S2, Honors History Blog 2

How/Why are World Wars 1/2 important today? How do they impact and/or inform our world today? hint: think about alliances, democracies around the world, cultures, international institutions, nuclear (and other) technologies, etc.

World War 2
During WWII, in America, women had to take over men's jobs in factories and other workplaces, as men were fighting in the war. When the war was over, women were so proficient in the workplaces that it was more acceptable for them to work in heavy type jobs that were limited to males before. "Rosie the Riveter" became an icon of female work in factories and manufacturing plants.

WWII especially affected Germany. Germany made many enemies and few allies in WWII. Germany was given a choice to either be invaded by the allies or sign the treaty, so officials felt they had no choice to sign it. Through the treaty of Versailles, a large amount of land would be taken away from Germany (13% of land given to France, Belgium, Denmark, Czechoslovakia, and Poland). The militant forces were to be reduced to 100,000, and Germany was forced to admit to being the main cause of the war, even though that is not entirely true. Germany was also to pay for a large amount of money to allied countries (approximately $32bil USD) in which it the country is still paying off today. Through this, Germany has taken measures

After WWII, the United Nations was formed, more specifically, in 1945. The UN formed after the League of Nations proved to be a failure. The United Nations originally consisted of the Allies Nations in WWII, but now consists of every country of the world (excluding antarctica). The purpose of the United Nations is to keep security and cooperation between the countries, internationally.

Sources:
http://www.firstworldwar.com/source/versailles.htm
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1656.html
http://www.un.org/en/
http://www.archives.gov/research/alic/index.html

WW2 Letters

1. You are a soldier at ... Iwo Jima. Write a letter to a friend or family member. Think of what might be in a letter like this: it would be on a specific date & from a specific city. this letter might describe your hopes, feelings, expectations, fears, etc. It might reference current events (or, then-current events), technology, or politicians. It might describe people, places, settings, technology and more. It might include the other person's life, perspective or questions. In fact, the person the letter is written to might be one of the people on that list!

February 18, 1945
Dear (insert loved one's name here),

Tomorrow we will attack Iwo Jima, a Japanese island. It will be our force's first attack on a Home island of Japan.

I am very nervous about what will await us tomorrow. I heard that there are over 10 miles of tunnels under the ground from where the Japanese can attack. Us on the American side have plenty of ways to attack the island, from the water, land, AND sky, and with the help from napalm and other gases, it should be no trouble exterminating the Japan side, and yet, I am uneasy if it will work.

Our plan has been set. First, two troops will land near Mount Siribuchi, a mountain on the island. They will secure the mountain along with securing the west side of the island. From there, we will go from the south up in order to take over the island. We will attack from land using flamethrowers and other artillery, along with napalm gases and others to poison them from aboveground. Then we will do aerial attacks using bombs dropping from over-going aircraft.

Love,
Mr. Marine Man

S2, Blog 15

After WWII, the ministry of education ordered the kanji count in the Japanese language to be condensed to only 1,945. Also, words created in Japanese after WWII would be in English, but in katakana (For example, English "CD" is japanese "Shiidii" and English "DVD" is japanese "DEEBEEDEE"). This is interesting because, in a while, Japanese will literally be half English.

Ideas such as the microprocessor and computers were branched from WWII during the Manhattan project, when the idea of multitasking machinery was considered. The first were punchcards fed into such a machine and would spit out information.

S2, Blog 14

1. What are the most interesting aspects of World Wars 1 and 2?

2. What do you hope to learn about these wars?

3. How/Why are these wars important today? How do they impact and/or inform our world today? hint: think about alliances, democracies around the world, cultures, international institutions, nuclear (and other) technologies, etc.

1. The most interesting aspects of world wars 1 and 2 are the causes that brought the wars to be. For example, I'm aware that World War 1 started because of the controversial assassination of Franz Ferdinand (not sure much what happened after that, which I hope to learn).
2. I hope to learn what conflicts initially started these wars. I believe I know what start WWI (franz ferdinand) but what else? Also, what triggered WWII at first?
3. These wars are important today because, without them, things that were fought for during the World Wars (i.e., extermination of nazism, and other aspects)


Greenpeace Campaign

S2, Blog 13 (GOW Essay) {honors novel 2}

How does Jim Casy's moral philosophy guide the novel as a whole?

In a way, Steinbeck portrays Jim Casy as a sort of holier figure in the Grapes of Wrath book. His accidental meeting with one of the main, if not the most main, character, Tom Joad, was where this first concept came in to play. Jim Casy was seen sitting alone, recognizing Tom Joad on sight as a boy he once baptized many years ago. Upon asking if he still was known as reverend Jim Casy, he goes on to explain a revelation he made while preaching that brought him to the conclusion he should no longer preach.

"...I was sayin' out loud, 'The hell with it! There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do. It's all part of the same thing.' . . . . I says, 'What's this call, this sperit?' An' I says, 'It's love. I love people so much I'm fit to bust, sometimes.' . . . . I figgered, 'Why do we got to hang it on God or Jesus? Maybe,' I figgered, 'maybe it's all men an' all women we love; maybe that's the Holy Sperit-the human sperit-the whole shebang. Maybe all men got one big soul ever'body's a part of.' Now I sat there thinkin' it, an' all of a suddent-I knew it. I knew it so deep down that it was true, and I still know it."

These was a significant moment in the Grapes of Wrath because it conveys a whole new perspective on a widely controversial subject: the subject of higher power existing. He explains his revelation of this "Sperit" that he once believed to be with only those believing in God and Jesus to be in man as a whole.

However, his philosophy of holiness being in humans as a whole contradicts the actions and "virtues" of people in Grapes of Wrath.

Through this, his philosophy can help guide the novel as in show how corrupted and "unholy," in all senses of the word, the world has become during this time period. Casy's philosophy is that holiness is in people, and their so called "sin and virtue" is nonexistent, as it's just "stuff people do." He believes that this holiness and true virtue is in the heart and soul of the people, which drives us as humans to do what we do, and care for each other with the same love that one may think was God's love. However, during the book, things happen were any kind of virtue, God's or philosophically the ideals of man. During this time period, man's true "evil" side came out when the value of wealth became more valuable than the value of men. For example, when fruits were allowed to rot instead of given to those who truly needed it. Through this, the philosophy is turned sour in a contradictory situation of mankind's ignorance to their love for one another. Also by this, the moral philosophy that Jim Casy invented and had potentially led the story along was contradicted, which made the reader think harder of the meaning behind Grapes of Wrath.

However, in the final scene, where Rose of Sharon suckles an old dying man after birthing a stillborn child, the concept of Casy's "holiness" and a higher power "holiness" concept collides. The scene has been compared to that of the virgin Mary's when she held the dying Christ, and shows both the love of humankind and the original "Sperit" comparison. After the scene, Rose of Sharon looks into the distance and smiles "mysteriously," as if to come to the revelation that everything will be okay, even after their cars have been rained away, along with all their money spent and their new child being born dead. With this the moral philosophy of Jim Casy ends in the book with an unexpected revelation.

My Grapes of Wrath character sketches

https://sites.google.com/a/hightechhigh.org/shanna-s-dp/humanities/grapes-of-wrath

S2, Blog 12

What were "public works projects"? What famous ones were part of the New Deal? What public works projects would you recommend for our society today?

Public works projects were projects created by the Public Works Administration during the great depression. The purpose of these projects were to rebuild the economy and the nation.

Famous programs that were included in the New Deal included the AAA (Agricultural Adjustment Association), RA (Resettlement Administration), Farm Security Administration (FSA), and the TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority).

For our society today, I would recommend the Resettlement Administration. The program relocated those who could not afford to live in their houses and were relocated to communities funded and planned by the federal government. This is a smart idea, because one of the largest factors of the recession is bank reposession of people's houses, leaving many homeless. With the resettlement administration program, those who had been kicked out of their house could be resettled to a federal government community.