Pearl Harbor

Essay # 97406

History > U.S. Presidency
History > U.S. World Wars

Pearl Harbor

An examination of whether the leaders of the United States knew in advance about the attack on Pearl Harbor and why they responded the way they did.

1,280 words () | 4 sources | APA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the events surrounding the attack of Pearl Harbor. It focuses on why the attack at Pearl Harbor was not prevented and why the leaders of the United States, approached the situation the way they did. The paper evaluates whether the attack and its outcomes were due to poor intelligence or poor military leadership.

From the Paper:

"Roosevelt claimed that December 7 was a day that would live in infamy. However, it seems that two men, not one day, have lived in infamy. Is the blame put on Rear Adm. Kimmel and Maj. Gen. Short, the two commanders of Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack, justified? As with any story in history, this tale has at least two sides. In the pre-WW2 military world, issues were handed down from the very top, all the way to the bottom, and without the technology we have today, sometimes messages were delayed. However, many claim that the United States military was warned in enough time to counter the attack. After careful research, one can conclude that the tremendous damage done to Pearl Harbor is a result of intelligence failure and lack of urgency by the military and President Roosevelt."

Sample of Sources Used:

Kahn, The Intelligence Failure of Pearl Harbor, (New York: Foreign Affairs, 1991), 138.
Spencer Warren, Why America Slept, (New York: National Review, 1991), 34.
David Richardson, Pearl Harbor: What Really Happened? (American Heritage, 2001), 50.
John Mueller, "Pearl Harbor: Military Inconvenience, Political Distaster," (International Security, 1992), 174.