Premium Essay

The Best War Ever

In:

Submitted By dpolacek
Words 1598
Pages 7
The Best War Ever
Michael C.C. Adams

History has a way of being distorted and viewed unrealistically at times. Because every event and emotion cannot be perfectly recorded, myths and false perspectives are created. In his book, “The Best War Ever,” Adams explains how Americans believed World War II was a clean, glorious and courageous victory, when in reality it was not. The era became viewed as “America's golden age, a peak in the life of society when every thing worked out and the good guys definitely got a happy ending" (Adams, 2). Besides the general population's idea that the United States was saving the day by going to war, the main tool of distorting the reality of war was propaganda. The “greatness” of this war spread so quickly, “the censors hardly needed to tell the film producers that war movies should showcase American heroism and patriotism and that the enemy must be cruel, devious, and unprincipled” (Adams, 11). The impact of the media's spinning the war lead to a positive demeanor in the nation, eventually proving the propaganda to be a necessary evil. World War II, for America, was a testament to the work and reward of the American dream. The media portrayed society during the war as succesful, hard working, and finally coming out of the slumps brought on by the Great Depression. In line with the “melting pot” stereotype of America, people from all ethnicities were fighting for our country (Adams, 11). After the recession, Americans needed a common enemy to bring them together as a nation. The war provided an enemy that was portrayed as barbaric, leaving Americans with little hesitation in fighting them. Later in the war, the Holocaust and its inhumane nature only strengthened the resolve of America's determination in the war. Citizens saw their country as saving millions of persecuted people from unjust and horrific deaths, a view perpetuated

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Franklin Roosevelt Pros And Cons

...president for twelve years and he served the longest presidency. Franklin Roosevelt is the best Pres. ever. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born in 1882 in the state of New York. He went to college at Harvard. He was a member of New York State Legislature, Assistant Security of the Navy, and Governor of New York. People often called him FDR from Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Roosevelt President Franklin Roosevelt was the 32nd president. He served president for twelve years and he served the longest presidency. Franklin Roosevelt is the best Pres. ever. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born in 1882 in the state of New York. He went to college at Harvard. He was a member of New York State Legislature, Assistant Security of the Navy, and Governor of New York. People often called him FDR from Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Roosevelt was married to his distant cousin, Eleanor Roosevelt and had five children. FDR had a lot of achievements. Some of his achievements were getting us out of the Great Depression, won World War II, hired three million people on projects, and created the social Security System. He had more but those are some of them. Franklin’s wife was Eleanor Roosevelt. She was one of...

Words: 435 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

The Pros And Cons Of The Atomic Bomb

...Atomic Bomb Performance Task Do you think dropping the Atomic Bomb that ended World War II was the best way to end a war? This essay is about how the atomic bomb ended the war between United States and Japan. How President Harry Truman’s decision to drop the bomb affect the whole world. J. Robert Oppenheimer was the man behind the birth of the most destructive force mankind ever made. To begin with, making and dropping the bomb was the best way by that time because it ended the war. To explain, in the “Speech to the Association of Los Alamos Scientist” by Robert Oppenheimer. He said that “There was in the first place the great concern that our enemy might develop these weapons before we did ...” This shows that if we didn’t drop the bomb...

Words: 514 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Yom Kippur War Historical Context

...Kippur Wars in Historical Context HARRY BOOTY, MAR 27 2012 THIS CONTENT WAS WRITTEN BY A STUDENT AND ASSESSED AS PART OF A UNIVERSITY DEGREE. E-IR PUBLISHES STUDENT ESSAYS & DISSERTATIONS TO ALLOW OUR READERS TO BROADEN THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT IS POSSIBLE WHEN ANSWERING SIMILAR QUESTIONS IN THEIR OWN STUDIES. The confrontation between the Jewish state and its Arab neighbours is one of the most enduring and iconic conflicts that still persist today.  Many scholars have argued that ‘for the best part of a century the Arab-Israeli conflict has been a complex problem with important ramifications for the international community’[1] – and this is in many ways the truth.  Created out of the ashes of the Second World War under the awful spectre of the Nazi Holocaust, Israel as a nation has survived and prospered both politically and economically, in no small part due to Western – primarily French and American – assistance.  The Arab states have correspondingly been opposed to America and the West based on this implied support for Israel and has therefore turned to different stratagems in an attempt to combat this alliance – such as balancing with the USSR during the Cold War and increasingly using its market power (derived from the various oil reserves in the region) to further its political aims in the two decades since the Iron Curtain fell.  Into this context there were two major (albeit rather short) wars – the Six Day War of 5-10 June 1967 and the Yom Kippur War of October...

Words: 3509 - Pages: 15

Premium Essay

How to Tell a War Story

...Richie Burner ENWR-106 How to Tell a True War Story 26 February, 2013 If you don’t know how to analyze writing and don’t understand metaphoric speaking then this is not a story for you. O’Brien constantly goes against every Americans thoughts of a war story; he tells the reader that they’re all fake. O’Brien believes war stories don’t actually have to do with people do with heroic things, because every solider is a hero. The average person who was not in combat would not get a true war story because no one has experienced what soldier’s experience. They have seen things and felt things emotionally that no other person will ever see or feel. A ex soldier out look on life is completely different than your average person because they are use to different life style. So all this boils down to one thing, no one will ever understand soldier’s and O’Brien uses “How to Tell a True War Story” to prove this. Through out the story O’Brien talks to the reader as if they don’t know anything. Although he has to approach the reader like this so he can thoroughly explain his point. Since no one understands a soldier’s life he has to write this way, the misunderstanding of soldiers is proven within the first page of the story when rat explains his friend to his sister in a letter that he sent her. “ Stainless steel balls, Rat tells her. The guy was a little crazy, for sure, but crazy in a good way, a real daredevil, because he liked the challenge of it, he liked testing him self, just...

Words: 1771 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Hatshepsut

...of the best pharaohs to ever live in Egypt. After Thutmose’s death, his son Thutmose III (by a minor wife) was named their heir. Since the boy was so young, Hatshepsut ruled with him. But as she was ruling with him she declared herself pharaoh. She stated that the reason she claimed the throne was because the god Amen-Ra said she was to be pharaoh. While taking charge of the nation, she dressed not as a woman, but as a man. As pharaoh, Hatshepsut extended Egyptian trade and oversaw ambitious building projects, such as the temple of Deir-el Bahri. But she also fought to defend her legitimacy as pharaoh. She ordered to be drawn as a male pharaoh, with a beard and large muscles. She was very...

Words: 598 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Influential Person in America

...1865 when he was assassinated. Most people in America believe that he is the best and most influential president America has ever had. He was born on February 12th 1809 on Sinking Springs Farm Kentucky. He was the son to Thomas and Nancy Lincoln. He is looked upon as one of the greatest heroes due to the incredible impacts he on America and his unique appeal. Abraham Lincoln was very influential and important to the American society not just because he was the first republican president but because he accomplished a lot of things that changed the lives of many Americans and until today a century after his reign, America is still living that freedom and liberty. During Lincoln’s era, if you were not of white descent then you were as good as a server. Most blacks in America were sold and enslaved and they were treated as outcasts and 3rd class citizens. The slaves were mistreated, abused and oppressed by their masters and they had become a part of American life essentially since the first settlers arrived. President Lincoln saw how the slaves were being treated and he created a document called Emancipation Proclamation that declared all slaves to be freed. He strongly supported the 13Th amendment that abolished slavery throughout America. This shocked many Americans and they were resistant to change but over time after struggles and controversy the decision came to be the best the nation has ever had. In his acceptance speech after being nominated he made the famous phrase...

Words: 789 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Engl

...The war Game is a dramatized documentary that relates to the story of a possible Russian missile attack and its aftermath in southeaster England, during a limited nuclear war. There were several different reasons given for the ban including graphic scenes, its apparent left-wing bias and its controversial fusion of journalistic fact ( Rolinson,___ ). This paper will discuss the ways in which Watkin’s Peter Watkins filmed this feature in such a realistic manner that it was banned from BBC for 20 years. The method in which this film has been shot The War Game (1965) This documentary is one of the most controversial films ever to win the Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature. Produced in 1965 by BBC television, it relates the story of a possible Russian missile attack and its aftermath in southeastern England, during a limited nuclear war. This stark and powerful work continues to move audiences and incite debate some forty years after it was made 1. Is The War Game a documentary? Each of Peter Watkins 14 films (both shorts and features) operates in a vein that can be called staged documentary.” The method used in his films is to address historical and contemporary issues through recreations, using chiefly non-actors. In this case, the participants were selected through a series of public meetings in County Kent where the film is set and where it was primarily shot. His stated purpose, “was to involve ‘ordinary people’ in an extended study of their own history… the...

Words: 459 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Fdasd

... you may not know that the legendary Star Wars Battlefront has received a next gen reboot from developer Dice, renowned for their largely popular franchise, battlefield. After being initially teased back at E3 in 2013, Dice and EA have been working collaboratively to produce possibly the best, modern star wars game to ever hit the gaming market. A trailer was revealed back in April of 2015 showing some in game engine cinematics, teasing some of the immense environments from the star wars universe. However this created an uproar of angry gamers on the internet complaining that the trailer did not represent what they may be seeing visually in the game. And in response, yesterday, at EA's E3 conference in LA, the team from sweden finally were able to silence their haters and blew them away with an incredible gameplay trailer featuring the map hoth on the multiplayer game mode walker assault. The trailer begins inside a hoth echo base on the rebels side, first highlighting that all footage was recorded off a PS4, and from what i can initially tell, the graphics look outstanding. It can be noted that the footage is from pre alpha which shows that graphics and performance in the game will be enhanced before the game ships late November 2015. The trailer throws you straight into the battle with familiar recognisable faces with the customisable character option where you can decide what face you want from the variety of races in the star wars universe. EA DICE went back to the archives...

Words: 902 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

History

...Yolanda Williams The Cold War American Intercontinental University Abstract This essay is on the cold war and the major events that affected it. It will be analyzing 2-3 major consequences the conflict had on the United States. It will also explain how the war affected American sensibilities, including the way Americans viewed the war and themselves. The essay will also answer: if the war changed America’s role in the world? And was the outcome of the war beneficial or detrimental to the United States or was it a combination of both. The Cold War: Containment By the time World War II ended, a large majority of the American officials came to a conclusion that the best defense against the soviet threat was a strategy called “containment”. George Kennan explained the policy: The Soviet Union, he wrote was “A political force committed fanatically to the belief that with the U.S. there can be no permanent agreement between parties that disagree”, as a result the only chance America could make was the long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies. This way of thinking would shape American foreign policy for the next four decades. The Cold War: The Atomic Age In 1950, a National Security Council report known as NSC-68 had copied Truman’s suggestion that the country use military force to “contain” expansionism where ever it seemed to be occurring. The report called a four-fold increase in defense spending. American officials...

Words: 770 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Technology

...very interesting. The ones I found most interesting were the War/Military and the Sports Recreation sections. There are specialty sections for librarians and publishers. The first picture shows the north wall of Fort Sumpter. I can see why forts were never captured during the Civil War because they were so well fortified. The Confederate caricatures shown in the collection are clearly supporting the Confederate cause and their disgust with the war in general. An image that stood out in the sports section to me was a Jackie Robinson comic book cover. It shows a head-and-shoulders portrait of Jackie Robinson in a Brooklyn Dodgers cap and the inset image shows Jackie Robinson covering a slide at second base. This surprised me immensely. Even though with all the racial profiling then, Jackie still made the cover of a comic book. This shows how popular he was. My second website is http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/subjects. I found the currency section very interesting. Especially the $100,000 note with President Woodrow Wilson depicted on the face. The Gold Certificate Series of 1934 poses a slight puzzle since the United States was off the gold standard by 1934. The $100,000 note was not intended for general circulation. It was used as an accounting device between branches of the Federal Reserve. This $100,000 note was the highest denomination ever issued by the United States. It is the coolest looking note ever made in my opinion. I wish the bills today looked like that...

Words: 629 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Important Themes In 'Red Badge Of Courage'

...“Red Badge of Courage” The Red badge of Courage was full of many important themes and ideas we can compare to real life experiences and challenges our societies face on a regular basis. The first theme that mimics our society would be the gruesomeness and reality of war. In the world we live in today war and it’s gruesome nature is ever prevalent in our society. In the book many characters especially Henry were almost exited for war and what it would bring. They were hoping to earn honor and accolades to look good. When they see their first battle though they are met with a gruesome reality. War is not full of fun and games. It’s full of death, despair, and sadness. Henry talks...

Words: 262 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Why Was George Washington Important

...The USA, a unbelievable country that was formed in the 1700s. This country has progressed massively over the past 150 years. We have developed the best country in the world. Imagine how good we are right now, we have the best Military, health care, technology, Athletes, and we have a huge, strong economy. Now take these facts and reverse then to what we would be if we were still under British rule. My my all we have is the 13 colonies and the United Kingdom. ⅙ of the Military we have now. Not as good health care, technology, or economy. We broke away, and I guarantee, that if we didn't have George Washington we want would still be under British rule. George Washington is the most important person in American History. One of the reasons that George Washington was the most influential American in History was his...

Words: 850 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Air Defense History

...branches on 2 February 1901. In World War One with the birth of the airplanes, so to was the birth of the Air Defense Artillery, but was always a part of some larger entity. Until the Air Defense Artillery was made into its own branch from the Coastal Artillery and Field Artillery. Since then, Air Defense Artillery has been part of every major conflict we, as Americans, have been part of. You can not understand the split, without understanding the beginning of air defense. Air defense started with the air balloon, being used as recon, in the spring of 1794 by the French against the Austrians. The Austrians seeing the balloon started to fire on the air balloon containing Adjutant Général Chef de Brigade Étienne...

Words: 749 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

How Does Gene Forrester Show Identity

...What would it feel like if you were rushed to grow up, forced to become of age in a world that yearned for maturity? Around the time of World War II, teenagers from around the country and all over the world endured the answer to that very question. Gene Forrester is a prep student at the prestigious Devon School in New Hampshire during World War II finding his way in the world. He grows tremendously as a person and eventually becomes the perfect leading character for A Separate Peace by John Knowles. At the beginning of the novel, his uncomfortability in his own skin and inability and unwillingness to express his feelings openly and directly depicts him as a flawed leading character; however, over the course of the novel, he becomes more understanding...

Words: 1338 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Me, L; M; Jkj; Jk; Kj; K

...dfsdfsfswgAbraham Lincoln's ability to write and deliver great speeches made him a rising star in national politics and propelled him to the White House. And during his years in office, classic speeches, especially the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, helped to establish him as one of the greatest American presidents. Follow the links below to read more about Lincoln's greatest speeches. Lincoln's Lyceum Address Buyenlarge/Archive Photos/Getty Images Addressing a local chapter of the American Lyceum Movement in Springfield, Illinois, a 28-year-old Lincoln delivered a surprisingly ambitious speech on a cold winter night in 1838. The speech was entitled "The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions," and Lincoln, who had just been elected to local political office, spoke on matters of great national significance. He made allusions to a recent act of mob violence in Illinois, and also addressed the issue of slavery. Though Lincoln was talking to a smalltown audience of friends and neighbors, he seemed to have ambitions beyond Springfield and his position as a state representative. Lincoln's Address at Cooper Union In late February 1860 Abraham Lincoln took a series of trains from Springfield, Illinois to New York City. He had been invited to speak to a gathering of the Republican Party, a fairly new political party which was opposed to the spread of slavery. Lincoln had gained some fame while debating Stephen A. Douglas two years earlier in a...

Words: 952 - Pages: 4