The Cultural Impacts of Nuclear Events in Japan
Japan has had an unfortunate history with nuclear events. The 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as the recent critical incidents Fukushima in 2011 have had significant impact on the country’s culture. Japan’s unique culture also affected the way these incidents were handled and how people affected were treated. Popular media was noticeably influenced by the events of WWII as seen in the 1954 film Gojira and the 1974 manga Barefoot Gen. Similarly, the primarily Shinto and Buddhist population dramatically affected the way the public tried to treat the sick after nuclear incidents. This paper is divided in to two parts, the nuclear events of WWII and critical nuclear issues of modern time.
Part I: The Blasts at Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The early 20th century sparked a new frontier in physics which had tremendous …show more content…
For 6 years prior to the bombing, a secret project dubbed “the Manhattan Project” was being led in the United States. The objective of this project was to develop a new weapon instantaneously unleashing the tremendous energy stored in these newly understood nuclear particles. The subsequent effects of the use of this weapon were devastating. Many historians believe the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima prevented an allied invasion of the Japanese mainland and swiftly ended the war. The effects of the bombs were not like any weapon used before. Aside from the overwhelming physical damage, the population of the surrounding cities became debilitatingly ill. Many people suffered, and many deaths followed. The nuclear events of World War II against Japan influenced the Japanese culture in many ways. Japanese culture also influenced the way in which these events were dealt
Japan has had an unfortunate history with nuclear events. The 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as the recent critical incidents Fukushima in 2011 have had significant impact on the country’s culture. Japan’s unique culture also affected the way these incidents were handled and how people affected were treated. Popular media was noticeably influenced by the events of WWII as seen in the 1954 film Gojira and the 1974 manga Barefoot Gen. Similarly, the primarily Shinto and Buddhist population dramatically affected the way the public tried to treat the sick after nuclear incidents. This paper is divided in to two parts, the nuclear events of WWII and critical nuclear issues of modern time.
Part I: The Blasts at Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The early 20th century sparked a new frontier in physics which had tremendous …show more content…
For 6 years prior to the bombing, a secret project dubbed “the Manhattan Project” was being led in the United States. The objective of this project was to develop a new weapon instantaneously unleashing the tremendous energy stored in these newly understood nuclear particles. The subsequent effects of the use of this weapon were devastating. Many historians believe the atomic bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima prevented an allied invasion of the Japanese mainland and swiftly ended the war. The effects of the bombs were not like any weapon used before. Aside from the overwhelming physical damage, the population of the surrounding cities became debilitatingly ill. Many people suffered, and many deaths followed. The nuclear events of World War II against Japan influenced the Japanese culture in many ways. Japanese culture also influenced the way in which these events were dealt