Deck 25: America Goes to War, 1939-1945

Question 1

Roosevelt expected the first attacks on the United States to be

A)made by the Japanese in the Philippines.
B)made by Germany.
C)made by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor.
D)a coordinated attack made by both Japan and Germany on each coast.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The "cash-and-carry" arrangement allowed

A)European democracies to buy arms from the United States as long as they came to get them and paid in cash.
B)any country involved in the war to buy arms from the United States,as long as they came to get them and paid cash.
C)the sale of non-military goods to any country involved in the war,as long as they paid cash.
D)private companies to sell goods to warring countries for cash,but not the federal government.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Anti-Semitism refers to

A)prejudice and hostility toward Jews.
B)hatred of the communists regime of the Soviet Union.
C)oppression of Poles and other East Europeans.
D)prejudice against the Muslims of North Africa.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The America First Committee

A)promoted the idea of the United States joining the war for potential economic gain.
B)was an American fascist movement that supported the Nazi cause.
C)believed entry into the war would bankrupt the nation,divide Americans,and destroy the country's democratic institutions.
D)was opposed by people such as Henry Ford and Herbert Hoover for being too weak and for supporting traditional American values.

Question 5

What best describes the American response to the outbreak of war in Europe?

A)Over 10,000 American men volunteered to fight in the French Foreign Legion,since the United States refused to join in the conflict.
B)American public opinion polls showed an overwhelming desire among Americans to declare war on Germany.
C)Roosevelt used his presidential campaign in 1940 to rally the country behind the war.
D)Americans were concerned about the war but considered it a European matter and retained a solid isolationist attitude.

Question 6

Which of the following best describes the willingness of men and women to serve in the United States military during World War II?

A)Most were reluctant to join and had to be forced through the draft.
B)Millions volunteered to fight,contributing to the largest and most diverse fighting force in history.
C)Only white males were eager to enlist.
D)Minorities,such as Japanese Americans and African Americans,refused to volunteer because of the discrimination they suffereD.

Question 7

The event that caused Britain and France to declare war on Germany,marking the official beginning of World War II,was

A)Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
B)Germany's Anschluss with Austria in 1938.
C)Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939.
D)Italy's invasion of Ethiopia in 1935.

Question 8

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor

A)caused even the most ardent isolationists to press for war.
B)did little real damage other than to hurt morale.
C)diverted U.S.attention away from Germany and put the entire focus on war with Japan.
D)was known to the U.S.prior to the attack,due to code-breakers intercepting Japanese radio transmissions.

Question 9

Which of the following is true of the election of 1940?

A)Roosevelt faced several strong challengers in the Democratic primary.
B)Roosevelt ran as the peace candidate,while his Republican challenger Willkie promised to declare war as soon as he was elected.
C)Roosevelt won an unprecedented third term as president.
D)Willkie lost support in the industrial Northeast for his strong support of unions and his socialist ideology.

Question 10

How did many Americans first learn about Hitler's and Nazis' global ambitions prior to the war?

A)speeches from President Franklin Roosevelt
B)through children in school,who in turn informed their parents
C)Lewis Mumford's best selling Faith for Living
D)Charlie Chaplin's dark comedy The Great Dictator

Question 11

The internationalists

A)wanted the United States to join on the fascist side in the war in order to establish a worldwide empire.
B)were a group of scholars and journalists who were part of a worldwide peace movement.
C)believed Americans had a false sense of security,and because of America's long-standing ties to Europe,the United States needed to join the fight against Nazism.
D)were a paramilitary force of American communists who went to fight against "fascist tyranny."

Question 12

The "American way," as promoted by corporate sponsors at the 1939 World's Fair,included all EXCEPT which of the following?

A)consumerism
B)technological innovation
C)responsible corporate leadership
D)support of unions and labor rights

Question 13

What best describes the attitudes of the governments of the United States and Britain to Hitler's annexation of Austria and the German-speaking portions of Czechoslovakia?

A)Americans were eager to stop Hitler's aggression before it went too far,but the British were eager to avoid another war.
B)Roosevelt condemned Hitler's actions but agreed with British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain that it was best to appease Hitler in order to avoid war.
C)American isolationist policies prevented the United States from helping the British,and the British,though eager to attack the Nazis,did not think they should do so without American help.
D)Both the American and British governments supported German expansion as a way to check the potential expansion of the Soviet Union.

Question 14

Which of the following was NOT one of the freedoms mentioned in Roosevelt's Four Freedoms speech?

A)freedom of speech
B)freedom of worship
C)freedom from economic want
D)freedom from foreign oppression

Question 15

Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill,after agreeing on U.S.support against Germany,signed what document that was a blueprint for the postwar global order?

A)the Atlantic Charter
B)the Lend-Lease Act
C)the United Nations Charter
D)the League of Nations Agreement

Question 16

Fascist regimes were established in all these countries EXCEPT which of the following?

A)Spain
B)Japan
C)France
D)Italy

Question 17

Roosevelt prepared the country for war in all the following ways EXCEPT

A)commissioning the construction of 50,000 warplanes.
B)starting the nuclear weapons program.
C)having Congress authorize the first peacetime draft.
D)encouraging media outlets to promote awareness and preparedness.

Question 18

The Double V campaign

A)sought to promote victory over Germany and Japan.
B)was a campaign to both win the war and overcome the Great Depression.
C)was a call from civil rights leaders for the government to commit to victory both in the war overseas and over racism at home.
D)was a two-pronged assault on Germany in the shape of a "V," with the British and American armies coming together at a specific point.

Question 19

All of the following are examples of fascist aggression prior to World War II EXCEPT

A)Japan's invasion of ChinA.
B)Italy's invasion of Ethiopia.
C)Germany's invasion of Czechoslovakia.
D)Spain's invasion of Portugal.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of fascist governments?

A)belief that war is a rejuvenating force for a country
B)mostly concerned about class struggle
C)oppression of minorities
D)cult-like devotion to a charismatic leader

Question 21

The Fair Employment Practices Commission D.C. ,against discrimination in the workplace,which the Nazis used in anti-American propaganda.

A)was charged with seeing that women received equal pay to their male counterparts.
B)was established after Philip Randolph led a protest march in Washington,
C)was appointed to carry out Roosevelt's executive order that banned racial discrimination by any employer with a government contract.
D)tried to prevent monopolistic practices in the armament industry.

Question 22

The Allied invasion of southern Europe came via the

A)French island of CorsicA.
B)Greek islands in the Aegean Sea.
C)Italian island of Sicily.
D)Balkan Peninsula.

Question 23

Which of these rationing measures made travel difficult for most people during the war?

A)Americans were limited to 10 gallons of gas per week.
B)The price of rubber doubled,making it difficult for anyone except the very wealthy to buy tires.
C)A maximum speed limit of 55 mph was established.
D)In 1943,auto travel for pleasure was banneD.

Question 24

What impact did the departure of millions of men for military service have on the labor market in the United States?

A)While many jobs became available,few Americans could take advantage of them because of limitations on travel due to rationing.
B)Many women entered the workforce for the first time,and some found better paying jobs in fields previously closed to women.
C)Many poor white southerners tried to get jobs in shipyards but were not able to do so,due to a lack of industrial skills.
D)Rather than allowing women to do "men's" jobs,many African Americans previously denied work were hired by corporations.

Question 25

The WACs and WASPs were

A)made up of servicewomen in the army and air force.
B)female celebrities who traveled overseas to entertain the troops.
C)women who worked in armament factories in the U.S.
D)women who fought side-by-side with men on the front lines.

Question 26

What type of music were you most likely to hear on the Armed Forces Network?

A)traditional American folk music
B)swing and big-band music
C)religious hymns and classical music
D)patriotic marches

Question 27

The Office of War Information

A)was a secret government agency that spied on Americans suspected of being traitors.
B)was the chief propaganda organ of the government that hired thousands to promote the war effort.
C)took over the private advertising industry,considering it wasteful and unnecessary.
D)was the agency charged with gathering intelligence behind enemy lines.

Question 28

The Bureau of Motion Pictures

A)resisted government censorship and guidelines for making movies.
B)decided to produce westerns,musicals,and other genres that were not subject to government censorship and did not need to promote wartime goals.
C)was an agency of the Office of War Information that encouraged movie studios to produce prowar films and censored any that cast the war effort or the country in a negative light.
D)encouraged studios that showed the United States and its allies in a positive light-except for the Soviet Union because of its oppressive communist dictatorship.

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT true of the "black market" during wartime rationing?

A)Courts handed down very severe penalties for anyone caught involved in these "anti-American" activities.
B)Counterfeit and stolen rationing coupons were sold for gas and tires.
C)Crime syndicates,some which had sold liquor during Prohibition,were involved in the "black market."
D)The majority of people used it some of the time,as the rationing system was complex and difficult to follow.

Question 30

The pluralist nationalist vision depicted by Hollywood

A)portrayed only white Anglos in the roles of American troops.
B)highlighted the difficulties faced by Japanese Americans subject to internment.
C)portrayed Italian and German Americans as cowards,and Italian and German Americans often appeared as traitors in films.
D)included groundbreaking scenes showing ethnically diverse and racially integrated battalions that included African Americans.

Question 31

President Roosevelt's Executive Order 9066

A)was intended to end discrimination in the military.
B)led to the forcible relocation and internment of Japanese and Japanese Americans on the West Coast.
C)forced everyone of Japanese descent to leave Hawaii.
D)conscripted all Japanese Americans fight the Nazis in Europe.

Question 32

Which of the following best describes wartime production?

A)Wartime production was greatly hampered by the lingering effects of the Great Depression and never really reached desired levels.
B)Big businesses' profits plummeted as the War Production Board confiscated their goods for the war effort.
C)Government and big businesses worked together to create massive industrial output that greatly out-produced the enemy Axis powers.
D)Small businesses benefitted more than big business,as their operations were more flexible and they could easily switch to wartime production.

Question 33

Most filmmakers and actors in Hollywood

A)were not interested in helping with the war effort,as they did not want their artistic creativity infringed upon.
B)had to be forced by the government to help in the war effort,and many actors tried to use their privileged status to avoid the draft.
C)were eager to help in the war effort in an attempt to change Hollywood's tainted image.
D)were happy to make patriotic films but resisted actually serving or going overseas to entertain the troops.

Question 34

Operation Overlord was the

A)grand strategy of launching a massive invasion of western Europe in order to divert German troops from the Soviet Union.
B)name of the Allied campaign to take North Africa from the Germans.
C)attempt to invade Germany from the south by way of Italy.
D)name of the Nazi's invasion of the Soviet Union.

Question 35

The braceros were Mexican nationals

A)who were allowed to enter the United States legally to work in agricultural production.
B)who were nationalized in order to work in armaments factories and shipyards.
C)who volunteered to fight in the army in exchange for U.S.citizenship.
D)expelled under suspicion of espionage.

Question 36

How did European émigrés change the culture of New York?

A)The influx of Orthodox Jews led to stricter local moral codes on the coasts.
B)Many Jewish immigrants infused the burgeoning New York movie industry with European style.
C)The many Germans who fled to New York turned it into "Berlin in exile."
D)The arrival of artists and intellectuals made New York a capital of the art world and a global center of intellectual life.

Question 37

Recycling on the home front during World War II

A)would have saved the government millions of dollars but was an unknown practice at the time.
B)was attempted by the federal government,but people were not used to such practices so it had little impact on the war effort.
C)was eagerly practiced by the public and included such items as metals,fat,and other household waste.
D)was mainly done on the black market to get around rationing regulations.

Question 38

The "Big Three" or "Grand Alliance" included the countries of

A)Great Britain,France,and the United States.
B)Great Britain,Canada,and the United States.
C)Great Britain,France,and the Soviet Union.
D)Great Britain,the Soviet Union,and the United States.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT true of the overcrowding problems in U.S.cities?

A)The Lanham Act placed major cities under martial law to control rioting.
B)Children were left to wander the streets or spend the day at the cinema while parents worked in factories.
C)Prefabricated "houses like Fords" were produced on assembly lines to help with housing shortages.
D)Some migrants had to live in shantytowns near factories.

Question 40

Which of the following battles is considered the turning point in the war in Europe?

A)the victory of the British and Americans over the Germans in North Africa
B)the victory of the British over the Germans in the Battle of Britain
C)the American and British conquest of Sicily,which led to the overthrow of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
D)the Soviet Union's defeat of the Germans at the battle of Stalingrad

Question 41

Which of the following was NOT a result of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima?

A)Over 130,000 (one-third)of the city's civilians were killed.
B)Four out of every five buildings were leveled.
C)Over 100,000 were severely injured or sickened.
D)Japan immediately offered unconditional surrender.

Question 42

Nazi war criminals were tried and sentenced at the

A)Berlin trials.
B)United Nations.
C)Nuremberg trials.
D)International Court at the Hague.

Question 43

The Bataan Death March was the

A)deadly process of trying to retake all the islands of the Philippines from the Japanese.
B)retreat of the Germans from the Soviet Union.
C)60-mile forced march in which thousands of American and Filipino POWs died.
D)deadly process of trying to conquer the actual Japanese islands.

Question 44

Summarize the development of the United States' nuclear weapons program.Identify the program involved in building the atomic bomb,analyze the decision to use the bomb,and explain how its use helped bring about the end of the war with Japan.

Question 45

Explain how the Allies planned for the postwar world.Identify the main participants involved in the process and the main points from the three planning conferences.

Question 46

Who was the scientific director of the Manhattan Project?

A)Albert Einstein
B)J.Robert Oppenheimer
C)General Thomas Farrell
D)Henry Stimson

Question 47

Which U.S.commanders were in charge of the war with Japan in the Pacific?

A)General Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Chester Nimitz
B)General George Patton and General Dwight Eisenhower
C)General Omar Bradley and General Patton
D)General MacArthur and General Patton

Question 48

Which of the following is NOT true of the Holocaust and Hitler's "final solution"?

A)Hitler's victims included Jews only.
B)While most Americans were aware of Nazi persecution of the Jews,few were aware of the genocide taking place.
C)Allied soldiers found evidence of the "final solution" at death camps such as Auschwitz.
D)Victims of the Nazi death camps numbered in the millions.

Question 49

Which of the following was NOT a reason President Truman decided to use the atomic bomb against the Japanese?

A)He thought it would negate the need for the Soviet Union to join the Pacific war and limit their claims over Japan and Japan-occupied ChinA.
B)He was convinced it would save hundreds of thousands of American lives.
C)He wanted to assert his authority over military leadership.
D)He believed it would establish American military supremacy in the eyes of the worlD.

Question 50

Analyze how the United States and its allies were able defeat Germany.Identify some specific operations,the countries included in the allied effort,and points of contention among the Allies.

Question 51

The death of President Roosevelt on April 12,1945,

A)prevented him from winning a fourth term as president.
B)left finishing the war and negotiating the peace to Vice President Harry Truman.
C)occurred after the war had concluded in both Europe and the PacifiC.
D)occurred while he was attending the Yalta Conference.

Question 52

Which of the following was NOT a result of the Tehran Conference in 1943?

A)The Soviet Union was allowed to keep the Baltic States and part of Poland as a buffer between Germany and the Soviet Union.
B)The "Big Three" agreed to establish an international security organization and to manage the new world order themselves.
C)Winston Churchill asserted his dominance and the United States became a junior partner to the British.
D)The Soviets pledged to fight Japan once Hitler had been defeateD.

Question 53

D-Day,June 6,1944,was the

A)day Allied troops launched their invasion of Europe on the beaches of Normandy,France.
B)beginning of the Battle of the Bulge,Hitler's last desperate offensive in the west.
C)day of victory in Europe.
D)day the atomic bomb was detonated over Hiroshima,Japan.

Question 54

Describe the extremely difficult and sometimes cruel conditions faced by the Allied soldiers fighting against the Japanese in the Pacific.

Question 55

Explain how President Roosevelt made preparations for war while maintaining the United States' neutrality,including discussion of specific programs and actions such "cash-and-carry" and the Lend-Lease Act.

Question 56

Describe life on the home front during World War II.Explain how Hollywood played an important role in supporting the war effort.

Question 57

Discuss the important role played by women and minorities in the war effort,both in the military and at home.Also,discuss the difficulties and obstacles faced by each group in their efforts.