Topic #25 Overview Sheet
 
  Assignment #1
 

Sources:
 

Questions:
  1. Why did tensions emerge between the Soviet Union and her former allies before World War II?
  2. At the time of World War II, how did the vision of the postwar world held by the United States differ from that of the Soviets and the British?
  3. How did the Yalta Conference deal with the Polish and German questions?
  4. Explain the basic structure of the United Nations, and contrast its reception in the United States with that of the League of Nations.
  5. Contrast the attitudes of Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman toward Stalin and the Russians.  How did this difference play out at the Potsdam Conference?
  6. Why did the U. S. continue to support Chiang Kai-shek even as his control of mainland China slipped away?
  7. How did events in China impact on U. S. attitudes toward Japan? 
  8. What were Stalin's aims after the war?
  9. What was the purpose of the I. M. F.?   the World Bank?
  10. How did the US attempt to control global reorganization following World War II?
  11. What was the policy of "containment?"  What were President Truman's goals in establishing this foreign policy?
  12. Identify the main objectives of the Truman Doctrine.
  13. In what ways was the Marshall Plan the economic component of containment?  How well did it work?
  14. Why was the National Security Council created?  What role did it play in the development of national policy?
  15. Why did the US initiate the Berlin Airlift in 1948?  What were the effects of this move?
  16. List the original members of N. A. T. O.  What was the purpose of this alliance?
  17. Why was NSC-68 a key document in the early Cold War era?
  18. What is the "post-revisionist" view of the origins and nature of the Cold War?
 

Terms:
 
  Assignment #2
 

Sources:
 

Questions:
  1. What kept the United States from experiencing another depression after the war?  What economic challenges did the nation face?
  2. Identify the provisions of the GI Bill of Rights.  How did it help World War II veterans make the transition to civilian life?
  3. How did re-conversion affect the many women and minorities who had taken war-related jobs?
  4. How did post-war labor strikes impact American sentiment regarding the power of organized labor?
  5. List the major components of Truman's "Fair Deal."  What were his proposals for domestic reform that were rejected by a more conservative Congress?
  6. What were the provisions of the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947?  How did it address the issue of labor unions in the post-WW II period?
  7. What did President Truman mean by the sign on his desk which said:  The buck stops here!?
  8. Identify the major candidates, issues, and outcome of the 1948 presidential election.  Why is it so historic?
  9. What were the Truman administration's domestic successes and failures after the 1948 election?
  10. Why did the US go to war in Korean in 1950?  What was the role of the United Nations in this conflict?
  11. What was General MacArthur's plan in 1951 to end the stalemate in Korea?  Why did President Truman object to it so strongly?
  12. Why did President Truman fire General MacArthur?  What was the initial reaction of most Americans to this decision?
  13. What were the terms of the peace treaty that ended the Korean War?
  14. What was the significance of the Korean War in terms of American military effectiveness, its prediction of future US involvement in Asia, and its impact on the American commitment to fighting the Cold War?
 

Terms:
 
  Assignment #3
 

Sources:
 

Questions:
  1. Why was HUAC created?  What role did it play in the Second "Red Scare?"
  2. Who were the "Hollywood 10?"  Why was Hollywood a target of anti-communist investigations by Congress in the 1950s?
  3. What role did Ronald Reagan play in those Hollywood investigations?
  4. What is "red-baiting?"  How was it used by the Republican Party in the 1950s?
  5. What factors combined to create the anti-communist paranoia that led to the national mood that allowed the rise to prominence of Senator Joseph McCarthy?
  6. How did McCarthy exploit the existing mood of hysteria?  What sorts of tactics did he use in his attacks on alleged subversion?
  7. What personalities and policies led to the Republican victory in the presidential election of 1952?
  8. Though anti-communist sentiment did not disappear, what led to the demise of Senator Joseph McCarthy?
  9. How was this 1950s "Red Scare" era similar to the one at the end of and immediately following World War I?  How was it different?
 

Terms:
 
                
Quizzes:
  1. Textbook Quizzes -->   chapter 29
  2. My Quizzes -->  A   B   C
    3.  
     
Outlines / Lecture Notes / Review Sheets:
  1. Giant AHAP Review Sheet by a student from the class of '04, Horace Greeley HS
  2. Lecture outline --> "Two Wars, Hot and Cold" (Prof. David McGee, Central Virginia Community College)
    3.
  3. Note Cards -->  1301-1350      1351-1400
  4. Presidential Election Data --> 1948     1952
  5. "Origins of the Cold War" - outline
    6.

 


   
 

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