Term paper on Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

RESOURCE GUIDE

Japanese-American relations, already strained, deteriorated in July 1941 when Japan declared a protectorate over French Indochina and the United States froze Japanese assets and extended the list of embargoed goods to include oil. Triumphing over their nation’s peace faction, Japanese militarists then planned a secret attack on Pearl Harbor, the major U.S. military outpost in the Pacific. Although the United States had broken Japan ‘s secret diplomatic code (the Purple Cipher) and knew of a forthcoming attack somewhere against U.S. , British, or Dutch possessions, preparedness at Pearl Harbor proved woefully insufficient. The Japanese attack on December 7, 1941, left 2,400 Americans dead, as well as 150 planes and several battleships destroyed. Congress declared war the following day.
Suggestions for Term Papers

1. Was Japan ‘s attack on Pearl Harbor inevitable?

2. Discuss the decoding of the Purple Cipher and its consequences.

3. Analyze the diplomatic attempts to resolve tensions between Japan and the United States .

4. Discuss why Pearl Harbor was not adequately prepared for an attack.

5. Discuss the effect of the Pearl Harbor attack on the West Coast.

Suggested Sources : See entries 43, 45, 46, and 47 for related items.

REFERENCE SOURCES

The Pacific War Encyclopedia . James F. Dunnigan and Albert A. Nofi. New York : Facts on File, 1998. 2 vols. Detailed history by military experts from multiple perspectives. Treats all aspects, including personalities and African American influences. Dramatic black and white photographs, as well as numerous charts and tables.

GENERAL SOURCES

Costello, John. Days of Infamy . New York : Pocket, 1994. New study of declassified materials argues that Admiral Husband E. Kimmel and Lieutenant General Walter C. Short were unjustly blamed for the disasters of Pearl Harbor and the Philippines as well.

Hoyt, Edwin P. Japan’s War: The Great Pacific Conflict . New York : McGraw-Hill, 1986. Why Japan started the war, why the United States was unprepared, and how Japan ‘s buildup was carried out.

Isserman, Maurice. World War II . New York : Facts on File, 1991. From Pearl Harbor to Japan ‘s surrender on the U.S.S. Missouri , an accurate, gripping account of the U.S. experience.

SPECIALIZED SOURCES

Beach, Edward L. Scapegoats: A Defense of Kimmel and Short at Pearl Harbor . Washington , DC : Naval Institute Press, 1995. Blames the Pearl Harbor disaster on midlevel U.S. intelligence officers rather than the commanding officers.

Clark, Thurston. Pearl Harbor Ghosts: A Journey to Hawaii Then and Now. New York: Morrow, 1991. First-person testimony from a cross section of Japanese, Japanese Americans, native Hawaiians, members of the Caucasian elite, and servicemen stationed at Pearl Harbor on the fateful day.

Clausen, Henry C., and Bruce Lee. Pearl Harbor: Final Judgment. New York: Crown, 1992. Places the blame for the attack on key middleechelon intelligence officers and debunks many of the previous conspiracy theories.

Goldstein, Donald M., and Katherine V. Dillon. The Pearl Harbor Papers: Inside the Japanese Plans. Dulles, VA: Brassey’s 1993. Details the Japanese plans of the raid with a wide range of political, diplomatic, and military topics.

Honan, William H. The Untold Story of How Journalist Hector C. Bywater Devised the Plans That Led to Pearl Harbor. New York: St. Martin ‘s, 1991. Argues that Japanese admiral Yamamoto drew the inspiration for his plan from Bywater’s 1925 novel, The Great Pacific War: A History of the American-Japanese Campaign of 1931–1933.

Love, Robert W., Jr., ed. Pearl Harbor Revisited. New York: St. Martin ‘s 1995. Collection of conference papers on the attack. Part of the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute Series on Diplomatic and Economic History.

Prange, Gordon, At Dawn We Slept: Untold Story of Pearl Harbor. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1981. Most comprehensive text to date on all aspects of the attack and how the U.S. mission failed to notice the signs of an imminent Japanese attack.

Slackman, Michael. Target Pearl Harbor. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press, 1990. Examines American attitudes toward the Japanese and how those attitudes affected strategy.

Toland, John. Infamy: Pearl Harbor and Its Aftermath. New York: Doubleday, 1982. The most complete account of the inquiries into the responsibility for Pearl Harbor and the blame placed on Admiral Kimmel.

Weintraub, Stanley. Long Day’s Journey into War: December 7, 1941. New York: Truman Talley, 1991. Highly readable narrative as individuals are caught up in the event; nonjudgmental in nature.

Worth, Jr., Roland H. Pearl Harbor: Selected Testimonies, Fully Indexed, from the Congressional Hearings (1943–1946) and Prior Investigations of the Events Leading Up to the Attack. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 1993. Excellent source on the congressional hearings about Pearl Harbor.

BIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES

Hoyt, Edwin P. Three Military Leaders . New York : Kodansha, 1993. Studies the careers and military leadership of Japanese admirals Togo and Yamamoto, and General Yamashita.

Raymer, Edward C. Descent into Darkness: Pearl Harbor , 1941: A Navy Diver’s Memoir. Novato, CA: Presidio, 1996. The story of the salvage efforts on sunken and damaged ships at Pearl Harbor and throughout the Pacific.

AUDIOVISUAL SOURCES

Pearl Harbor : The Eyewitness Story. Wynnwood, PA: Schlessinger/Library Video, 1988. Videocassette. Reenactments, gripping eyewitness stories, and rare historic footage, including captured Japanese war footage in this 70-minute presentation.

WORLD WIDE WEB

‘‘Radio Days— Pearl Harbor .” Radio News. November 1996 http://otr.com/pearl.html Brief narrative and radio report of the attack.