AboutTom Expertise While it is a huge topic, I am well-versed in World War II generally. There is a huge wealth of information available on the internet, HOWEVER, one has to know the trash from the gems. Many sites which are not obviously credible (govt, university, and museum sites, for ex.), provide erroneous information (intentionally or otherwise).
Experience BA in history, and been reading and studying WW2 as my 'hobby' for 30 years. Regular contributor to several online forums in military history, WW2, and related areas and topics.
Organizations None relevant to this topic.
Education/Credentials BA, History (Secondary Education), with minor in Geography
US Army Engineer Officer (Officer Basic and Advanced Courses)
Question hello,
I am a first year university student, and have been sitting here for about 3 hours trying to figure out a thesis. I have to write a history paper on a world event that occurred between 1945-2000. I have researched a lot, everything form Mao Zedong in china to the Israeli Palestinian conflict in the middle east. Please give me some advice, or a sample of a thesis that i can work on. I really appreciate it. Thanks
Answer So a history event, 1945 - 2000.
So if we were in a room, I'd ask you what your interests are, and maybe walk that path to finding something interesting to you.
But lacking that here's a bunch of ideas to throw at you, randomly, just to try and give you a bunch of thoughts - there is SO MUCH that you can choose from, it is incredible.
1) Wars and conflicts:
Use of Atomic Bombs on Japan, 1945
Founding of the United Nations, 1945
Formation of NATO, 1948
Berlin airlift
The "Iron Curtain" and start of the cold war
Berlin Wall goes up, 1961
Berlin Wall comes down, 1989
Chinese Civil war that 'ended' in 1949
Vietnam war, from an anti-colonial fight (Viet Minh vs. French) at end of WW2, to the US-backed southern half of Vietnam fighting the USSR and Red China-baced northern half of Vietnam (our longest war)
Wars against colonialism (e.g., the end of colonialism, which really took off late 50s and into the 60s and 70s).
Arab-Israeli wars (1948, 56, 67, 73 and the little wars against Palestinian and muslim terror organizations (PLO, Hamas, Hezbollah))
Persian Gulf War, 1990-91
2) Social movements and change:
Impact of end of colonialism on those colonies (esp. Africa, but also in Asia, Pacific) - impact on those societies, on the UN, on world trade
What about the American flight to the suburbs which followed WW2? We have gradually moved to the cities over the decades, but after WW2, we began to move to suburbs - a new concept.
Rise of world ecological movements (Greenpeace, for ex.), that has expanded across globe
Use of terror as instrument of policy (PLO, etc.)
Giving 18 year olds the vote (US constitutional amendment)
Legal changes on international level - Nuremburg war crimes trials after WW2 (Nazis), thru to today's World Court in Holland that tries folks for crimes against humanity (a legal term not used before 1945) such as the Rwandan genocide, or the crimes in former Yugoslavia
Attempts to ban whaling, which have seesawed over the decades
Impact of birth rates on nations/societies - Europe has almost gone to zero growth, and only influx of east europeans and muslims has kept their populations growing - but then, that influx changes the nations accepting the immigrants
3) Economics:
Rise of soviet power (before 1945, communism was only in the USSR and Mongolia). Within 10 years of the end of WW2, communism spread to eastern europe (11 countries), North Korea, North Vietnam and China, with large communist parties in many other nations, as well. This made the communist bloc an economic power as well as a military power.
Rise in world trade - lots of statistics about how world trade absolutely mushroomed in that timeframe. Esp. impressive was how east asia grew in unprecedented ways.
Related to that is the Marshall Plan - where the US paid to rebuild and restore western european economy, to prevent spread of communism. Great topic.
Rise of regional trading blocs (EU, NAFTA, etc.)
Rise in importance of oil trade (topics like who possesses the oil, who buys it, the oil embargo of 1974)
Other oddball thoughts:
technology:
Rise of internet: instant communication, email, online communities, online shopping, constantly dropping price of technology
Cars - rise of American dependence (flight to suburbs), or the SUV craze, or the rise in imports to America.
Travel: how fols travel so much more now - Americans going to Europe was an elitist thing, but by the 70s-80s, it was very 'middle class' to tour europe.
Demographics - can always do paper on demographics, just pick a topic you like. Such as the aging population of US, or rising muslim population of Britain, or whatever. Statistics are all over the net!
If you like the arts, then check out what artists made it big in the period and determine why. Why did George Carlin have such a following and such an impact (he died this week).
Write about Woodstock, or the peace movement during vietnam war, or the hippies, or today's environmental radicals that burn SUVs.
Crime interest you? Serial killers became a common term in 80s - were they here all along?
Space exploration came entirely during this period:
Sputnik, 1957, moon landing, 1969, Viking lander on Mar, 1976, plus the space station, skylab, etc.
Panama Canal handover from US control to Panama
Global warming debate
There is so much you can choose, you can't go wrong...
