War as a Normality of Life and Politics

War as a Normality of Life and Politics In his chapter, "Sun-Tzu and Thucydides", Robert D. Kaplan discusses the war philosophy of Sun-Tzu and Thucydides. Kaplan explores these ancient literatures because he believes it is important to look at ancient classics on war and politics, since literature is the quiet resource of statesmen. As Kaplan elucidates on the principles of both Sun-Tzu and Thucydides, it is evident that they both believe that war is not an aberration. Kaplan identifies in his chapter that, if Sun-Tzu did indeed exist as one man, he was likely a court minister in China in the fourth century B.C. Whether he did exist or not, the book, "The Art of Warfare" was definitely a work of philosophy by someone or a group of people, who lived through the Chinese turmoil and the warring states; and grew to despise war and its consequences. Due to this suffering, Sun-Tzu developed his tolerance of the limit to which a general can resort to, in order to avoid war. The book, "The Art of Warfare" is based on the principal, that first and foremost, to be completely successful, one must avoid war; yet when the inevitable does occur, one must win it by any means for the sake of honour. Sun-Tzu's beliefs led him to express in his book that strategy is vital in averting war. He justifies his statement about a commander in chief being able to avoid war by going to great lengths,

  • Word count: 640
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Gallipoli Campaign How useful are the views of Anzac soldiers at Gallipoli suggested in Sources A, B and C. Explain your answer

Gallipoli coursework . How useful are the views of Anzac soldiers at Gallipoli suggested in Sources A, B and C. Explain your answer. Source A shows two cartoons of ANZAC soldiers. The cartoons represent the rather relaxed attitude of the ANZACs. The cartoon on the right shows this, because he is casually smoking. The smile also represents their positive outlook towards war. The cartoons show the unconventional nature of the ANZACs. They were poorly equipped and were often described as 'scruffy'. However, the cartoon on the right represents their resourcefulness, because the soldier shown has fixed his cigarette. The cartoons are useful for giving us a view of how the ANZACs saw themselves, and they seem to be rather proud of their appearances and characteristics. However, despite the useful opinions shown in the cartoons, the source is not very useful for describing specific events in the Gallipoli campaign. The source is relevant to many descriptions that have been made of the ANZACs, which means that it is trustworthy. It was also written by an ANZAC who was at the Gallipoli campaign, and therefore he would have had first-hand knowledge of the campaign. However, the fact that they were drawn by an Australian artist makes them less trustworthy, because he may have wanted to present the ANZACs in a good light. Source B is a British description of the ANZACs. It

  • Word count: 671
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Is there sufficient evidence in Sources A to F to explain why there was an anti-war movement in the United States during the late 1960's and early 1970's?

Is there sufficient evidence in Sources A to F to explain why there was an anti-war movement in the United States during the late 1960's and early 1970's? In the late 1960's and early 1970's there were many anti-war movements in the United States. These mainly started because all the US people saw how brutal the Vietnam War was through the media, which had video footage and many pictures. Source A is a written extract from the book 'Four hours in My Lai' and it states how the United States army were inexperienced and were most likely to die quickly after going into Vietnam. It was written by Michael Bilton and published in 1992. Its intended audience was the general public and its purpose to was justify how unintelligent and unsuccessful the US army was in My Lai. Its is sufficient evidence to explain why there was an anti-war movement because when the public in the USA read this they would see how unsuccessful their soldiers were and how many wasted lives there had been so early after they entered Vietnam. Also there would have been so many families who had last relatives in Vietnam so that could bring around 3 or 4 protesters per soldier that died. However it is not sufficient evidence to explain why there was an anti-war movement because the extract is completely biased and doesn't give a slightest balanced view. It is one sided to show how unsuccessful the American

  • Word count: 2093
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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The history of relations' USA - Japan the War in the Pacific

(1)The history of relations' USA - Japan the War in the Pacific As an island nation Japan evolved an elaborate social structure that many did not want to see 'Westernised" as a result of contact and trade with Europe or with the United States. After being opened up at gunpoint by commodore Perry during 1854 but defeating them a few years later, Japan sealed its borders and tried to become entirely self-sufficient. But in the early decades of the 20th century, Japan was no longer able to rely solely on itself for food and raw materials. Many members of the Japanese ruling class knew that, for Japan to survive and prosper, it would have to modernise and adopt Western Technology. For many Japanese nationalists, however, the way to achieve economic and political stature was to establish an Empire in East Asia that would provide Japan with the resources it needed. The Desire for an Empire had another source as well. Many Japanese were still rankled by the outcome of WW1. In that war Japan fought on the side of the Western allies primarily by providing weapons and ammunition. Although Japan was ceded some minor German territories in the Pacific in the peace treaty that followed the war, the nation's traditional warrior castle - The Samurai - felt that Japan had been relegated to second class status by the United States and Great Britain. The Japanese then formed a plan, whereby

  • Word count: 884
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How did the Cold War shape post-war politics during the period 1945-1961?

European History 1914-1961 a) How did the Cold War shape post-war politics during the period 1945-1961? Europe attempted to develop from political and economical struggles after the Second World War and to reform under the threat of a cold war. Winston Churchill once said, "What is Europe? A rubble of heap, a charnel house, a breeding ground of pestilence and hate"1 This pessimism of Churchill's was in keeping with the rest of Europe after the Second World War as most of Europe was struggling. The death camps brought enormous loss of lives as many Jews were tortured and killed. Those Jews that remained fortunate enough to survive the war returned to their homes in France, Belgium, Netherlands and Germany. The Second World War ended in Europe in May 1945 with victory for Allies, led by USSR, Britain and USA. After the war, Europe faced enormous problems: - Refugee crisis - millions made homeless by war and millions left homes to escape rule by enemies - Destruction of cities - homes, businesses, factories - and of communications - e.g. railways, bridges and ports - Economic disruption - shortage of food, other basic supplies, e.g. energy; unemployment; poverty - Collapse of governments in countries that lost war, e.g. Germany, and countries ruined by war, e.g. Poland. Trying to solve these problems, the Allies began to disagree and split into two sides over various

  • Word count: 2297
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Is There Still an Imperial Presidency?

IS THERE STILL AN IMPERIAL PRESIDENCY? Writers of the constitution intended for congress to be the most powerful branch of government. They invested in the president: the powers of the monarch, but subjected him to the democratic principles of accountability which was ensured by a complex system of parliamentary and judicial checks and balances. For over a century the US got along fine with a relatively weak president whose major role was simply to carry out the laws and policies made by congress, however, there has been erosion in this system. Presidential power only started to grow after the 19th century when the US set out on its path to empire. A great transformation of the president's power came with Franklin D. Roosevelt. When he came into office in 1933, he declared the great depression1 a national emergency and announced that he would treat the depression as a war. Although congress did not approve of this, he still presided over the nation. Roosevelt also stayed in office for more than four terms until his death in 1945. His forceful leadership and many years in office inspired a term, 'the imperial presidency' that would be applied to subsequent president with similar leadership style. Imperial means one that is superior in authority or acting like an emperor. Roosevelt's successors used the cold war to justify continuity of the imperial presidency. There was

  • Word count: 1775
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How important was technological innovation compared with other factors in producing allied victory in the Crimean war?

How important was technological innovation compared with other factors in producing allied victory in the Crimean war? To answer this question fully we have to look at all the factors concerned and then ascertain the effect each had on the outcome of the war. To make this easier I have categorised the factors in to leadership and organisation, battlefield tactics, strategy and technology. The allied leadership in the Crimean war was weak and held surprisingly little commanding power over many aspects of the war. Lord Raglan, an old, inexperienced and cautious man, was the commander of the British troops. He had only acquired the position on grounds of seniority and was not the strongest of commanders. Added to the fact that Raglan was a fairly weak commander was the astonishingly low level of control he had over the war effort as a whole: the artillery, transport and naval aspects of the war all being under the control of other commanders. Raglan's weak and over cautious leadership did cause problems in the war, as often Raglan took too long to make decisions, giving the Russians time to fortify positions and regroup troops. A prime example of this cautiousness is the situation after the battle of Alma, where the allied troops waited too long to follow on the attack to Sebastopol, giving the Russians time to prepare for an assault. However, the appalling organisation of the

  • Word count: 1329
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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The Canadian Immigration policy.

Between 1880 and 1920, Canada was a popular place for immigrants. "In the first twenty years of the century, the number of people who lived in Canada almost doubled, from 5.4 million to 10.4 million".1 New immigrants were not encouraged to melt in the pot, but to preserve there own unique identity and culture, which is something still very much encouraged today. Yet Canada's immigration policy had its negative aspects, most notably taking place around 1917 with the allocation of the Wartime Elections Act and its restrictions on specific pacifist religious sects. During this time Canada's immigration policy was unfairly rejecting those of specific creed and culture due to an increase in anti-foreigner sentiment. At this time Canada's immigration policy reflected that of an unjust country interested only in keeping with similar political power and appealing to those uncomfortable with the influx of foreigners. The Canadian government's unease with foreigners was nothing new to immigration. Those considered "enemy aliens," "as all immigrants from enemy countries were called, became the objects of widespread persecution and hostility."2 When an enemy alien immigrated to Canada, they were "required to register with a local magistrate, to report on a monthly basis, and to turn in all firearms."3 Issues concerning foreign population again arose in 1917 when the conservative

  • Word count: 741
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Cultural Shock.

Cultural Shock. I've arrived to the United States just two months ago. I'm from Hungary, an Eastern European small country. I didn't know the expression: cultural shock until I came here, but after a week I had to realize that I was in a totally new world. Everything was different for me: the language, the norms, the personality of an average person. I realized that I have to learn all these things to understand the Americans and to be able to live with them. The United States is one of the most diversified countries in the world. Its people come from multiple ethnic backgrounds and cultural traditions. For this reason, it is quite different from other nations. It is understandable that foreign nationals will encounter language and cultural differences. But if you are flexible, you can easily assimilate into the American culture within a short period of time. Fortunately, most people in the United States, particularly those living in the metropolitan areas, are used to communicating with people from different ethnic backgrounds. You will find that they are tolerant toward someone who is not a U.S. native. Although the United States is a blend of multiple cultures, I have found distinct characteristics that clearly define it from other cultures. People Americans use plenty of slang, which often does not make sense to foreigners. Some examples are: a) let's play it by

  • Word count: 657
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Disreli and Gladstone

"What are the main arguments against the use of referendums?" Some people may suggest that referendums can be classified as the best form of democracy. However one suggestion about referendums was expressed by Plato the Greek philosopher. He opposes to direct democracy because he believed it will subvert people to disrespect their own decisions in which they make themselves. Plato believed the "people" were too ignorant to rule themselves well, as people would just continuously repeal the same laws that wouldn't be suitable to them anymore. Therefore the excess use of referendums will lead to a development of insolence for our elected representatives and institutions. Furthermore there may be issues that may be too complex for the majority of the population to make a conclusion on. This is because the majority of the population wouldn't be as educated and expertise such as our representatives who have the qualifications and the history knowledge about politics. This can be highly dangerous as the population would panic and be dependent on the influence of biased sources of information from the media and etc. therefore decisions would be wrongly made as judgements are declared without considering the significant details behind the issue. Consequently many would agree that issues should be handed to the representative government to create justified decisions on behalf of their

  • Word count: 2000
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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