This forum is about how the world changed from the era of WWII to the 1970s.

Please share your perspectives on at least two of these questions, using material from Chapter 20. (Your perspective can be in an initial post, if appropriate, or in a response to another student.) It will help to mention page numbers. Please make sure you are discussing the topics in a global context, by relating specific people or events to broader trends such as decolonization (colonies becoming independent countries), the Cold War, and the trend toward state-run economic planning.

Please make sure at least one of your posts is a response to another student. It does help to address one or more students when you respond.

1. WW II impact. How does your book explain the significance of WW II in global terms? I encourage you to write on this topic if the chapter helped you understand the war differently than you did before you read it.

2. Japan (Pacific War). What do you find especially notable about the expansion of the Japanese empire and the Japanese role in WW II? In what ways do you understand this topic better than you did before?

3. Origins of Cold War. How does the chapter portray the beginning of the Cold War? Do you think the conflict was an inevitable result of events in the WW II era?

4. Korea. How does the Korean War help explain the situation we see today in North Korea? Based on the information in the chapter, can you see any indication that South Korea and North Korea would end up completely different?

5. Decolonization. How would you explain the amazing trend toward decolonization (successful movements for independence) in the post-WW II era? Compare two different countries that became independent in this era.

6. How does your book explain the situation in Palestine? How did the emergence of the nation of Israel, and the Arab-Israeli war, affect the political systems of the Middle East?

7. How does our book explain the situation in Vietnam in this era? Does this chapter help you understand the conflict better?

8. First World/Second World. What do the authors mean by the First World and the Second World? How were they different?

9. Third World. What do the authors mean by the Third World? How could such a wide variety of countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have very much in common?

10. Third World movements. Describe some of the political, social and economic movements you see in the developing countries in this era. Can you explain who some areas would be drawn to communism, while other areas were drawn to capitalism? You might also mention specific leaders, such as Mao or Castro.

11. Tensions. In the last section of the chapter, what tensions or challenges do you see in the “Three Worlds”? In what ways do these tensions give us an indication of the events that could be coming later?

You know how to do this…we need just ONE thread on each question. It helps to give the number and the short title, such as “9-Third World”, so people know immediately which question you are writing on.

The forum is officially worth 15 points, but you can get up to 20 points if you do extra and really help people out a lot. You get five points for a really solid and focused post (either an initial post or a response to another student) with helpful information and insights (about 4-5 sentences). You can also get a few points for shorter replies that reinforce key points or add something to the discussion.

Please plan to join the discussion in some way by Nov 22. The forum will continue to be open at least to the following Monday in order to generate more replies and also to help people with Essays and Reflections IV.

an example of how to do this homework:

1. First World/Second World. What do the authors mean by Third World? How could such a variety of countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have very much in common.

World War II ended with different visions for the future. Soviet Union had different ideas than the United States. As a result, two primary visions emerged (democracy/capitalism versus communism).

To explain “Third World” it is important to define First World and Second World.

• The First World consisted of countries that organized based on capitalism and democracy. Europe and North America and later Japan were part of the First World.
• The Second World consisted of countries organized based on communism lead by the Soviet Union. The countries in eastern and central Europe, Mongolia, and North Korea aligned with the Soviet Union.

The Third World was coined by Alfred Sauvy, French demographer in the 1950’s. What some of the countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America had in common is that they had all experienced colonial domination and wanted to establish a third way of doing things; something between capitalism and communism. (Chapter 20, Pages 955 – 960)