Japanese Atomic Bombing Dbq

Section 1: Identification and Evaluation of sources

This investigation will explore the question: To what extent has foreign influence by the United States after the atomic bombings affected Japan socially and economically? The time period this investigation will focus on is post WWII to 1977 allowing long-term analysis to be performed and seen.

The source which will be analyzed is the document “Japanese economic takeoff after 1945” compiled from books by John Dower, Bai Gao, Andrew Gordon, and Kenneth Pyle which gives detailed information of the economic increase after the Japanese atomic bombings in 1945. The origin of this source is valuable because multiple authors including Japanese historians were used when this was written

all of which are specifically who write on Japanese topics and war events. Furthermore, each author is college educated and extensively has background into Japanese subjects and culture creating incredible accuracy in their books and in turn the document. But, the origin of the source is limited in that all the authors focus on internal effects of Japan’s economy and not anything external including political interactions or outsourced companies.
The purpose of this document is to lay out the facts from each author's books in simple easily accessible fashion. This is valuable since it shows that in large period of time has been analyzed, allowing for connections to make between the data discovered. Another value is that this document has no intention of persuading the reading to any specific point of view for the doc is a simple compilation of data from the multiple books. However, the fact that the authors have covered more than 50 years of economic developments limits its value to an investigation on economic developments in a short time period. The final limitation is that the document is majorly one sided with information and data from the U.S and no first hand numbers or information from Japan.

Section 2: Investigation
Historians would argue that the economy and social structure of Japan changed considerably after the U.S dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Between 1937 and 1945, before and during the war, Japanese economy developed quickly. Most of the increasingly militarized economy was diverse and complicated in ways that aided conversion to peacetime activity. After the war, many of the war supplying companies and a lot of the tech used during the war were converted to peaceful economic/social improvement. The bombs decimated many social aspects too with countless people dead, buildings wiped away, and land completely scorched beyond use. Uncounted deaths of military and foreign workers may have added largely to these numbers. About 15 square kilometers (around 55%) of the two cities were destroyed.
Even though many would logically assume that Japan’s economy would crash considerable after the war there multiple reasons in which caused it to actually rise. The U.S had the biggest impact on Japan’s economy during and after the war. The collapse of the Japanese economy during the war and the need to recreate it from scratch led to the induction of new technology and new management forms, which allowed these companies a chance to advance and upgrade themselves. Production reports showed increases of “24 percent in manufacturing, 46 percent in steel, 70 percent in nonferrous metals, and 252 percent in machinery.” (Dower 54-55) The changes were greeted with an international environment of free trade, reasonable technology and raw materials. During the Cold War, Japan was the consumer and ally of the well-developed U.S. economy and Japanese markets were allowed to be closed to the world while the American market was open to Japanese goods allowing advanced income revenue. “During the American occupation: 1946-49, Japanese economy was sustained by $500 million annually from the US. Despite this help, because of wartime devastation, Japanese economy was in shambles.” (Gordon 250) America wanted to help and reconcile with Japan after the war and atomic bombs by giving them an open market to sell, time, and money for years so they could develop how they liked. Fortunately, Japan was set up very well allowing them to move their focus from trying to rebuild their military or navy to infrastructure such as water and food systems which were devastated from the bombs. The economic state of Japan was going into a major shift for they wanted their major fortune to be a long term thing and they found some ways to keep it steady. In Japan, a welfare society exists, characterized by total employment, and including corporations of small and bigger sized companies to avoid disaster in order to maintain business for the whole working population. The welfare society and total employment enabled the Japanese state to shift much of the money it would have spent on welfare to industrial development, in the form of bank loans which caused massive upgrades and upheavals in major manufacturing companies leading to much larger production lines. During the occupation, one of the decisions MacArthur (An American general who lead the temporary occupation and rebuilding of Japan) made to free Japan was to take down the exclusiveness of trades (monopolies). “Because of the Cold War and the Korean War, the anti-monopoly idea was not widely held by the Americans to give the Japanese a chance to compete more aggressively internationally.” (Pyle, 248) This opportunity was seized upon by the Japanese government on Sept.1, 1953. American influence on the Japanese economy saved it from total collapse for the majority of money was used in the war and the rest that would have been left over would’ve gone straight into rebuilding Hiroshima and Nagasaki but thanks to the advanced policies and economy of the all-powerful U.S Japan came to be one of the most complex and valuable economy in the entire world.
Everyone would agree that Japan suffered heavily from the atomic bombs socially for the bombs used are the most destructive and deadly ever known to man at the time.

The effects of an atomic bomb are terribly devastating and long lasting and such include but are not limited to “Fireball: air absorbs heat, swells to a fireball with a 50-ft. radius and a temperature of 300,000 degrees C, Shock Wave and Air Blast which consumes 50% of total energy and, Radiation with two different kinds: initial radiation and induced radiation (leftover).” (Shoten 218) The casualties were the most uncertain effect of the bombs for they instantly destroy everything no one had ever used one of these before so there were no expectations. In Hiroshima the population it had of 250,000 was guessed that 45,000 died on the first day and a further 19,000 during the subsequent four months. But in Nagasaki with the population of 174,000 22,000 died on the first day and another 17,000 within the four months. Uncounted deaths of military and foreign workers may have added largely to these numbers. About 15 square kilometers (around 55%) of the two cities were destroyed. Socially it is miracle that the people who survived and who weren't radiated recovered as quick as they did especially when the cities that they were going to rebuild in were completely leveled and had no easy way of fixing anything. The U.S came to heavily influence the Japanese’s rebuilding process during the occupation after the war (1945-1952) in which many reforms were enacted on the whole of Japan’s holdings including social and economy. In September, 1945, General Douglas MacArthur took charge of the SCAP (Supreme Command of Allied Powers) and began rebuilding Japan. Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China advised as part of an “Allied Council,” but MacArthur had the final say on all decisions. “The occupation of Japan can be divided into three phases: the initial effort to punish and reform Japan, the work to

revive the Japanese economy, and the conclusion of a formal peace treaty and alliance.” (Gov. 2) The 1st phase began the end of the war in 1945 through 1947, involved the most advanced changes for the Japanese government and society. At the time, SCAP took apart the Japanese army and prohibited former military officers from taking roles of political positions in the new government. In 1947, Allied advisors essentially dictated a new constitution to Japan’s leaders. Some of the most important changes in the constitution included reduce the emperor’s status to that of a figurehead without control and placing more power in the court system, promoting better rights and privileges for women, and deny the right to wage war, which involved terminating all non-defensive military forces. America caused massive changes to every aspect of Japan but heavily reformed the social aspects for many military personnel and government officials lost their jobs which there were a lot of left after the war ended and they changed the traditional shogun system that had been place for years was replaced which caused a lot of up cry and approval at the new system being put in place.
It seems that the U.S had the greatest impact on Japan after the atomic bombs and WW2 especially socially and economic with great changes involved including massive government and employment reforms that lost many their jobs and economic advances that caused a steady rise in Japan’s economy that is seen today. However, though it should be noted that America was not the sole savior of Japan, many other nations across the world such as British, Australian, and Chinese sent workers, money and supplies to assist in the rebuilding of its cities and infrastructure. But, it is obvious that Japan wouldn’t be as great in a position as it is if America did not put its hatred aside and help the ones they devastated.