The Atomic Age (Winter 2020)

Please prepare for sessions [6] and [7] as if they were one session, with this source-based session embedded in the middle of session [7], which provides the broader frame. From this rather large corpus of primary sources we will limit ourselves to the ones relevant to the regional interests of those registered for the course. This session should be devoted entirely to student presentations of early European and global understandings of the violence unleashed on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Choose a cluster of readings in one language and prepare to discuss the scope of their accounts of the distant events in Japan. Keep in mind that tremendous information asymmetries prevailed in the early days, so be as concrete as possible about where the newspapers are getting their information. Think carefully about what is NOT present in the early accounts as well, and how local and regional politics might help frame the events. Collaboration is encouraged in cases where more than one student is covering a given cluster. 

Czech: 

"Atomová puma sensací světa" (second page) Lidová Demokracie (8 August 1945), "Na prahu nového světa atomová bomba," Mladá Fronta (8 August 1945), "Nová zbran: atomová bomba," Rudé Právo (8 August 1945), "Strašlivá síla utajená v jediné pumě," Svobodné slovo (8 August 1945), "Atomistika převrací svět techniky," Mladá Fronta (9 August 1945), "Zničit atomovou pumu?" Právo Lidu (14 August 1945). See also some articles from Bojovnik. First pictures of the destruction in early October.

Hungarian:

"Atombombákkal zúzzák szét Japánt," Szabad nép (8 August 1945), "Az atombomba megváltoztatja a világ képét," Világ (8 August 1945), "Az atómrombolás a hadviselés szolgálatában," Népszava (8 August 1945), "Az atómbomba lehetetlenné tesz minden újabb háborút," Világ (9 August 1945), "Hirosima város 60 százalékát elpusztította az atombomba," Szabad nép (9 August 1945), "Ledobták a második atómbombát," Világ (10 August 1945), "Egynapos háború," Szabad nép (11 August 1945), "Az atómbomba," Világ (14 August 1945). [on campus access]

Polish:

"Bomba atomowa o potwornej sile wybuchowej," Życie Warszawy (7 August 1945), "Na Japonię zrzucono 1-sza bomba atomowa," Gazeta Żołnierza (8 August 1945) (p. 2), "Pierwsza bomba atomowa spadła na Japonię," Dziennik Polski (8 August 1945), "60 procent Hiroshimy znikło z powierzchni ziemi," Dziennik Polski (9 August 1945), "Wojna rosyjsko-japonska i bomby atomowe," Gazeta Żołnierza (10 August 1945), "Bomba i polityka," Gazeta Żołnierza (11 August 1945) (p. 3), "Nauka i nieuctwo," Gazeta Żołnierza (12 August 1945), "Córka Marii Skłodowskiej-Curie współtwórczynią bomby atomowej," Dziennik Polski (15 August 1945), "Refleksje nad wielkim odkryciem," Tygodnik Powszechny no. 24 (2 September 1945), 3-4 . If you have time, you can also look at the brochure by Mieczysław Wolfke, Bomba atomowa (1945).

Romanian:

"Prima experiență în 'bomba atomică'," Scânteia (9 August 1945), "O revelație in tehnica războuilui: bomba atomica," Scânteia (16 August 1945). [They don't seem to use stable URLs, so once you're at the Univ. of Bucharest site you'll have to run a search for Scânteia.] 

Yugoslav:

See Yugoslav newspapers folder; "Novo orožje in japonski odpor. Velika rušilna moč nove atomske bombe," Primorski dnevnik (Trieste) (8 August 1945). 

Greek:

Coverage in Eleutheria on 7 August 1945 and 8 August 1945.

[East] German:

"Atombomben auf Japan," Berliner Zeitung (8 August 1945), "Entfesselte Atomenergie," Neue Zeit (8 August 1945), "Die Atombombe," Berlinger Zeitung (9 August 1945), "Die Wirkung der Atombombe" and "Atombomben im Dahlem," Neue Zeit (9 August 1945), "Der Gnadenstoss," Neue Zeit (11 August 1945). [Registration required; you may download all the PDFs from this folder.]

Austrian:

"Japans Schicksal ist entschieden," Arbeiter Zeitung (8 August 1945); "Atombombe - Die Weltsensation," Neues Österreich (8 August 1945); "Was uns erspart blieb: die Atombombe," Österreichischer Volksstimme (8 August 1945); "Welt im Banne der Atombombe," Das kleine Volksblatt (8 August 1945); "Die Wunderwaffe," Arbeiter Zeitung (9 August 1945); "Atombombe auch auf Hafenstadt Nagasaki," Das kleine Volksblatt (10 August 1945); "Zweite Atombombe abgeworfen," Österreichischer Volksstimme (10 August 1945). First pictures for Austrian readers.

Swiss:

"Die Atombombe," Neue Zürcher Zeitung (7 August 1945), "Les Américains ont mis au point la construction de la bombe atomique," Feuille d'Avis de Neuchatel (7 August 1945), "La bombe atomique a un pouvoir dévastateur indescriptible," Feuille d'Avis de Neuchatel (9 August 1945), "Betrachtungen zum Problem der Atombombe," Neue Zürcher Zeitung (10 August 1945).

Russian:

"Заявление Трумэна о новой атомной бомбе," Izvestiia (7 August 1945) (p. 4), "Заявление Трумэна о новой атомной бомбе," Vecherniaia Moskva (7 August 1945), "Заявление Трумэна о новой атомной бомбе," Pravda (8 August 1945) (p. 4), "Заявление Трумэна о новой атомной бомбе," Советская Сибирь (8 August 1945) (p. 4). [And for good measure, Brooks Atkinson, "Atomic bomb irks public of Russia," New York Times (25 November 1945).]

Latvian: 

"Trumena paziņojums par jaunu atomu bumbu," Cīņa (9 August 1945); "Atomu bumbas — Jauns pagrieziens kara vesture," Latvju Vards (11 August 1945).

Finnish:

"Atoomipommeja Japaniin," Laatokka (7 August 1945); and further coverage the next day; "Toinen atoomipommi tuhuonnut Nagsakin kaupungin," Laatokka (9 August 1945).

Norwegian:

"Atombombe med fantastisk sprengkraft sluppet over Japan," Sarpsborg Arbeiderblad (7 August 1945), "Fullstendig revolusjonering av det industrielle liv? President Truman gir sensasjonelle opplysninger," Arbeiderbladet (7 August 1945); "Atom-bomben vil skape en helt ny tidsalder," Arbeiderbladet (8 August 1945). 

Turkish:

"20,000 ton dinamite muadil tek bomba," Cumhuriyet (7 August 1945), "Bütün dünyada heyecan ve korku," Cumhuriyet (8 August 1945), "Atom bombası," Cumhuriyet (9 August 1945) (p. 2), "Atom bombasının esrarı," Cumhuriyet (13 August 1945). [Access to further articles via paywall: we will acquire as necessary.]

Italian:

"La bomba atomica," La Stampa (7 August 1947), "Il mondo tiene il fiato," La Stampa (8 August 1945), "Tutti i viventi uccisi a Hiroscima," La Stampa (9 August 1945), "Il discorso di Truman," La Stampa (11 August 1945).

Spanish:

"Norteamérica utiliza la bomba atómica," Duero (7 August 1945); "Exito de la 'Bomba atomica'," Duero (8 August 1945); "Terribles efectos de la primera bomba atomica," Duero (9 August 1945); "Otra bomba atomica sobre la ciudad de Nagasaki," Duero (10 August 1945).

Dutch:

"Atoom-bom vaagt gehele stad weg," De Waarheid (7 August 1945), "Atoombom zal Japan vernietigen," De Tijd (7 August 1945), "'Aanzienlijke schade' door atoom-bommen," De Waarheid (8 August 1945), "Hirosjima in rook gehuld," Het vrije volk (8 August 1945), "De atoombom," De Waarheid (14 August 1945).

French:

"Une bombe atomique," L'Époque (7 August 1945), "La bombe atomique constitue un premier avertissement," and "Bombe atomique Révolution cosmique," L'Époque (8 August 1945), "Nagasaki reçoit le deuxième bombe atomique," Ce soir (10 August 1945), "'Sous l'effet de la bombe atomique...'," Ce soir (11 August 1945). 

British India:

"World's Deadliest Bomb Hits Japan," The Times of India (7 August 1945), "Great Power of the Atomic Bomb," The Times of India (9 August 1945), "Terrible Power of Allies' New Weapon," The Times of India (9 August 1945), "Second Atomic Bomb Attack on Japan," The Times of India (10 August 1945), "Atomic Bomb Will Not Stop Far East War," The Times of India (10 August 1945).

British:

"Atomic bomb in use against Japs," Daily Mirror (7 August 1945), " The atomic bomb," The Guardian (7 August 1945), "'Rain of ruin' threat to Japan," The Guardian (7 August 1945), "Destruction at Hiroshima," The Guardian (9 August 1945), "Atomic clue reached us through German censorship slip," Sunday Mirror (12 August 1945), "Why fear the atom?" Daily Herald (14 August 1945).

American:

"Atomic Bomb Revolutionizes War; Hits Japan Like 20,000 Tons of TNT," New York Herald Tribune (European Edition, 7 August 1945), "Atomic Bomb Story!" Chicago Tribune (7 August 1945), "Atomic Bomb Wiped Out 60% of Hiroshima," New York Times (8 August 1945), "Atomic Bomb Crews Story," Chicago Tribune (8 August 1945), "Atom Bomb Loosed on Nagasaki; 2D Big Aerial Blow," New York Times (9 August 1945), "2D Atomic Bomb Rips Japs," Chicago Tribune (9 August 1945), "The Story Behind the Atomic Bomb," New York Times (12 August 1945).