Lesson #14 - The Road to War

Winston Churchill-Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat

First Speech as Prime Minister to the House of Commons...

This is a speech of encouragement, Winston Churchill is basically telling the British Empire that in order to survive they need to succeed against Germany. He says "without victory, there is no survival." He explains that they have prepared for the war with a 'new government' that includes a war cabinet. The point of this new government is to represent the united and inflexible resolve of the nation to prosecute the war with Germany to a victorious conclusion. Churchill also talks about how they need to be prepared in the sky, on the ground, and underwater. If I was in the audience of this speech on May 13,1940, I would feel extremely determined to fight for my country and succeed.

Amanda Magistad

I listened to FDR on his speech of the Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation. As terrible as this might sound but this is my favorite historical event. As a nation i feel this is when we all came together and help win and end WWII. Before this we had been sending some supplies and a few soldiers over seas to Europe to help but it wasn't enough to win. There was no real reason for us to join the war until the attack on Pearl Harbor. The attack killed hundreds of thousands of people. I think FDR had every right to declare war on the Japanese .

My reaction of Pre. Franklin D. Roosevelt speech on the Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation was that he laid down the points of what happened. He explained the relationship of Japan and the United States well. Although Pre. Roosevelt voice sounded as if there was no emotion, he sounded like he was addressing to the Nation the facts of what happened in Pearl Harbor. He included that the United States viewed Japan as a peaceful nation before the "planed" attack on U.S. soil.
As he continues talking he builds up emotion form all of the attacks Japan did in the pacific area in one night. He lets his words instead of his voice to influence the audience on he is presenting so in a way there is no false feeling, what I mean about false feeling is that sometimes when you listen to a person speak they can inspirit you by their movements and rising and lowering of their voice and you might not even know what they are talking about. At the end he reminds everyone to remember what started all of what happen, making the audience think back to how it began.

For this assignment, I have read Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation". Among the many things that stuck out during this speech, one would notice that FDR isn't as greatly outraged, depressed, etc. as one would imagine. He did, however, make a very exact point that "we trusted you, and you betrayed us." Through many of his words, he makes it clear that he was offended, and shocked at the actions of Japan. If one were to read through the speech as a text, one would imagine that he was extremely furious at this notion, that he wanted to destroy these "enemies". Towards the end of the speech, he makes very confident remarks, saying that the American people will "win through to absolute victory." He rallies the ranks here, and sums up his main points. In conclusion, FDR makes his address very "to the point" and it is very important that we can still look at this speech, which was a declaration of war in many respects, and a very defining moment in history.

I read the speech, “We Shall Fight on the Beaches”, by Winston Churchill. In the speech, Prime Minister Churchill spoke about Britain’s brave battle at Dunkirk.
Churchill praised the courageous efforts of the Royal Air Forces battle against the German airplanes in order to protect the ground troops. He greatly moralized England, while also speaking about England’s military limitations. The Prime Minister moralized a country on the verge of defeat. He stated that he will valiantly defend Britain by fighting the Nazis using all means of military strategy. Lastly, Britain will NEVER surrender to such a malicious power.

Franklin D. Roosevelt - "The Four Freedoms"

This speech is basically about how the US has tried not to get involved in huge wars (although they have) and how they have never been targeted exactly until now. He is now saying that since they are being directly attacked, they need to get ready to fight. He also talks about how he will make the economy improve: More people will be able to have Med Care, more citizens will be under unemployment insurance, some people will have to pay more taxes.
He also goes on to talk about The Four Freedoms. He hopes that in the future, every American citizen will have these. These are Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, Freedom from Want (economic) and Freedom from Fear.

This speech really shows how confident FDR was. He seemed like he had a plan for every situation. He was also very persuasive and inspring which allowed many people to follow his ideas easily.

I listened to Winston Churchill speech "We Will Fight on the Beaches". It is a moving speech that tells of the hardships that Britain had before and during WWII. Churchill believed that even if Britain were to suffer they would keep on fighting in or out side of the county. The words of "We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills," mean even if we are invaded we shall fight anywhere to keep our country. Winston Churchill was an insightful man who saw the early signs of danger for Britain.

I read President Roosevelts Pearl Harbor address to the Nation. I thought that he informed the public about what happened very well. He gave the basic facts about how the Japanese were saying they wanted to try to make peace with us. But, were actually deceiving the United States. The speech ends up building to a conclusion where he declares war on Japan. His monotone voice uses the words to speak for themselves, he doesn't sound angry just calm and it makes me feel like he has it all under control and we will be safe and fine.

Winston Churchill’s "We Shall Fight on the Beaches."

I felt that this speech shows the determination of the Allies, and most importantly of Britain, to not give in to the Nazis. The British nation was almost destroyed during the course of the war, and when Churchill gave this speech he, and the rest of England, would have know that they could not hope to match the German military, and that the best possible result was to avoid total destruction for as long as possible. Yet even though that was widely known, and Churchill even stated that there had never been an, “absolute guarantee against invasion, still less against serious raids,” he pledged not only to fight to the last, but that England would “not be content with a defensive war,” and would risk fighting outside of the home theater. To me, this demonstrates the degree that England was committed to their cause: continuing to fight even when you know that all you can do is not be destroyed completely, just so that others will have a better chance of victory even after you are no longer a factor.

Joseph Stalin - Speech to the Politburo in 1939

Stalin starts by saying Russia is in somewhat of a lose/lose situation, either siding with France and Britain and having the Germans angry, or side with Germany, and have the French and British angry. Stalin chooses to go with Germany, in order to have a non-aggression pact with her. He also says that this will only work if Germany wins the war. If it loses, Russia will be on its own. Stalin just hopes that Germany drags its war out as long as it can, and leaves Russia out of the mess.

Joseph Stalin - Speech to the Politburo in 1939

Stalin starts out by saying Russia is in somewhat of a lose/lose situation. Either it can side with France and Great Britain, which would lead to Germany attacking Russia. Or, Russia could side with Germany, and politely decline France and Britain's help. This would not ensure that Germany would not attack Russia, but it would lead to a little peace. Stalin's main hope for Russia was that Germany prolong the war and drag it out as long as possible, so that Russia would not be attacked. Russia could just be left out of the war.

I read Winston Churchill’s Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat. In it, Churchill tells the audience that he has helped form a new branch of government for the war, a War Cabinet, and tells how he will further help to set this branch up and make it run successfully. I truthfully found this part of the speech quite boring because it was all little details that I didn’t quite understand. I wasn’t really interested in the speech until the last paragraph or so when Churchill started to talk about the war, and starts to rally the people. I believe that when he said, "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat." That Churchill was trying to show the people that even he, a powerful government figure, was pouring all he had into the war to try and win. To be victorious, as he says, is the goal, and he will use all the tactics that he knows of to win the war against “a monstrous tyranny.”

Franklin D. Roosevelt makes strong statements in his speech “The Four Freedoms” to convince the people of the United States that steps toward war are necessary. He begins his speech by demonstrating how actions taken in World War II are the greatest threat to national security, independence and democracy that the United States has encountered. Next, he speaks out against appeasement, noting that we should not give up our liberty for safety. He warns, “We must especially beware of that small group of selfish men who would clip the wings of the American eagle in order to feather their own nests.” Also, he urges the nation to make greater progress on the production of products needed for war such as airplanes and war ships. “Today’s best is not good enough for tomorrow,” Roosevelt declares. He ends his speech by outlining the basis of democracy, the four freedoms.
By the use of these powerful statements Roosevelt makes sound arguments in favor of actions toward war. He shows the people important the conflict is by demonstrating how the people’s democratic freedoms are at stake. This, point he uses to unify the people under a common purpose. By talking slowly and with good articulation is also very affective. This allows the message of the speech to soak into the listener’s mind.

Franklin D. Roosevelt makes strong statements in his speech “The Four Freedoms” to convince the people of the United States that steps toward war are necessary. He begins his speech by demonstrating how actions taken in World War II are the greatest threat to national security, independence and democracy that the United States has encountered. Next, he speaks out against appeasement, noting that we should not give up our liberty for safety. He warns, “We must especially beware of that small group of selfish men who would clip the wings of the American eagle in order to feather their own nests.” Also, he urges the nation to make greater progress on the production of products needed for war such as airplanes and war ships. “Today’s best is not good enough for tomorrow,” Roosevelt declares. He ends his speech by outlining the basis of democracy, the four freedoms.
By the use of these powerful statements Roosevelt makes sound arguments in favor of actions toward war. He shows the people important the conflict is by demonstrating how the people’s democratic freedoms are at stake. This, point he uses to unify the people under a common purpose. By talking slowly and with good articulation is also very affective. This allows the message of the speech to soak into the listener’s mind.

Franklin D. Roosevelt - Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation

President Franklin Roosevelt in this speech asserts the necessary and urgent duty for the US to enter into the Second World War. He creates a sense that going to the war was inevitable, and that America and the world were greatly threatened by Japan. President Roosevelt evokes strong feelings of nationalism, asserting how our enormous strength and power will lead to certain victory. He makes the case that the Japanese had no honor and that the clear moral superiority of the US would prevail with God's help over the lack of character displayed by the Japanese Empire. It is interesting to reflect back on this speech, with the tragic knowledge of the bombing of Hiroshima that will eventually lead to America's victory.

I listened to Franklin D. Roosevelt's Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation. I think that, watching, the speech would have been kind of boring, because he didn't move his arms around or put expression and passion into his speech. Yet it was still effective in my opinion. He painted the United States as a completely innocent party that did not deserve it (obviously). He didn't really embellish anything (I think) to further elevate sympathy for the United States. He told the truth, what he knew (probably not everything he knew though) about the attacks, and then declared war. I think the part where he lists the attacks made on the United States and territories was effective, because it showed that the Japanese were not just harmful at Pearl Harbor, but at all the other places too. I don't know if I would say he made the right decision in declaring war, but I couldn't say it was the wrong decision, as the Japanese did attack Pearl Harbor, killing many people, and war is generally the way those things end up.

I watched President Franklin D. Roosevelt's speech about Pearl Harbor. This was a powerful and important speech, and even though FDR was very factual, it was obvious that he was also very emotional and passionate. He stressed that the United States had no aggression towards the Japanese empire before the attack on Pearl Harbor. However, because of the attack, Roosevelt was very clear that the US should declare war on Japan. When he describes the tragedies that occurred at Pearl Harbor you can tell that he is ready to defend his country and participate in WWII. Roosevelt is willing to stop America's past policy of isolationism in order to seek revenge against the Japanese's unexpected attacks. I believe that he had every right to do so and because of the United States participation the Allies won.

Adam Smith

FDR's speech about the Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation is a very moving piece. The speech itself symbolizes the unification of the United States even more so than before and creating a strong, united front against the Japanese. He uses a good choice of concise words to get his message across to the audience. He clearly lays out the events that have happened, not only to Pearl Harbor, but the other attacks that the Japanese have begun, to stress the importance, in FDR's opinion, of going into the war.

I read Stalin's speech, and I was surprised at how influential he really was. It almost seemed as though he didn't need all that propaganda. I was also surprised at how fast he turned around on his so called "allies". If I was a Russian at the time, I can see how easy it was to be convinced he was the right person for the job, and we should follow his orders. He tread very lightly, and was always ready for a stab in the back from one of his fellow countries. During this speech, he talked a lot about Germany's rise to power, and what should happen if it fell; and how that would affect the Soviet's rise to power. I wish I could have been there when he was making this speech, or any speech, because I would love to hear how charismatic he was. As horrible as he was, he was a very important person in history.

Winston Churchill's speech, Their Finest hour, is incredibly honest and moving. The first section states pure fact, whether it is a positive one or not. Even though they had suffered defeat, they did so while fighting valiantly . Yes, they lost weapons and tanks. Yes, things weren't going well against the Luftwaffe, but they were trying. Churchill wsihed for the men of Britain to look back on their fight in the Battle of France and the soon-t0-begin battle of britain and say "This was their finest hour."
To be able to make a speech like this shows Churchill's strength not only as an orator, but as a leader.

I read Franklin D. Roosevelt's Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation. Taking into account that this speech was delivered one day after a surprise attack on the United States, it is very calm. The speech was very persuasive as far as reasoning to whether or not we should retaliate. The Japanese were presented as aggressive betrayers who could not stand unharmed. The speech was informative and clearly geared towards convincing anyone who doubted that war was the right decision that war was just and necessary. That President Roosevelt was able to deliver such a speech makes it clear that not only did he believe what he said, but he believed that the American people would take heart in his words and support the nation in whatever troubles were to come. The speech was short, and yet very good. It makes me wish I had lived during that time.