Unit 3: Rebuilding from WWII and Cold War in Asia
1. Why did the American military government disband the Japanese armed forces after WWII?
a. to humiliate the Japanese
b. to win world war II
c. to destroy Japan militarism
d. to appease the Soviet Union
2. Which of the following contributed to Japan’s economic success after WWII?
a. low wages
b. a well-educated work force
c. a trade deficit
d. high military spending
3. All of the following were challenges that Japan faced in the immediate post war era EXCEPT
a. starvation and famine
b. ineffective government support and funding
c. a homeless population and large number of orphans
d. a rising and powerful communist party
4. All of the following statements regarding the American occupation of Japan are true EXCEPT
a. The American behavior in Japan was to rebuild the devastated country while keeping control
on that recovery to ensure that democracy took roots
b. MacArthur rand his staff rewrote the Japanese constitution and as a show of good faith,
allowed to Japan to keep their emperor as a god.
c. After millions of dollars worth of investment and rebuilding, Japan was able to recovery
economically by the 1970’s.
d. Women were allowed to vote under the new Japanese constitution and were seen as vital to the
success of Japanese rebuilding.
5. One effect of the Cold War in Asia was
a. an outbreak of civil wars
b. the founding of the United Nations
c. increased trade worldwide
d. large scale victories for the United States
6. The Korean War was caused by
a. the bombing of North Korea
c. North Korea’s invasion of the south
b. the assassination of Mao Zedong
d. MacArthur’s attack on North Korea
7. ALL of the following statements regarding the Korean War are correct EXCEPT?
a. It started as a civil war, with the South Korean army invading north into North Korea.
b. The Soviet Union and the Chinese supported their North Korean allies.
c. The Korean war caused massive devastation within Korea and separated families that are still
unable to travel between the two countries.
d. After dramatic campaigns on both sides, the war turned into a grudge match and a war of
attrition.
8. What is the significance of the 38th parallel?
a. It is the dividing line that separates North and South Vietnam
b. It is the permanent division in Cambodian between the Khmer Rouge’s held land and that of
the national government
c. It is the border that China and North Vietnam decided on after the French withdrew
d. It is the dividing line that separates North Korea from South Korea.
The Decision to Use the Atomic Bomb
Perhaps no decision in American history has
been more hotly debated than Harry S.
Truman’s decision to drop atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August,
1945. Documents A and B are two
historians views on Truman’s decision.
Document A
“It was believed with deep apprehension that
many thousands, probably tens of thousands,
of lives of Allied combatants would have
been spent in the continuation of our air and
sea bombardment and blockade…..but the
people who would have suffered most, had
the war gone on much longer and their
country invaded, were the Japanese. One
American incendiary air raid on the Tokyo
area in March of 1945 did more damage and
killed and injured more Japanese than the
bomb on Hiroshima.”
 From The Atomic
Bomb and the End of
WWII by Herbert Feis
Document B
“Even without the use of the atomic bombs,
the war would probably have ended before
an American invasion of Kyushu (one of the
four main islands of Japan) became
necessary. Conditions in Japan were
steadily deteriorating. The destruction of
cities from B-29 raids, diminishing food
supplies, and decreased pubic morale
fostered enough discontent to worry the
emperor and his advisors. Even without the
atomic attacks, it seems likely that the
emperor at some point would have acted in
the same way that he did in the aftermath of
Hiroshima to end the war.”
 From Prompt and Utter
Destruction: Truman
and the Use of Atomic
Bombs against Japan
by J Samuel Walker
Document C
In the spring of 1945, the Allies island
hopping campaign in the Pacific brought
them closer to the heart of Japan. When
American troops invaded first the island of
Iwo Jima, then the island of Okinawa, the
Japanese fought fiercely, but unsuccessfully,
to keep them from gaining control. They
knew that the Allies were planning to use
the islands as a base for an invasion of Japan
itself.
Document D
Analyzing Documents
9. Use your knowledge of WWII and Documents A,B,C, and D to answer the following
questions.
Which of the following cities experienced the most damage from the American bombing
raids?
a. Tokyo
b. Yokohama
c. Hiroshima
d. Osaka
10. Which of the following statements BEST summarizes Herhert Feis’s explanation for
Truman’s use of the atomic bomb?
a. Use of the atomic bombs would cause more destruction.
b. Use of the atomic bombs would save lives
c. Use of the atomic bombs would ensure surrender
d. Use of the atomic bombs would make it more difficult for Japan to rebuild its
military
11. J. Samuel Walker’s main argument against the use of atomic bomb is that
a. atomic bombs were more destructive than conventional attacks
b. an American invasion would not have been destructive as the bombs
c. the war would have ended anyway
d. the Japanese emperor opposed the use of atomic bombs