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Brown/APUSH
American History
Chapter 27 p. 732-750
The Cold War
Chapter Summary
The mutual hostility between the United States and the Soviet Union grew out of ideological incompatibility and
concrete actions stretching back to World War I and before. The alliance of convenience and necessity against
Germany temporarily muted the tensions, but disagreement over the timing of the second front and antagonistic visions
of postwar Europe pushed the two nations into a "cold war" only a few months after the victory over the Axis. The
Cold War was marked by confrontation and the fear of potential military conflict. The United States vowed to contain
communism by any means available. Meanwhile, the American people, exhausted from a decade and a half of
depression and war, turned away from economic reform. They were worried about the alleged Soviet threat in Europe,
especially after Russia exploded its own atomic bomb in 1949. They were dismayed by the communist victory in China
and perplexed by the limited war in Korea. Many Americans latched onto charges of domestic communist subversion
as an explanation for the nation’s inability to control world events. No one exploited this mood more effectively than
Joseph McCarthy.
Chapter Twenty-seven Main Themes
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The origins of the Cold War in the mistrust between the United States and the Soviet Union amid the events
of World War II.
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The consequences of the Marshall Plan and the logic of containment in increasing United States involvement
in crises around the world.
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The nervous ambivalence that characterized postwar American culture in the Nuclear Age.
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The origins and character of the Korean War.
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The hysterical anticommunism that flourished in the first decade of the turbulent postwar era.
Analytical Journal
ALGER HISS
DOUGLAS MACARTHUR
JOSEPH MCCARTHY
MARSHALL P LAN
NSC-68
THOMAS E. DEWEY
WARSAW PACT
YALTA CONFERENCE
ATLANTIC CHARTER
CONTAINMENT
FAIR DEAL
GEORGE F. KENNAN
JULIUS AND ETHEL ROSENBERG
MAO ZEDONG
MCCARTHYISM
NATIONAL SECURITY ACT
SYNGMAN RHEE
TAFT-HARTLEY ACT
TRUMAN DOCTRINE
UNITED NATIONS
WHITTAKER CHAMBERS
NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO)
HOUSE UN-AMERICAN ACTIVITIES COMMITTEE (HUAC)
Defining the chapter terms in your journals will help you better understand:
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The background of the United States’ relations with the Soviet Union before World War II.
The extent of collaboration between the United States and the Soviet Union during World War II and the
differences of view that developed between the two nations concerning the nature of the postwar world.
The meaning of the doctrine of containment and the specific programs that implemented containment.
The problems of postwar readjustment in the United States, especially controlling inflation.
The nature of the Fair Deal -- its successes and failures.
The significance of China's becoming communist to American foreign policy in Asia.
The circumstances that led to United States’ participation in a "limited" war in Korea.
The reaction of American public opinion to President Harry Truman's handling of the "police action" in
Korea, including his firing of General Douglas MacArthur.
The nature and extent of American fears of internal communist subversion during the early Cold War years.
Long Essay Questions
1. Analyze the successes and failures of President Harry Truman’s foreign policy from 1945 to 1953.
(Adapted from the 1984 A.P. United States History free-response question.)
Possible thesis statement: Harry Truman was unexpectedly propelled into the presidency after the death of
Franklin D. Roosevelt. His responsibilities were almost overwhelming  to end the war and shape the peace, to
deal with the communist threats in the post-war world, and to help Americans at home cope with the changes
brought about by war. Thus, it was no surprise that his foreign policy efforts met with some successes and some
failures.
Discuss
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Potsdam
Support of Nationalist Chinese
Containment
Marshall Plan
Korean War
Possible conclusion: Truman’s greatest foreign policy successes were the enunciation of containment  a policy
that guided the U.S. for over 40 years; the creation and support of the Marshall Plan that brought economic
recovery and stabilization to Europe and guaranteed continued markets for American goods; and the prevention of
a “hot” war with the Soviet Union and China. However, containment did not stop the march of communism into
Eastern Europe and mainland China. Furthermore, while the U.S. did not directly engage the Soviets and Chinese
in war, it indirectly fought them in the unpopular Korean War.
2. Dr. Brinkley states, “Few issues in twentieth-century American history have aroused more debate than
the question of the origins of the Cold War.” (p. 768) Explain this debate. With which historical
interpretation do you most agree and why?
Possible thesis statement: In the early years following the Cold War era, historians largely argued that leaders
from the USSR were primarily responsible for the Cold War. Later revisionist scholars, however, argued that the
U.S. was most responsible for Cold War tensions. By the early 1970s, many scholars supported a dual
responsibility approach. This debate has continued into the 21 st century.
Discuss
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Soviet responsibility
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U.S. responsibility
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Dual responsibility
Possible conclusion: While contemporary scholars still debate the origins of the Cold War, most now agree that
both the USSR and the US contributed to the suspicion and hostility that characterized the Cold War era after
World War II and made a permanent peace impossible.
Long Essay Exam Tips
In the years following World war II, historians studying the early Cold War tended to blame the aggressiveness of the Soviet
Union and Stalin’s appetite for more territory for the breakdown of the wartime Grand Alliance. Starting in the early 1960s, many
so-called “new left” historians looked to American economic expansion, especially a desire to maintain free trade and open
markets, as the major contributor to Cold War tensions. In the 1970s and beyond, so-called “post-revisionist” historians noted
that the Cold War was largely the result of misunderstanding between the two nations and that it was impossible to single out one
for blame.