America And The Great War Summary

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D. Clayton James and Anne Sharp Wells inserts the reader profoundly into the time period that the world was at war in their book America and The Great War: 1914-1920. They take the reader through eyes of the Americans on how they looked at Europe engaging in their confrontations and through the eyes of the American soldiers who were prompted to learn how to fight after years of living their lives of normalcy. The minds of the United States citizens were not universally made up on the how they should enter the war. Many Americans and especially leaders throughout the country believed that the war was sickening and “a senseless war” to be fighting. The authors of the book quote former President William Howard Taft by him saying that the war was “a cataclysm” and “a retrograde step in Christian civilization,” and “a disaster to mankind”. These profound words were found more prominently than you think, from different politicians and leaders in America. As the thought of war began to creep closer and closer into …show more content…

Peace talks after peace talks and nothing seemed to fix the needs of the coalitions that were fighting. It was not till the constant threatening and ultimately acting of Unrestricted U-boat Warfare of the Germans that thrusted the Americans into war. One of the best quotes in the entire book that the authors using was from the declaration of war by President Wilson, after he declared war and stated that the reason that the United States was going to war to make the “world be must be made safe for democracy”. After the Congress applauded Wilson’s message, he stated to his secretary, “My message today was a message of death for our young men. How strange it seems to applaud that.” Even after the declaration of war you can still she hesitation in mind of Wilson here in this