- Paper must be 10-12 pages, double spaced, Times New Roman, 12-point font, standard 1″ margins
- Proofread for typos and other careless errors
- Have accurate footnotes and bibliography (using Chicago/Turabian style)
- 5 Primary Sources and 5 Secondary Sources (minimum)
- Have clear organization
- Have a thesis! Make an argument!
- Use ample and appropriate detailed evidence
- Paper is due by 11:59 p.m. on May 10, 2023. Late papers will not be accepted.
After thorough consideration of the topic of my research paper this semester over a period of 20th century American history, I have settled upon researching the role of America and the domestic effects of the US participation in the Cold War.
During the Cold War, the United States adopted the containment doctrine towards the Soviet Union, which was implemented in an attempt to prohibit the spread of communism, while simultaneously promoting democracy and capitalism around the world. This policy led to the U.S. significantly increasing their military spending and the eventual establishment of military alliances, such as NATO, which have become pillars for foreign involvement for the last several decades. The United States also used this policy of containment as a reason to engage in numerous proxy wars and interventions around the world, such as the wars and conflicts in Korea and Vietnam in the 1950s and 60s, and towards the end of the Cold War, Afghanistan.
The domestic effects of the U.S. participation in the Cold War were also extremely profound. The country experienced a significant shift in its political, economic, and cultural landscape. The federal government became more involved in American life, something that was widely frowned upon in American politics since the founding of the country, with increased spending on defense and intelligence agencies. The fear of communism and Soviet infiltration into the country led to a political climate of political repression, which was exemplified by both the Red Scare of the 1920s in the midst of the Bolshevik Revolution in the Soviet Union, and the Red Scare of the late 1940s and 50s, which was eventually regarded to as McCarthyism.
In terms of the economy, the Cold War contributed to the growth of the military-industrial complex, which became a significant pillar of the U.S. economy dating all the way to the present day. The government’s increased investment in defense spending, scientific research, and technology directly contributed to the development of new industries, such as the aerospace and computing industries, both being fields that have become especially prevalent in today’s society.
The Cold War also had a significant impact on the American way of life and culture. The looming threat of nuclear war and the propagated fear of communist infiltration influenced the likes of popular culture through several films, television shows, and literature which often depicted a dystopian future dominated by a government that controlled all aspects of the civilian way of life. The Cold War also had a monumental impact on the civil rights movement, as African Americans and other minority groups sought to utilize this time of division and conflict in order to challenge the country’s internal contradictions and moral authority.
Through a collection of primary and secondary sources, I anticipate being able to examine both the short-term and long-term domestic effects of the United States’ involvement in the Cold War, and how these effects continue to shape the way that the United States functions as a country in the modern day.
Primary Sources
The Truman Doctrine – https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/truman-doctrine
The National Security Act of 1947 – https://www.dni.gov/index.php/ic-legal-reference-book/national-security-act-of-1947#:~:text=An%20Act%20To%20promote%20the,Establishment%20with%20other%20departments%20and
Senator Joseph McCarthy’s Speech on Communists in Government Service – https://www.senate.gov/about/powers-procedures/investigations/mccarthy-hearings/communists-in-government-service.htm
President Eisenhower’s Farewell Address – https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/president-dwight-d-eisenhowers-farewell-address
Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Beyond Vietnam” Speech – https://shec.ashp.cuny.edu/items/show/1261#:~:text=On%20April%204%2C%201967%2C%20Martin,democratic%2C%20impractical%2C%20and%20unjust.
Secondary Sources
Cold War Orthodoxy Restated – https://www.jstor.org/stable/2701705
Security against Democracy: The Legacy of the Cold War at Home – https://www.jstor.org/stable/41508909
The Cold War and American Science: The Military-Industrial-Academic Complex at MIT and Stanford – https://www.jstor.org/stable/3447783
The Tragedy of Cold War History – https://www.jstor.org/stable/24912257
Thinking Locally, Acting Globally – https://www.jstor.org/stable/30031306