Atomic Bomb in World War II

The end of the war was drawing near, and the Pacific was now the United States’ main focus because a quick defeat of the Japanese was needed. Now, new president, Harry S. Truman, was faced with a huge decision. Should we drop the atomic bomb on Japan? Yes, there were other options, but none would end the war as quickly. So, on August 3, 1945 the world’s first atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, and on August 9, 1945 another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. I think it was not only a military necessity, but entirely justifiable, because the Japanese were determined not to surrender, it saved lives, both American and Japanese, in led to a fast end of the war, and was the right thing to do.

The atomic bomb was powerful enough that one of them could cause devastating threats and end the war. Two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan in August 1945. These atomic bombs took away the lives of all 20 million people at one time, and Japan immediately declared surrender in August 15th. During the Second World War, in May 1945, Germany surrendered to the Allies, and the battle is over. But, Japan had showed no signs of surrender to the Allies in the fight against the Philippines. Thus, President of United States decided to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima to beat the Japan. (854, 863-864,

The U.S demanded Japan to give up the war or the U.S would end the war in mass destruction.Japan refused to give up their fight in the war and that gave Truman the decision to use the bombs. Japan had no idea of any new weapons that had been made by the U.S during WW2. 1945, the first of two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima. On the 9th of August, the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki which killed many Japanese. The Japanese had officially given up their war with the U.S.

The beginnings of the Nuclear Age started when Albert Einstein wrote to President Franklin Roosevelt warning him of a dangerous weapon the Nazis had begun researching, known as the atomic bomb. (1) Though, when President Roosevelt first read this letter, he was too preoccupied with events in Europe to be bothered with such ideas. He at the time did not take the creation of such weapon to seriously, nor did he believe America had the resources for such a task. (2) Finally, on October 19, 1939 President Roosevelt wrote back to Einstein stating that the United States had begun to research the power of uranium. (2) With the help of the British, whom reluctantly gave the United States leadership on this project, in June of 1942 the Manhattan Project had begun, though most of the world had no idea that this was even happening, not even Vice President Truman. (2)

In the 1930’s and the 1940’s there was a change in American leadership. Having this change not only changed the outcome of the war that we were currently in, but how the rest of the world would view our country after the war. The decision that Harry Truman was forced to make on the choice to drop the atomic bomb or to attempt more land invasions was a choice that shaped the outcome of the war. There were major influences and side effects from the dropping of the atomic bomb and what it did to the country of Japan. Having the option and the weight of the moral decision weighing on Truman’s shoulders about what decision should be made, he was the only one who was capable of making the decision that shaped the outcome of the war. Having dropped the bomb on Japan, as a statement of power and a means to an end in a form was the only way that American lives could have been spared as comparing that to the lives that would have been lost in a land invasion. Knowing what the issues with the bomb was; one has to look at the moral issues, the results of the incident, and also how it played in the rest of the development of the world.

Was it necessary for Truman to drop the Atomic Bombs on Japan in World War II? On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb was dropped by a US aircraft on Hiroshima. This atomic bomb was dropped to force Japan into surrender, this bomb alone destroyed Hiroshima and over 90,000 people were instantly killed in the explosion and an additional 100,000 people perished from burns and radiation sickness. On August 9, 1945 only three days later, the second atomic bomb was dropped over Nagasaki resulting in an additional 80,000 casualties of the Japanese population. The people of Japan surrendered on August 14, 1945 soon after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Many people opposed to the use of the atomic bombs because people argued that Truman 's decision to use atomic bombs was a barbaric act of cruelty. People also argued that the US government had other ulterior motives to drop the atomic bomb that were necessary for America 's ideals. Necessary motives like presenting The Soviet Union a strong message for the Soviets to watch their step around America. A conventional way of warfare for Japan 's surrender would have costed many more American lives. Truman and others believed that the atomic bomb was necessary to save American lives but also Japanese lives. These actions from President Truman marked the end of the most destructive war in history. The two sources that will used and evaluated in this paper are is The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb by Dennis D. Wainstock (1996)

With the start of World War II the race for the first atomic bomb started. With Germany under Hitler’s reign, the Nazis began separating uranium to form the first atomic bomb to control the world. The push for the United States build the first atomic bomb began with this knowledge. With the help of several scientists the United States succeeded in building the atomic bomb first. Two atomic bombs were used; a uranium bomb on Hiroshima and a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki. Along with the many deaths were six stages of A-bomb illness which includes acute stages, atomic bomb trauma, A-bomb radiation illness, radiation blood injury at lethal dosage, blood injuries, and secondary radiation illness. Seven unhealed scars were also an effect of the atomic bombs that includes keloids, A-bomb cataracts, leukemia, cancers, chromosome changes, exposure in utero and microcephaly, and genetic surveys. Regulations and guidance were set in place soon after the bombings to protect the people of the world based on the information that was gathered and it has changed over the years based on the new information that was learned. With the use of the atomic bombs in World War II, a lot of pain and suffering was caused, but a great deal of information was learned to help protect future generations from radiation.

“ The atom bomb was no ‘great decision.’ It was merely another powerful weapon in the arsenal of righteousness.” This quote was said by Harry S. Truman the first President who used an atomic bomb. The program that was able to create this monstrous power was known as the Manhattan Project. Creating this weapon was their main priority. The United States was in the midst of World War 2. The atomic bomb is considered to be the main factor that ended that war. It was a race against the multiple enemies of the United States, to be the first to acquire this power and use it when necessary. The Manhattan Project was kept strictly confidential and, created the foundation of the future and more powerful nuclear weapons to come.

Inventions have been accomplished due to the vast technology that is in place. Technology has led to the advancement of warfare in most parts of the world. The same technology has resulted in inventions that range from gunpowder to the atom that is splitting the environments across the borders. These inventions have led to some countries being able to leap over other weaker countries when it comes to war. Among all these inventions, the atomic bomb stands out as the most lethal weapon. The splitting atom has launched the whole world through its conventional warfare that led the world to change their perspectives to ushering in a new era of the nuclear age. The world atomic bomb is so vivid to the cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima (Madaras 99). When one mentions these two places and the splitting atom, a person is able to picture a city that was torn apart and the masses of people that were killed by the United States ' actions of using the bomb in these two cities. Thus, this paper tries to examine if it was necessary for the United States to drop the atomic bomb on the cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in order to bring an end to World War II.

World War II was considered as one of the deadliest war in the history. Many innocent civilians died due to the aggressiveness of the Axis powers because of this actions the Allies wanted to overthrow the Axis powers in response to its aggression and to establish a peaceful post-war. The United States decided to join the war along with the Allies after Japan’s surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, which destroyed a lot of United States battleships. President Truman should have dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki because of Japan’s bombing attack of United States naval base on Pearl Harbor which resulted in the United States to declare war on Japan, to end the inhumane actions of the Japanese soldiers to its

When Truman was sworn in as president World War Two was just about over due to Hitler committing suicide and Germany’s surrender. Although Germany had surrendered and the war with them was over, the war with Japan was further away from the end (“Foreign Affairs”). Military planners estimated that the war with Japan would call for an allied invasion of Japan and would take at least another year and cost at least another 200,000 American casualties. When Truman learned of the success of the testing of the atomic bomb in Potsdam the idea of possibly ending the war sooner grew on him. He decided he would use the threat of an atomic bomb to persuade Japan to surrender, but Japan

On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped the Atomic Bomb “Little Boy” on Hiroshima. On August 9, 1945, the United States dropped a second atomic bomb “Fat Man” on Nagasaki. The first bomb was dropped to scare the Japanese into surrendering when it didn’t work the second bomb was dropped causing destruction and the surrender of Japan. In a time of need and anguish, Harry S Truman made the courageous decision to drop the first atomic bombs on the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The big question is whether America was justified in dropping the bombs and it was because it would help stop the war, save American lives, and avenge those who were sadly murdered or hurt in the process.

In the year 1939, tensions between eastern countries led to the start of the second world war. Eastern countries were beginning to invade one another due to results of the Treaty of Versailles such as poverty and loss of diplomatic power. Japan began growing rapidly and causing many military and diplomatic problems. In 1941, Japan organized an attack on the United States naval base of Pearl Harbor. The US was outraged. Bringing and end to the horrid war was the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan in 1945. Although some historians argue that the decision made by the United States to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima was a military measure to force Japan’s surrender and end the war, it was actually a

Thesis: The dropping of the atomic bomb during World War II by the United States on Japan was a justified act. Not only was the dropping of the atomic bomb used to save American lives, but it prevented the war from lingering on, taking the lives of more civilians. The bomb did not just make sense, but it saved lives, despite taking some, therefore making the atomic bomb a reasonable action. It is not war mentality to think of preserving the lives of innocent people when the safety of the world is at stake. World War II, taking place in Japan, was likely to continue to linger on which would produce more deaths in the long run. In a book entitled, Thank God for the Atomic Bomb, by WWII soldier, Paul Fussell, he noted that "The people who preferred an invasion to a bombing seemed to have no intention of proceeding to the Japanese front themselves. I have already noted what a few more days would mean to the luckless troops and sailors on the spot....on Okinawa, only a few weeks before Hiroshima, 123,000 Japanese and Americans killed each other. War is immoral. War is cruel". By saying this it proves that although dropping the atomic bomb had some consequences, not dropping it, and letting the war carry on had far worse outcomes, and those who did want an invasion were not willing to go fight for it, again proving the high demand for the wars end. Then, in a speech made by President Truman he explains, "My chief

The atomic bombs dropped on Nagaski and Hiroshia ended the war, but it was unnecesscary to destroy 2 entire cities. First, it killed many iniscent citizens and caused them to get cancer or deformitys later in life. Secondly, it was extremely destructive and demolished 2 whole cities. Some people argue that it was nessesary to drop the bombs to end world war 2. If america had not dropped the bomb, america could have signed a peace treaty so that we could have saved the lives of many inacent people. In conclusion, the bomb did end world war 2 but it was un nessicary to drop it because it killed many inicent people