Truman had just demonstrated the raw power of the nuclear bomb to end World War II in 1945. The cost of the war had immediately changed; the world had seen that entire cities could be wiped out in seconds. It would send a paralyzing shock across the world. After World War II, the world was divided between two economic ideals, communism and capitalism. This would drag America and the Soviet Union into the Cold War. The Cold War was an exceptionally distinct war that manifested a fear in Americans that was beautifully captured in literature and films made by people who lived through the Cold War. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Many Americans were extremely happy that their country emerged victorious from the horrible World War. They were ready to return to the peace they had once known. By this time, books like Stuart Little and Goodnight Moon had become exceptionally popular with American audiences. These novels were very child-oriented and conservative, just like society at the time. There was not the slightest trace of war in the pages of these books. These books captured the mindset of a typical American, wanting to move past the war and clear his mind of the atrocities his country had just witnessed. Even if the time they were trying to return to wasn't the same time they were in right before the war. Before the war, women gained many rights and freedoms that they did not have before, but America was returning to more traditional times. This meant that women's rights would be challenged. America had begun to comply. The American middle class has undergone a transformation and has conformed to the guidelines set by films like It's A Wonderful Life. This movie had the image of a perfect family, with a beautiful housewife and a hard-working man. The American public would be greatly influenced by the emergence of television. Television helped spread social norms to the entire nation. Television also reinforced the importance of a happy family, as at that time a family only had one television centered in the living room, which was not designed for watching television. William Whyte perfectly described the worker's thoughts: “I love my wife; I love my family; I never let them get in the way of business” in The Organization Man. Conformity would become extremely important once the Cold War began. The county had been left in the inexperienced hands of President Harry Truman. Although the Soviet Union was America's trusted ally and was highly regarded by the American public throughout World War II, it nonetheless remained communist. An ideology that America could not live with. “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others” is a great parody of communist ideology written by George Orwell in Animal Farm. The world was divided between communism and democracy. Truman established the doctrine of containment in 1945. This doctrine attempted to contain and stop the spread of communism across Europe. The border between democratic countries and countries infected by communism would be known as the Iron Curtain. The Cold War would be a fight between the two world superpowers, which would take place in countries between two revolutions. These conflicts would be known as proxy wars. ThereKorean War would be the first confrontation in which the United States would be involved. In the 1950s, democratic South Korea, supported by America, and communist North Korea, supported by China and the Soviet Union. to war. The 38th parallel was the border between South and North Korea before the war. The United States provided 88% of the troops sent by the United Nations. Both armies penetrated deep into enemy territory, but failed to win the war. After three hard years of war, neither side was able to achieve victory. The war ended in a stalemate in 1953. The 38th parallel once again became the border. Many books about the Korean War would be written long after the war. During this war, something had frightened the American public. The Red Scare had emerged in the United States of America. Senator Joseph McCarthy was a huge catalyst for the Red Scare. During this period, many people were accused of subversion. Communist fear had so gripped the country that neighbors and family members were turning against each other. The Red Scare gave birth to a book entitled I led 3 lives, Citizen, Communist, Counter-spy which greatly appealed to the American public; it was later converted into a 117-episode show. McCarthyism led to the Hollywood blacklist, in which screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other artists were denied employment because of their respected beliefs. Executive 9835 was signed in March 1947 by Harry Truman. The order sparked investigations by government officials. McCarthy and many others went on a witch hunt looking for anyone who broke the norm and accused them of being a spy or supporting communism. If McCarthy could have gotten what he wanted, he would have turned America into a totalitarian government. Conformity was essential in those days because if your neighbor saw you breaking the norms and thought you were a communist, you would be reported and probably arrested. This fear led to many types of literature, especially spy literature. Throughout this period, the market was flooded with spy literature and films. Writers and directors prayed over the fears of the American public. The execution of the Rosenbergs made the threat of espionage very real for American citizens. The first James Bond novel was published during this period of fear. James Bond became so popular because he gave the American people assurance that their government had spies in the Soviet Union who were going after the Soviet Union. Ian Fleming conquered the spy market with James Bond. Many of these spy novels would have a Soviet espionage flaw on the American side, so American audiences would feel superior to their Soviet counterparts. The hunt for Red October would be a great example of this. John le Carré's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy made the concept of a double agent very attractive. Our Man in Havana takes a more comedic approach but remains one of the most popular spy books of the era. These books reinforced American superstitions and encouraged citizens to try to find communists in their neighborhoods. Espionage wasn't the only thing the American public had to fear. They all knew that the United States was at the mercy of a nuclear strike at any moment. At first, the American public had no idea what a nuclear deterrent was. A nuclear deterrent ensured that if one side fired missiles, the opposing side would immediately fire its own missiles. This led tothe theory of mutual assured destruction where neither side could fire a single missile because they knew it would mean neither side would survive the subsequent consequences. It would be an irreversible annihilation of both parties involved. This essentially prevented a nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. This fear of the bomb was another fear that perpetrators of this era used to their advantage. The bomb threat was becoming a huge fear among the American public, and literature and films were not helping. Many books described an accidental nuclear strike that could end both nations if the president failed to convince the Soviet premier. A good example of one of these books would be Fail-Safe written by Eugene Burdick and Harvey Wheeler. This book made it a point to try to convince the American public that the bombs were incredibly dangerous and that both governments should try to dismantle their nuclear stockpiles. It was an incredibly gripping novel in which many citizens looked up into the sky, making sure there were no Soviet planes in the sky. The film Dr. Strangelove took a comedic look at the same situation that Fail-Safe put the American public in. “Gentleman, you can't fight in here, it's a war room” has to be one of the funniest lines in any movie. On the other hand, there were books like When the Wind Blows which took a very unique approach to nuclear war. It is presented in a comic book style and provides plenty of dark humor. It follows an elderly couple unaware of the nuclear strike that hit Britain. They then suffered from radiation sickness, a fairly new concept and too widespread at the time. These books and films implanted the certainty of annihilation from these nuclear bombs. There is another type of book about the Red Scare. Americans were afraid of the coming of the Soviet Union and the destruction of everything American. These types of books were the most irrational and probably weren't going to happen unlike previous types of literature. Nothing actually happened that sparked these types of books and movies, but they became very popular because no one wants their country invaded. One of the most popular books would have to be The Manchurian Candidate written by Richard Condon. A famous politician is brainwashed during his tour of Korea. For a time, he is erased from everything that makes him an American and listens to the orders he was given, then forgets them afterward. A popular film called The Thing from Another World, the film is about an alien who crash lands on Earth and must drain the blood of his victims in order to survive. At first the symbolism may be lost, but on closer inspection the Thing is a representation of the Soviets who are going to invade America and empty it of itself. The film The Russians are coming the Russians are coming is a comedy but it is most obvious in pointing out that American citizens were very afraid of a Russian invasion. Perhaps the most famous of all proxy wars would be the Vietnam War. The United States of America believed that if one state fell under communism, the others would be infected. The Vietnam War would span from the 1950s to 1982. The war would span four separate presidential terms. The war pitted the democratic south against the communist north. At first the French were present and tried to contain communism, but then withdrew in 1954. The United States provided money and advice.