World War II

By Katie Follet

What do you think about when someone says “World War II”? Perhaps the first thing that you see in your mind’s eye is a giant mushroom-shaped cloud, the now well-known symbol of an atomic bomb, synonymous with the destruction that took place at Nagasaki and Hiroshima at the end of the War. Or maybe you think of your grandparents and the stories they tell of life then, or (if you happen to be homeschooled) you might remember a snippet of one of President Roosevelt’s fireside chats that your mom made you listen to in the fourth grade. All of these things play important roles in our recollections of this time of war, and I would like to share how I have come to view what I consider to be one of the most exciting and most unified times that our country has experienced.

First of all, I think that it would be beneficial for you to know that when I think of World War II, I don’t immediately hone in on Pearl Harbor. I like to begin with the years preceding that “date which will live in infamy,” most importantly, the years following the Great Depression. In March of 1933, four years after the stock market crashed, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s calming, reassuring voice was broadcast across America to discouraged, tired Americans.

President Roosevelt had begun a campaign to win the support of the American people for his ideas to help resurrect the economy using the radio, a relatively new form of communication, by approaching them in their own vernacular, under their own terms, in their own homes. The fireside chats became so popular that many American families set aside their troubles of the day to hear the news in the President’s words. In fact, many say that they felt as though “they were inviting the President into their living room for a personal chat.”

I can say that, personally, whenever I hear his voice, I let it slowly wash over me until I am covered in chills and filled with patriotic zeal! Why were these “chats” so successful? I believe it is because he went to the Americans and didn’t wait for them to come to him. His “First 100 Days” in office he got right down to business and got to work helping the people get back on their feet.

Now we fast-forward a few years: The Depression is still going on, but people are adjusting and the economy is beginning to improve a bit. There is war in Europe, and many are hoping that it will stay there. It was American policy to avoid foreign wars unless, or in this case until, they were threatening to American soil.

On December 7, 1941, the American people were jolted into action due to the havoc that was wreaked on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The Japanese masterfully executed a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor using ingenious new methods of transport and destruction. They had thought out the plan to the smallest detail, had overcome overwhelming obstacles, and they had been victorious. The people were shocked by the losses and almost certainly felt that their world was being shattered.

For years following this attack, the American people’s battle cry was “Remember Pearl Harbor” and was even used to send people of Japanese descent to internment camps. Can’t relate to how the people felt? Compare it to 9/11. Most Americans feel sheltered, protected from the outside powers that are against them. Most didn’t realize that an enemy’s attack could be right around the corner. On 9/11, our country was attacked where it was most vulnerable, and the people of the United States were shattered by the attack and its consequences. Even now, more than ten years later, “Remember 9/11!” is our battle cry of sorts.

During World War II, the people of the U.S. became united under the President’s leadership. Everyone, it seemed, was fighting for the cause. Most men were volunteering to defend their country’s honor, and others were drafted for service. The five Sullivan brothers and the lesser known Borgstrom brothers, four of them, became famous, after they died, for their devotion to each other and during service to their country.

Unity and loyalty were recurring themes in the people’s daily lives. They heard it on the radio in songs like “There’ll Be a Hot Time in the Town of Berlin” sung by crooner Bing Crosby and the Andrews sisters in 1944. They watched it in the newsreels shown before seeing movies such as “The Fighting Seabees” starring John Wayne. They saw it when they walked down the streets, on posters warning them to keep quiet about where their sons were, telling them to join together on the battlefield and in the workplace. The men were offered lives of adventure in the Navy, the women were offered opportunities to take their places in the factories that the men left behind, and the children were encouraged to save up to buy war bonds, recycle scrap metal for airplanes, and collect leftover cooking fat for bullets. America was showing the rest of the world that they were a force to be reckoned with.

One thing that I find to be most interesting about the World War II era is how involved the children seemed to be in the effort to win the war, not only in the ways mentioned above but in many other ways too. The country’s leaders seemed to realize the importance of the American youth and did not allow them to be cast aside because they were “too young.” Children were encouraged to play with plane identification cards, which showed a detailed silhouette of Allied and Axis planes, due to a desire to prevent another Pearl Harbor-style attack. They were taught to “waste not, want not” and the importance of a Victory Garden to help their families save money, so they, in turn, could help support the war effort.

What was the end result? Well, some would say the survival of democracy was the important outcome. President Roosevelt stated in his Third Inauguration speech: “Democracy alone, of all forms of government, enlists the full force of men’s enlightened will . . . . It is the most humane, the most advanced, and, in the end, the most unconquerable of all forms of human society. The democratic aspiration is no mere recent phase of human history.”1 My dad has always said that he believes that one reason why God has blessed America with so many victories is because He intended to use our nation to help fulfill His promise to establish Israel as a nation. I can only say that if this is true, then we all, as Americans, have something to be proud of and should challenge ourselves to follow the words written in Joshua 22:5, “ . . . to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments, and to cleave unto Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Katie Follett is 17 years old and an avid fan of history! She has been homeschooled since third grade, and loves being able to see how the Lord works all throughout His Story. Often the verse that comes to mind as she reads is Proverbs 21:1.

Endnote:1. www.secondworldwarhistory.com/ww2-quotes.asp , accessed January 4, 2013 .

Copyright 2013, used with permission. All rights reserved by author. Originally appeared in the February 2013 issue of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, the family education magazine. Read the magazine free at www.TOSMagazine.com or read it on the go and download the free apps at www.TOSApps.com to read the magazine on your mobile devices.