World War II : The Good War

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World War II: The Good War

Despite the fact that the Second World War had many devastating effects, many Americans considered it to have positive effects, economically, politically and socially. They also believed that their efforts during the war, both abroad and at home, were more productive than destructive. Their experiences helped shape these thoughts in many ways. Some of these experiences also shaped the way the rest of the world viewed the United States of America. In this essay, some of the political, economical and social ways the Second World War is considered the good war will be discussed. Different distinct time periods will be considered in the ways in which they affected the World War II mentality.

Evidence that the war promoted Traditional American values is in the fact that the most popular paintings were the Four Freedoms by Norman Rockwell. These were seen as the most essential freedoms for people. They include the freedom of worship, the freedom of speech, the freedom from fear and freedom from want. These were being promoted at a time when there was a worldwide war. These paintings later came to shape the views of the Americans during the war. The words, freedom and liberty were commonly used at the time to show that Americans, especially those in America should remain together, and that they were in a good place compared to the rest of the world. These paintings appeared in a number of newspapers and magazines at the time. Their impact meant that America had a powerful and lasting impact on the rest of the world. The freedoms that were promoted at the time continue to be the freedoms that are viewed as essential by most Americans today (Fighting For the Four Freedoms: World War II, pp. 2-4). The idea that people deserved them arose during the time and has been around since then. When Americans trace back to the origins of the war, they see this as an accomplishment, and in turn see the war as a good war.

Another positive effect was the fact that the boundaries in the United States were redrawn during this period. The United States recognized immigrants as citizens of the United States. This was important as it helped the people from different places get citizenship in the country. However, there was a downfall to this. Most of the African Americans in the countries continued to be second class citizens there. In addition, Japanese- Americans were either deported or were forced top stay in concentration camps due to the political tensions at the time. The Japanese people who were either deported or forced into concentration camps were mainly American citizens (Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga, interview, March 20, 1994). However, there was an increasing fear, based on racism and the attacks that had been caused by the Japanese. This was the main reason that they were forced into these camps. However, most of the white people in the United States did not have a problem with this at the time. Despite this being really tragic, it meant that after this period of time, Americans viewed themselves and the Japanese people differently, and they did not want such an event to occur

Before the world war in the 1930s, the United States did not have strong international relation policies. However, they tried to invest in the concept of neighbors as they believed that good allies would help them during the times they needed it. As the political and the economic tension grew, America promoted trade between the neighboring countries, including Cuba and Haiti. In addition to this, America also promoted the notion of respect for American culture among these neighbors. This move helped in lessening the tension between the countries. In addition, it helped in easing the economic crisis that America was facing at the time. In addition, there was a huge impact on the immigration laws in the United States of America (Fighting For the Four Freedoms: World War II, pp. 2-4). They allowed people from a more diverse regions while making the laws stricter in their countries

Prior to 1930, there was an interwar peace movement that existed in America. It can be argued that this was the largest peace movement to exist. This movement was a result of the effects that had been experienced by Americans during the first world war. During the Second World War, and in the period after, this peace movement helped America to avoid entanglement with Europe. This way, there could be successful trade between the two regions and between the two regions, and hence, strong economic growth for the Americans (Michigan State University, Library). The Americans viewed their role during this time as progressive and hence considered this one of the ways in which the war was producing positive results in their country. 

Another effect of the war that was seen as positive is that it helped in strengthening the military troops in the US. More people joined the army as they saw it as a good opportunity to defend their country from external visitors. For this reason, the troops became stronger and with more soldiers than before. In addition, there were arms supplied to these troops to help them fight. The army helped fight in many ways and was thus seen as a positive thing by many in the United States at the time. The United States of America made allies with other nations, especially in Europe. Whenever troops from these nations won a war in any other country, it was considered a victorious moment for Americans as well

The Americans also considered the second world war good because of the impact it had on labor. During the war, there was a constant demand for labor in various other fields besides the army. This meant that industries prospered. There were treaties signed between the government and the people who were responsible for the production of the different goods in the country. The industries soared to great heights and the general environment for most of the industries at the time was that of success. However, there often complains from the workers that would go unheard. For this reason, it was also a time when the trade unions were being formed and supported by the people in the labor force (National Labor board Press release, No. B. 693, June 4, 1993). These unions were seen as a way for the people to avoid exploitation by the industries that were now successful. At first, the trade unions went opposed and did not have many chances of success. However, with time, they started to become popular and they would later seen as a necessity for all the workers.

One of the effects of the strong labor and the industries coming up was that there was a strong economy. However, this economy needed to be mobilized so as to be seen and become beneficial to the US during the war. The United States needed to mobilize people from the different parts of the country to help during the war. One of the ways in which this was achieved was convincing the population that they were fighting for the four freedoms. These freedoms have ben listed in a previous paragraph. With this conviction, the people in the United States promoted an American culture, and they wanted to make sure that the people in the country and the ones outside it respected this culture (Secretary of Commerce Henry A. Wallace to President Harry S. Truman, July 23, 1946). The result was that the people became patriotic and viewed being American as a good thing. They wanted to make sure that at all costs, they had these freedoms. They invested in government programs that would protect these freedoms, especially the freedom from fear.

In conclusion, it is clear from the above that for many, the second world war was a good war. The attitudes towards it were shaped by many events occurring within the country and outside the country. There were some bad events, but these did not change the general view of the Americans. Some of the ways in which the war was considered good include the fact that it led to boosts in the economy. In addition, it led to better immigration policies for the people in the United States. The promotion of an American culture among Americans and also to nations neighboring  the United States of America. Part of this culture revolved around the four freedoms. A positive effect rising from this that is still present today is that these freedoms are still considered the ideal American freedoms. From all these it is clear that the second world war, the preparations that led to it, the attitudes that emerged after it and the general effects on the lives of Americans were seen as good. Hence, it can be termed the good war.

References

Fighting For the Four Freedoms: World War II – 1941- 1945

Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga, interview, March 20, 1994, San Francisco, California. From Densho Digital Archive, http://www.densho.org/. Interviewers: Emiko Omori, Chizu Omori, segment 10, denshovh-haiko-02–0010 (accessed October 14, 2009) 

Michigan State University, G. Robert Voice University historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5163 

National Labor board Press release, No. B. 693, June 4, 1993, in Chapter 24: Equal pay for Women. The termination report of the National War Labor Board: Industrial disputes and Wage Stabilization in Wartime, January 12, 1942-December 31, 1945, vol 1 290-291

Secretary of Commerce Henry A. Wallace to President Harry S. Truman, July 23, 1946, in Papers of Harry S Truman.