Summary Of Thank God For The Atomic Bomb By Paul Fussell

The first perspective that came out of the dropping of the bombs is known as the traditional, or the orthodox perspective. This perspective expresses the idea that the bombs were needed to bring about the end of World WarIIand save countless numbers of lives. This was the claim that President Truman publicly expressed and is believed by numerous historians. One of these key historians is Paul Fussell, who clearly expressed his perspective in his famous 1981 essay, ‘Thank God For the Atom Bomb’. Fussell strongly supported the idea that the only way to quickly end the war and save lives was to drop the atomic bombs on Japan, “The purpose of the bombs wasn't to ‘punish people' but to stop war.” (Fussell, 1981, p. 1). One of the main reasons this perspective is held is because it is widely felt that the bombs were needed in order

Not only would the bombs save the lives of Allies troops, but also the lives of countless Japanese. Prior to the bombs dropping, an Allied invasion of the Japanese coast was planned to take place from late November 1945 and was anticipated to continue until at least November 1946 before the Japanese would surrender.The invasion known as Operation Downfall was originally expected to cause one million American casualties and even more on the Japaneseside;

“ Planners of the invasion assumed that it would require a full year, to November 1946, for theJapanese to be sufficiently worn down by land-combat attrition to surrender. By that time, one million American casualties was the expected price. (Fussell, 1981, p. 2)

With this number in mind, it is understandable as to why President Truman would have decided to drop the bomb. The fate of millions of lives rested in his hands. When comparing this to the approximate final death tolls