# Sources ## Document A: John W. Dower, Excerpt from Three Narratives of our Humanity - [[Japan|Japanese]] recall the [[war]] as victimization through the death of family and friends in [[war]] or the bombing of their citites. - [[America|Americans]] remember Hiroshima as the unavoidable choice to end the [[war]] against [[Japan|Japanese]] that would have fought to the death with little supplies - The bombing of Nagasaki makes you question whether enough time was given for surrender after Hiroshima ## Document B: [ President Truman's options](https://www.nps.gov/articles/trumanatomicbomb.htm) - President [[Truman]] had four options: - 1. continue conventional bombing of [[Japan|Japanese]] cities - [[Truman]] remarked, “Despite their heavy losses at Okinawa and the firebombing of Tokyo, the [[Japan|Japanese]] refused to surrender.  The saturation bombing of [[Japan]] took much fiercer tolls and wrought far and away more havoc than the atomic bomb - 2. invade [[Japan]] - Estimated American casualties for invasion was millions - Casualties on Okinawa were 35 percent - [[Truman]] wrote, “My object is to save as many American lives as possible but I also have a human feeling for the [[women]] and children of [[Japan]].” - Despite this he felt that civilian death was the only path to surrender - 3. demonstrate the bomb on an unpopulated island - Concerns - How would [[Japan]] evaluate the bomb - If the bomb failed, would [[Japan]] fight harder - Was it worth losing 50% of the arsenal with the first two concerns - Interim Committee (advisors on use of atomic bombs)concluded: "We can propose no technical demonstration likely to bring an end to the [[war]].  We can see no acceptable alternative to direct military use." - 4. drop the bomb on an inhabited [[Japan|Japanese]] city - [[Truman]] and his advisors concluded that only bombing a city would make an adequate impression - Considerations - No advance warning as to not endanger American crew - City suffered little damage form conventional bombings - City devoted to military production (but no city was purely military all had civilians) - City should not be of cultural significance - 333,000 killed in bombings from 1944-45 vs 150,000->220,000 death from Hiroshima and nagasaki - “Sixteen hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima and destroyed its usefulness to the enemy. ….  If they do not now accept our terms they may expect a rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen on this earth.” - [[Truman]] conflicted - “I know that [[Japan]] is a terribly cruel and uncivilized nation in warfare but I can't bring myself to believe that because they are beasts, we should ourselves act in that same manner.  For myself I certainly regret the necessity of wiping out whole populations because of the ‘pigheadedness’ of the leaders of a nation, and, for your information, I am not going to do it unless absolutely necessary.” - In response to: Senator Richard B. Russell of Georgia, encouraging the president to use as many atomic bombs as possible on [[Japan]], claiming the American people believed “that we should continue to strike the [[Japan|Japanese]] until they are brought groveling to their knees.” - “The only language they seem to understand is the one we have been using to bombard them.  When you have to deal with a beast you have to treat him as a beast.” - In response to: Samuel McCrea Cavert, a Protestant clergyman, who pleaded with the president to stop the bombing “before any further devastation by atomic bomb is visited upon her [Japan’s] people.” ## Document C:  1946 US government film:  [Tale of Two Cities ](https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4877208/tale-cities-bombing-nagasaki) - The [[Japan|Japanese]] ignored the ultimatum -> bombing Nagasaki - Bomb was aimed so that most radioactive power was pushed into the stratisphere - Bomb was aimed to diminish civilian/residential death - ?Why was Nagasaki not bombed first? - it had less civilians, but still had military factories ## Document D:  [Veteran interviews on atomic bombings](https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4877830/atomic-bomb-invasion-japan) in 2015 - Veterans owe their lives to [[Truman]] dropping the two bombs ## Document E - Kawamoto - Source: Yoshitaka Kawamoto was thirteen years old. He was in the classroom at Zakoba-cho, 0.8 kilometers away from the hypocenter. He worked as the director of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum for years, telling visitors from all over the world what the atomic bomb did to the people of Hiroshima. - "his skull was cracked open, his flesh was dangling out from his head" - "I, so, was running, hands were trying to grab my ankles, they were asking me to take them along. I was only a child then. And I was horrified at so many hands trying to grab me. I was in pain, too. So all I could do was to get rid of them, it's terrible to say, but I kicked their hands away. I still feel bad about that." ## Document F: [ Survivor Video Clip 1](https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4877817/hiroshima-survivor-activist-setsuko-thurlow) - Students were providing labor to prepare for the "air raid" at center of blast - 8,000 students dissapeared from the face of the earth, still considered missing - There was no human dignity for those who died in the days after the bombings - Mental [[trauma]] for those who did survive - Document H: [Podcast](https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3cszmmg) - British pilot - Original target Kokura, clouds lead to Nagasaki - Woman working at army base(3:00) - Flash 1000x powerful as lightning - thought world came to and end - Bomb bigger than Hiroshima, it missed its target and dropped in the valley - 3:30 missed city center, some parts of city were protected. - British POW - whole place flattened and quiet - they weren't just dead, they were swolen - Sumitero Kamaguchi - spent 1.5 years unable to move in bed due to burns - Described as hell, nothing remained - [[Truman]] stated that Hiroshima was a military base but that future targets might not've - this was after Nagasaki but he did not mention it # Discussion - Part A: Was the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki **necessary** to end World [[War]] II? - Part B:  Consider the different portrayals of the bomb and its impact over time. (Note the dates of each document.)  How has the interpretation of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki changed since 1945? Why do you think this is? - Part C:  If you were President [[Truman]], would you have used the two atomic bombs or looked at one of the other alternatives?  Justify your choice with historical evidence. - POST ## **Part A and C:** I do not believe that dropping the atomic bombs was necessary to end [[WW2]]. This is due to multiple inconsistencies in the statements of the time, a lack of information on other motivations for [[Japan|Japanese]] surrender, and the cost of atomic bombs over other [[war]] tactics. There are inconsistencies in [[Truman]]'s own reasoning for dropping the bomb. One is that the bombs were not guaranteed to have his desired effect, and the other is that the dropping of the bombs was too quick. In the end, [[Truman]] and his advisors decided, "that only bombing a city would make an adequate impression," (Doc B, para 11) to convince [[Japan]] to surrender but they were aware that far greater casualties were experienced for [[Japan|Japanese]] citizens in the traditional bombings, (Doc B, para 3) and from an invasion. (Doc B, para 7) Even the final death toll of 199,000 (Doc G) was less than those other options. The reasons given to not drop a bomb in an unpopulated area are incredibly weak. The first was that [[Japan]] might not properly understand or respond to the bomb, the second was that bomb might not go off, and the third was that there were only two bombs. (Doc B, para 9) The first two reasons were also in play when dropping on a city, due to [[Japan]]'s formerly established disregard for their citizens, and the fact a dud bomb would have the exact same effect on a city as on an island. The third plays into the second inconsistency. [[America]]'s limited supply of bombs was a temporary problem, and the need to drop the bomb as soon as possible was not established. The second bomb was dropped so soon after the first, that many question whether enough time was given to allow surrender after Hiroshima (Doc A, para 4) One explanation given for the speed of the second bomb was that [[Truman]] and aides wanted surrender before the [[Russia|USSR]] could launch an invasion from Manchuria. (Textbook, pg 911) If [[Truman]] truly, "regret the necessity of wiping out whole populations because of the ‘pigheadedness’ of the leaders of a nation," (Doc B, para 19) he would have seen this invasion as a way to bring about [[Japan]]'s surrender with less death. We do not know the true reason for [[Japan]]'s surrender, but I believe there is enough doubt raised of the atomic bomb's effects that another reason could be found. I would have liked to have more information on the surrender [[Japan]] had been negotiating through neutral states, (Lecture 16, part 2) the weakened state of [[Japan]]'s navy, (Lecture 16, part 2) and the Russian invasion from Manchuria. (Textbook, pg 911) I would also like to speak briefly about the effects if we had never dropped the atomic bomb. Would they have been dropped in another [[war]], or would we have had enough time to fully comprehend the effects of them and never drop them? Would [[the cold war]] still have happened to such a degree? If the [[Russia|Russians]] had invaded Manchuria would [[Japan]] have unconditionally surrendered? If [[Japan]] had not unconditionally surrendered would they have been able to start another [[war]]? This is all information that could affect the decision to drop the bombs, but even without it, I do not think it was necessary to drop the bombs. ## **Part B:** It is obvious that the American interpretation of the bombs is not the same now as in the days and months after they were dropped. [[Truman]] initially stated that the effect the bomb had was to have, "destroyed [Hiroshima's] usefulness to the enemy," (Doc B, para 14) but now it is as seen as a strategic decision to prevent American losses against an undeterrable [[Japan|Japanese]] army, (Doc A, para 4) and as means to bring about unconditional [[Japan|Japanese]] surrender. (Doc B) The 1946 film "Tale of Two Cities" can at best be seen as uninformed and at worst [[propaganda]] created to soothe the minds of [[guilt]]-wracked [[America|Americans]]. The film states that [[America]] had been precisely aimed its bomb to hit multiple military targets and prevent radiation poisoning of civilians. (Doc C, 0:30-1:30) Other sources reveal the bomb was not precisely aimed, rather it had missed its mark. (Doc H, 3:30-4:00), and that scientists' estimates of the power of the bomb were too low due to their limited understanding of the bomb. (Textbook, pg 910) Thus I believe any prevention of immediate or eventual death can be presumed to be unintentional. Nevertheless, the modern characterization of the bomb has stuck, and veterans credit their lives to [[Truman]]'s decision to drop the bomb. (Doc D) I think the main source for the debate on and the change in the narrative of the use of the atomic bombs is accounts of [[Japan|Japanese]] survivors. These accounts include, "flesh...dangling out from his head," (Doc E) and 8,000 Nagasaki students wiped from existence. (Doc F) While [[empathy]] is required for members on all sides of the [[war]], these accounts are some of the most gruesome. ## **Part C:** In conclusion, I would not have dropped the bombs. While [[Truman]]'s hope for [[Japan|Japanese]] surrender due to the bombs may have been genuine, I find it was ill-informed based on the information of the time. I think there were many other options besides the four presented in Doc B that could have been considered at the time. Foremost is to have waited for (as referenced above), more information on atomic bombs, a peace treaty through neutral states, or at the very least a response after the first bomb dropped on Hiroshima. I also think that [[America|the US]] could have continued the [[war]] in other ways than in invasion including, continued traditional bombing of [[Japan]], continued invasion of other islands so as to cut off [[Japan]] from supplies, and a two-front [[war]] from the Russian invasion from manchuria.