Facing the Communists: Society in the 1950's

During the 1950's, at the time when Eisenhower was President, there was some discussion on how to go about dealing with the Communists of the Soviet Union, or otherwise known as Russia. However, before Eisenhower became President, his predecessor, President Harry S. Truman had already created a policy of how to deal with Russia's Communistic people. He wanted to follow a policy of containment, in which the United States would not interfere with Russia by persecuting them or even trying to create a tie with them. He felt like they should just keep to themselves as the United States should keep to their selves. Later on, when President Eisenhower came into office and when he appointed John Foster Dulles as Secretary of State, there was some opposition to this containment policy. Eisenhower wanted to work with Russia peacefully and he had the idea of possibly working cooperatively with them. However, John Dulles felt that the only way to get through to Russia is to go with much harsher and more confrontational policies. In the end, Eisenhower won out the 1952 election and made a promise to "go to Korea" and to find a solution to end this "Cold War." Surprisingly, he did manage to achieve this goal and there was cease-fire on July 27, 1953.

As stated in Marissa's blog, the 1950's offered a time of change, especially in the music industry of America. The 1950's transitioned from the longtime smooth jazz to a new genre of music that would become famously known as Rock 'N Roll. Rock 'N Roll gave the people of America, especially the youth of this time, a chance to express their emotions and creativity through the rebellious lyrics that were present throughout the basis of the Rock N' Roll songs.

Also, as we have learned from David's article, America in the 1950's proved to be a turning point for the people of the nation as they seemed to become, wholly, a more religious nation. Led by the speeches and sermons of the famous evangelist, Billy Graham, many people became aware of the modern day evils Mr. Graham would present in his sermons, such as the idea of materialism, hedonism, and secularism. During this decade the percentage of those who attended and were members of a church increased 20%, just in ten years. Even the President, President Eisenhower seemed led to become a member of the Presbyterian Church and it would be President Eisenhower who would establish our nation's motto as "In God We Trust" and he would also add the line "One Nation Under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance. From

From Rajia's blog, we are able to conclude that during the 1950's, America had faced it's biggest problem yet... how to deal with TEENAGERS! Teenagers hadn't really existed before the 1950's. Sure people were still that age at one point in their life, but they were considered to be young adults, able to make rational and responsible decisions and were expected to work full time jobs. However, beginning in the 1950's, teenagers came along and with the influence of the new popular music genre, Rock 'N Roll, coming about, and these young adults would learn the meaning of rebellion, as a majority of youth this age defied their parents' guidance and lived a life discovering more about themselves and who they are and also about the world around them. Parents were unfamiliar with this stage of life initially, seeing that they had not experienced it themselves, yet over the years, parents raising children would soon expect no less and learned to adapt to this new type of behavior.

McCarthyism

A. List three things the author said that you think are important:
     1. "McCarthy was nearing the end of his first term as senator and needed a big issue to energize his
         run for a second term." This statement shows the desire for power and the longing to make a
         mark in history by basically saying that Senator McCarthy would go to any lengths to remain in
         Senate.


     2. "During the weeks before McCarthy delivered his Wheeling speech, China had fallen to the
         Communists and the Soviet Union had tested an atomic bomb." This sentence here shows that
         Communism was a real threat in the 1950's and it shot fear into those who were against it,
         sending the idea that they soon may become a Communistic nation.

     3. "His 1954 probe of the U.S. Army lead to his downfall. The Army-McCarthy hearings were
         televised nationally, and the public recoiled from McCarthy's bullying tactics. He was censured
         by the Senate and died in 1957." These sentences show that the situation that helped Senator
         McCarthy gain a seat in the Senate, also led him to his downfall and all of the many people who
         had been oppressed from McCarthy's tactics and accusations were beginning to spring back up.
         It also conveys the idea that Senator McCarthy's death may have gone hand-in-hand with the
         actions he took to get into the Senate.

B. Why do you think this document was written?
     I believe that the telegram was written to show how determined Senator McCarthy was to gain a seat in the Senate, and if that meant to go out and accuse people of practicing Communism, then so be it. It conveys the idea of how much Senator McCarthy opposed Communism and was willing to send a letter to the President in order to rid the nation of any spies or individuals of that sort. It also seems that Senator McCarthy is trying to shift the blame onto the President for there being Communists in the State Department.

C. What evidence in the document helps you know why it was written? Quote from the document:
     "Despite this State Department Blackout, we have been able to compile a list of 57 Communists in the State Department. This list is Available to you, but you can get a much longer list by ordering the Secretary Acheson to give you a list of these whom your own board listed as being disloyal, and who are still working in the State Department."

D. List two things the document tells you about life in the United States at the time it was written:
     1.It seemed that many people of this era were fearful of the idea of Communism and when this situation was brought up it sent the citizens into a all out panic. Especially seeing that the Communist Soviet Union had been experimenting with atomic/ nuclear explosives.
     2.This document also showed that many Americans shared a distinct distrust for the way the government was running and with the idea of possibly having 57 government officials, who were Communist, in the State Department, sent much suspicions into the minds of these fearful Americans.

E. Write a question to the author that is left unanswered by the document:
     It seems a little suspicious about how Senator Joseph McCarthy died, seeing that the year he was censured by the State is the same year of his death. I would like to know how he died and could it be possibly because of the actions he took to get into the Senate.

F. Date of document:
     February 11, 1950

G. Author:
     Senator Joseph McCarthy

H. Purpose of document:
     The purpose of the document was so that McCarthy could try to use some leverage, for his own personal gain, by offering up the idea that there were some individuals in the State Department that were in fact Communist. Sending the telegram to President Harry Truman, Senator McCarthy seemed to have been shifting the blame and pointing the finger towards the President and that he was to correct this mistake. It can be determined from reading the document that Senator McCarthy was only looking out for himself and only what he could accomplish in the long run and would go to such lengths as to single out those in the government and accuse them of being involved with the Communist Party.

Private Ryan: The Picture of Loyalty

     

Private James Francis Ryan, in the film, Saving Private Ryan, was in fact a person of substantial and tremendous qualities, one of which was loyalty. In reviewing the film, Private Ryan still stands as the definition of a loyal person, seeing that he intentionally defies the government's request to have him relieved of his duty in order to stay with his military "family," his "brothers" of the war. Even with the deaths of his biological brothers, Ryan pushes the emotional pain aside and continues to help protect his friends and to complete the mission set out before him. In the choice to stay, Private Ryan demonstrates leadership qualities in that he does not abandon what he was taught to fight for or the people who fight alongside him.

If I was, in fact, to take and fill the shoes of one of the World War II soldiers, I am not sure how I would have responded to it all. I would hope to fulfill all of my patriotic duties and serve my country proudly. I probably would try my best to follow the rules and guidelines set by the military, unlike some of the men in the film, and do the honorable thing in the end.

WWII: A Day In the Life of a Soldier

    

     In the film, Saving Private Ryan,  it follows a team of World War II soldiers on a mission to relieve a soldier of his duty, due to the sudden losses of his three brothers, who were also a part of the war. While on this mission, the war left a physical, as well as, an emotional toll on all of the men involved, as their friendship and loyalty were put to the test with injuries, heartaches, and deaths. In the day of a soldier, there was really nothing to help one prepare for what was to come.While dodging bullets and trekking into enemy territory, each soldier was faced with that probable idea that they too would end up dying. It is evident in the film that many soldiers were faced with traumatizing experiences, and that even those who seemed to be immune to death and oblivious to the war itself, all had their own breaking point, to which they could not muster up the courage to put on a brave face and walk away and ignore the situation anymore. This is expected, though some will not admit to it, because, also seen in the film were all of the hardships that each of these men were faced with. It was difficult to live the life of a soldier, because with all of the excitement for serving your country and fulfilling your patriotic duty, also came the the physical fatigue and emotional burdens.

WWI: Enter America... Stage Right!

     There was a total of seven reasons in which caused the United States to join in the Great War, World War I. To begin, there was a development of new weapons, such as the German U-Boats, which was like a submarine that changed the rules of naval warfare. These U-Boats provided no defense for passenger and merchant ships and could go undetected almost anywhere, to which many Americans thought of them being uncivilized, seeing that they did not issue an warnings to their targets. Along with the German U-Boats, another reason for the U.S. to enter the World War was because of the Transatlantic Cable Cut, which is where Britain  cut the transatlantic cable to prevent communication between the United States and Germany. 

     Then there was the case of the Lusitania, a British passenger liner, that was sunk because it was supposedly mistaken for being a ship carrying weapons. On the ship, there were 128 Americans that were killed because of the attack. With all of the hype of the German U-Boats and how uncivilized their attacks were, it was then when the Sussex Pledge came into action, after sinking the Allied Ship called the Sussex, in which Germany would have to promise to warn other ships that they were going to attack them. 

     Also, the Zimmerman Telegram played a factor into leading the U.S. to join the Allied forces in WWI. The Zimmerman Telegram is where the German's foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmerman, sent a telegram to Mexico to make a secret offer of Alliance and wanted for Mexico to attack the United States. Mexico declined the offer and made relations between America and Germany worse. Then came the Russian Revolution in which Russia's autocratic leader, Czar Nicholas II, was forced to give up his power which led to a republican government to rise and replace the monarchy, leaving the United States no reason not to join the Allies. Finally, with the sinking of the Vigilancia, Illinois and the City of Memphis, all of which were American ships sunk by the Germans. This sent America over the edge and they declared war on Germany a few days after the attack. These were all contributing factors of what caused Americans to get involved in the Great War... World War I!

In this political cartoon, it demonstrates one of the most predominant reasons in which caused the Great War, World War I. This picture depicts the alliances that were made due to the war, with one side consisting of 7 allies from different nations including the U.S., Great Britain, and Russia, and the other side only consisting of 2 allies, Germany and Austria-Hungary. With the thought of 7 allies against only 2 rivals, it seems like it would be a pretty easy win for this team, yet, as the picture suggests, Germany and Austria-Hungary were large rivals in the War and it was a struggle that lasted four years. It can be seen that the picture depicts these two rivals as being larger, more fit, with feet firm on the ground they stand on, but the other side shows the central allied powers as weaker nations as they struggle to bring their rivals down. This just goes to show that it was a difficult war throughout the years but eventually the Central Allied Powers pulled through and overcame their rivals. 

 

In this picture, it demonstrates how America was trying to spread their power and influence to the other countries of the world. Through this picture we see a simple cartoon of Uncle Sam sitting at a restaurant, trying to decide what to order, the only thing is is that the items on the menu are other countries in which symbolizes America becoming Imperialistic and trying to spread democracy to these nations. Any of these countries would be easy for him to seize and take control over as you can see the eased expression in his face, pondering about which one he will have.

During the late 1800's, the United States decided to become an Imperialistic nation for multiple reasons. They wanted to influence and overtake other countries and they did this because of a strong military and a desire for new markets and trade. They also wanted to renew the American spirit and spread their dominant religion, which was Christianity. Through this process, came Nationalism, which is the feeling of superiority over the other nations, basically stating that they felt they were better than the other nations. The basic reasons for America to expand was for economic, military purposes and to establish humanitarianism.