil War is a subject that many historians tried to find out.

“If I truly believe the war is wrong, is it then also wrong to go off and kill people? If I do that, what will happen to my soul?” (pg 60). Tim O 'Brien is an American man who was drafted into the Vietnam War. O 'Brien is not a violent man and struggles because he believes that the war is wrong. He debates whether or not he should go to war or move to Canada to avoid the draft. Tim O 'Brien decides to join the army. O 'Brien uses his personal experiences as a foot soldier in the Vietnam War to convey his possible bias perspective that the Vietnam War was a waste of people 's lives and a shameful venture for the United States.

Lee at that point moved his troops northwards and split his men, sending Jackson to meet Pope's powers close Manassas, while Lee himself moved independently with the second 50% of the armed force. On August 29, Union troops drove by John Pope struck Jackson's strengths in the Second Clash of Bull Run (Second Manassas). The following day, Lee hit the Government left flank with a monstrous strike, driving Pope's men back towards Washington. On the foot sole areas of his triumph at Manassas, Lee started the primary Confederate intrusion of the North. Notwithstanding opposing requests from Lincoln and Halleck, McClellan could redesign his armed force and strike at Lee on September 14 in Maryland, driving the Confederates back to a guarded

Decisions for War, 1914-1917 by Richard Hamilton and Holger Herwig investigates the origins of the First World War detailing individual country’s reasons for entering the war. Historians at War by Anthony Adamthwaite explores how scholars have understood the origins of the Second World War throughout varying times and differing national view points. Both works share a common theme of determinism; a retrospective notion placed on historical events by historians that Europe was inescapably predestined to go to war and that nothing nor anyone could inhibit that. Both remark that this popular approach does a disservice into the explanation of war as it does not accurately depict the economic and social agency present in Europe at the time. In

- Kennedy’s thesis was “rallied citizens to get positively involved in serving their country and that freedom must prevail”. “My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you. But what together we can do for the freedom of a man” and “My fellow Americans: ask not what America will do for you. Ask what you can do for your country” He is persuading the Americans by exclaiming that you should contribute to the country, and how you can provide freedom to every citizen to make this country a better

People such as John F. Kennedy believed that America is “a city upon a hill,” that America stands out from other nations, and that everyone else is watching what the United States does. Kennedy believed that America has great responsibilities and that America's history will not judge America's attempt to succeed at accomplishing these responsibilities.

It comes as no surprise that a manga personifying the world’s nations using stereotypes and history has been controversial since its creation in 2006. Perhaps one of the most controversial aspects of this manga, Hetalia: Axis Powers by Himaruya Hidekaz, is the personification of the nation of Korea and the depiction of this character. Hetalia: Axis Powers’ depiction of Korea can be seen as problematic and racist in its characterization of Korea and the character 's relationships with other characters. Korea is depicted as an annoying, disliked, and sexually deviant character. This depiction is problematic because of the colonial history between the nations of Korea and Japan. Furthermore, Korea constantly copies Japan’s inventions and claims everything originated from Korea. This is a common stereotype of Koreans in Japanese media, implying that Korea, the nation, is not capable of creating anything original.

Throughout this book Kennedy 's goal is to prove to the reader that not one of the previously mentioned topic were enough to win the war but together they won the war. He would take each topic and reserve one chapter each, he would then discuss the beginning when Germany had the advantage. He would then present the problem that it caused the Allied Powers and how they were able to overcome that to defeat the Germans. The big point of reference that he uses is the Casablanca Conference in January 1943 that Kennedy uses as somewhat of a turning point as the beginning of the Allies matching of German power and its eventual surpassing. He does talk about what led up to the conference and what happened after but is mostly rapped up by the middle of 1944 as by that point the

World War II was a very important event in American history, but as bad as war is or seems to be there always seems to have better outcomes in the end. By the Japanese bombing Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and bringing America into the war it opened the eyes of all Americans to the problems not only domestically but internationally and the biggest problem that was discovered after the completion of World War II was the level of social equality around the world. It had been a problem that had plagued the world for many years but the atrocities that brought about by the war coupled with the ever growing eye of the media caused for greater concern in the light of social equality in the world.

Kennedy’s views on freedom are very similar to Roosevelt’s. Kennedy states, “Only few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility-I welcome it” (25). This quote shows how JFK wanted people to fight for their own freedom, just like FDR wanted. Kennedy also stated that he welcomes the act of defending freedom, similar to Roosevelt’s promised support towards those who take on the same responsibility. In contrast, the historical context of this speech is something that separates itself from Roosevelt’s speech. The background section of this document reads, “The United States was locked in a potentially explosive stalemate with the then Soviet Union and its allies.” FDR’s speech was spoken during the second world wars, setting itself apart from JFK’s time of conflict. While they are both harsh wars, Kennedy’s speech takes place during a war with a single enemy. However, the purpose of JFK’s speech is an aspect similar to FDR’s speech. Both Kennedy and Roosevelt had the intention of getting people to join the war effort. Both presidents wanted people to fight for their freedom. The purposes of both speeches mirror each other in the sense that they are calls to

World War II World War II was a pivotal event of the 20th century and a defining