Hiroshima Bombing Research Paper

The end results of the bombings were terrifying, however Truman’s decision was based on reducing the number of casualties and although no one can be sure what would have happened if the atomic bomb was never dropped there is sufficient evidence to suggest that the invasion would have gone through and the number of casualties would have been expontential. The bombings not only reduced the casualties of US troops and the Japanese peoples but of those who lived in territtories occupied by the japanese as the casualty rate during the years of 1931-1945 was at an estimated 17,222,500 and gradually continued increasing towards the end of the war (Landesman 34-35). Although the lost 250,000 lives is not insignifigant nor the damage done to the cities,

On august 6th 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, and 3 days later, they dropped another on the city of Nagasaki. The new weapons completely decimated the cities, and killed tens of thousands of people. Japan announced they would surrender to the allies a few days later on august 15. The United States justified their using of the bombs as a means to end the war without an invasion of Japan that would have resulted in thousands of more deaths on each side. While the Japanese did surrender shortly after the bombings, there is ample evidence to suggest that their surrender was imminent, and the use of the atomic bomb only accelerated peace. Through this essay, I will critically analyze justifications on the usage of the bombings, and potential results on this devastating new weapon.

August 6 and 9 came around, and the bombs were dropped. Japan issued their surrender several days later. The bombings could be seen as an event that directly resulted in the end of the war, or merely accelerated it by as little as a few days. Numerous analyses by top United States Army officials say that Japan would have surrendered well before the end of the year even had the bomb not been used. One of these army officals, Major General Curtis Lemay of the air force, said that “the atomic bomb had nothing to do with the end of the war.” He also said that the bombing was justified simply because it speeded up the Japanese surrender, and “probably saved a few lives.” While Lemay may be correct that the dropping of the bomb accelerated the Japanese surrender, it does not justify the killing of innocent civilians, especially if surrender was inevitable. Lemay believed that invasion was not necessary and that conventional bombing also could have ended the war. With that logic, the bombings didn’t save any lives only spent lives.

The two days in August 1945 should been engraved in the minds of every single American individual. The bombs that were dropped on the approximant 200,000 innocent Japanese citizens is indeed a war crime, and many people tend to overlook that fact. Nobody was even held accountable for the horrible bombings even though it’s clearly a crime against humanity. A survivor by the name of Akiko Takakura was only twenty years old when she experienced the horrific Hiroshima bombing in 1945. In an interview, she recounted what she saw that day saying, “Many people on the street were killed almost instantly. The fingertips of those dead bodies caught fire and the fire gradually spread over their entire bodies from their fingers. A light gray liquid dripped down their hands, scorching their fingers.

After the Japanese dropped the bomb on Pearl Harbor, the United States took serious offense to it. The Americans dropped the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki because of them dropping the bomb on Pearl Harbor. America dropped the bomb because President Harry Truman commanded that if the Japanese made any attack on us, we would attack them. This bomb badly affected Japan. At least 140,000 Japanese people died, including 20,000 soldiers by December of 1945. At least 90% of the deceased were killed within two weeks of the bomb being dropped. 92% of 76,000 buildings were destroyed. (“Hiroshima Committee”)

“We were about to form lines facing the front, we saw a B-29 approaching and about fly over us...That was the moment when the blast came. And then the tremendous noise came and we were left in the dark...” This is how 14 year old Akihiro Takahashi begins his account of the bombing on Hiroshima. Standing just 1.4km away from the epicenter, Akihiro couldn’t do anything but watch as the United States dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on his hometown. Three days later, while terror was still raging in Hiroshima, the US dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki. While it may seem inhumane for the US to have used such powerful weapons on Japan, the US had many reasons to use such drastic measures. The United States and Japan 's involvement in WW2 led to the eventual use of atomic weapons causing a series of devastating effects that changed Japan and the world forever.

One thing that people do not understand is that the United States did not just go to Japan and drop the bombs and come back, we actually warned them before we dropped the bombs. Leaflets were actually dropped on in the cities of Japan. These leaflets said, "TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE: America asks that you take immediate heed of what we say on this leaflet. We are in possession of the most destructive explosive ever devised by man. A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2000 of our giant B-29s can carry on a single mission. This awful fact is one for you to ponder and we solemnly assure you it is grimly accurate" (PBS). Finding this out while researching really opened my eyes because people want to think there was nothing but just the bombing and that was it. The United States gave them a fair warning that this would happen and if they do not surrender to the thirteen consequences that the president outlined then the United States will drop the bombs on every resource of military they had. So, what do you think happened next? Japan idiotically tested the United States trying to call their bluff, for which it was not, and the plan was then set in motion to bomb Japan. Even with the adequate warnings of what was in store for Japan, the warning went unheeded.

The War that happens between the U.S and Japan was caused by the Japanese Imperial. They wanted to have power and take control over in the Southeast Asia, the Japanese military was planning to attack against the Netherland and the United Kingdom. They decided to attack the U.S Pacific Fleet because they thought that they would had interfered with their attacks against those overseas territories. Was the decision to drop atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki a military necessity? Dropping the atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a military necessity.

I agree that there was many innocent civilians killed. “The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki killed an estimated 180,000 civilians” (www.catholic.com). This was a lot of civilian lives that possibly could have been spared. I also understand the point that the war was almost over and Japan was getting ready to surrender. “Japan was in fact close to surrendering before Hiroshima” (www.boston.com). I agree if Japan had surrendered, the bombs would not have been needed, and the point that the United States only dropped the atomic bombs to show power to other

On August 9th, 1945, a B-29 American bomber dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. In a flash, 90% of the city’s population, about 80,000 people, were wiped from existence. In the following years many more Japanese people would die from the radioactive fallout from the bomb. Three days later, another bomb of the same type was dropped on another Japanese city of Nagasaki. The devastation of these two extremely powerful weapons seemed almost impossible. Still, I think it was justified because it actually saved lives. The estimated death toll of American soldiers, Japanese soldiers, and Japanese civilians if we were to invade Japan to finish the war was much greater than the toll the atomic bomb took. When they fought, the

Under the presidency of Harry Truman, he had a choice on whether or not he should have dropped the atomic bomb on Japan, however, he chose to use the first atomic bomb ever used in history to end the destructive war known was World War II. This has been a widely discussed topic on why Truman should have dropped the atomic bomb and if it was necessary. I believe that Truman should have dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki because Japan was the first to attack the United States, more lives would have been lost for Americans, Japanese, and more nationalities, and Japan was issued a warning known as “prompt and and utter destruction.”

On 6 August 1945, America’s President Harry Truman announced that an atomic bomb nicknamed ‘Little Boy’ had been dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Three days later a second atomic bomb nicknamed ‘Fat Man’ was detonated on the city of Nagasaki. Over 200,000 Japanese civilians perished as the bombs landed and in the months and years that followed, burns and radiation sickness took a significant toll on the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. From an American point of view, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II was necessary to end the war. Publicly, it was stated that the bombing of Japan was to prevent loss of life through invasion by Allied troops. Politically, it was believed that use of this new weapon would send

During the Hiroshima bombings, many of the few survivors had made choices before that they would never make years after the chaos is over. We learn from our mistakes to improve our future by noticing our past mistakes and not doing them again.

Despite the extreme devastation, the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were necessary. The atomic bomb is a weapon unmatched in warfare, rapidly releasing nuclear energy by fission of atomic nuclei. Desperate times call for desperate measures, which is why America chose to unleash its most deadly weapon, the atomic bomb, on Japan. America, who had already fought in World War II for over four years, had no desire to perpetuate the war. When Japan refused to surrender, America was left with two alternatives: invade Japan, which would not only cost hundreds of billions of dollars, but would also ensure the loss of hundreds of thousands of American soldiers in addition to millions of Japanese lives; or, drop atomic bombs to force Japan to surrender. This was not a decision that America took lightly. American leadership knew the devastation the bombs would cause, the lives that would be lost, as well as the scrutiny they would receive for their decision. However, this was not a question of moral judgment, but a question of protecting American and global security. With Japan steadfastly refusing to surrender, America knew it was necessary to drop the atomic bombs because that would not only force Japan to surrender, but would ultimately save millions of lives and propel America to become the most powerful nation in the world.

The dropping of the bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki was one of the most terrifying moments in Japan’s history. The bombing was not triumph for the U.S., but a brutal slaughter. Japan lost many innocent lives, children and women, and the United States could have of invaded Japan, giving them a fair fight. In conclusion, many innocent people were attacked and killed, and the U.S. could have just invaded Japan with troops, instead of dropping an atomic bomb.