Atomic Bomb Dbq Essay

During World War II in America, President Truman decided to drop an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, Japan following Pearl Harbor. Given that Japan was a communist power for some time and that the United States implemented the policy of containment, it is no surprise that an attack on Japan was coming. Today, some think the dropping of the atomic bomb was meant to force Japan to surrender, however, Truman’s actions were inspired with diplomacy in mind. For example, following Hiroshima, diplomatic efforts were shared among the U.S., England, and the U.S.S.R. The policy of containment was also spread, decreasing communism. Also, the atomic bombing at Hiroshima was meant to challenge Japan’s ability to make war, not force them to surrender,

used Hiroshima as a way to intimidate the U.S.S.R. was through the spread of America’s containment policy that aimed at ending communism. During this time, the U.S. was highly anti-communist. As a result, politicians were not thrilled at the Soviets joining the Japanese War because they wanted to rely on Soviet aid as little as possible. Through his point of view as a powerful general, Dwight D. Eisenhower expressed to President Truman in Document C that the U.S. will not have to rely on Soviet aid if there is a winner before they join. Because Hiroshima would cause the Japanese to surrender, this shows that the anti-communist policies of this time would lead to the U.S.S.R. being intimidated because the U.S. caused the surrender of Japan. Next, the policy of containment would lead to the U.S.S.R. being threatened because it would lead to Allies. For example, under the TRUMAN DOCTRINE, the U.S. vowed to support countries threatened by the Soviets. Allies of the U.S. helped with containment, as shown in Document A, which has a point of view from the 1947 Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson. This can be seen when Stimson describes that millions of soldiers from Ally countries would need to come fight if Japan resisted. Because this shows that Allies forces could be as large as millions of people, there is no doubt that the U.S.S.R. felt intimidated as a result. In the end, because Hiroshima would eventually lead to the Soviet Union developing their own atomic bombs and the Red Scare, it is clear that the U.S. was trying to intimidate the U.S.S.R. through their policy of containment that would result in the urge to defeat Japan to avoid dealing with communists and the growth of allies that could threaten