Research Paper Outline For Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor by Levi Gilliam

J. Williams
English IV
2nd Block
7 March 2023

ii Outline
Thesis: The United States deliberately forced the Japanese into a position in which they had no choice but to attack.
Introduction
When the attack of Pearl Harbor happened
Why the attack of Pearl Harbor happened
Why it got us involved in World War II
Conclusion

Gilliam 1 On December 7, 1941, Japanese aircraft attacked by surprise the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, where the fleet of American Pacific war was concentrated. The United States deliberately forced the Japanese into a position in which they had no choice but to attack. Warships anchored in the harbor were easy targets for approximately 360 Japanese warplanes involved in the attack. The Americans suffered 3,400 casualties with 2,300 deaths. The attack badly damaged the US naval and air power in the Pacific.

But at 7:55 a.m., Japanese fighter planes zoomed in without warning and attacked the United States Pacific fleet, or naval vessels, moored in the harbor. Thousands of lives would be lost that day.The Japanese navy's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on Sunday, December 7, 1941, is etched in the memories of generations of Americans. The story has been told many times in print and on film.(2)(5) When Japan occupied French Indochina in 1941, America retaliated by freezing all Japanese assets in the states, preventing Japan from purchasing oil. Having lost 94% of its oil supply and unwilling to submit to U.S demands, Japan planned to take the oil needed by force. However, striking south into British Malaya and the Dutch East Indies would almost certainly provoke an armed U.S response. To blunt that response, Japan decided to attack the U.S Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, hoping that the U.S would negotiate peace.(3)

Gilliam