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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In the iconic pre-war image discussed in Chapter 1, the soldiers are driving what sort of vehicle?

2. The author states that most of the weapons issued to American armed forces suffered from what problems?

3. According to one rumor, female axis agents were sent to the allies with what?

4. How old were the youngest soldiers fielded by the axis during the war?

5. Which of the following is NOT one of the ways that most contemporaneous war histories depicted military blunders?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are recognition errors, and how are they caused?

2. How did the American military cause reports of military blunders to be underplayed?

3. What beliefs do younger soldiers typically have that older soldiers do not?

4. What were talismans?

5. What sort of information is regularly denied to the common soldier?

6. What was the doctrine of precision bombing?

7. What problems did the doctrine of precision bombing face?

8. What beliefs did American have about the Japanese going into the war, and how did those beliefs change?

9. How did contemporaneous war histories depict military blunders?

10. What types of rumors are sometimes believed by both sides?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Most soldiers quickly developed a feeling that there was no meaning for the war. Although they were frequently told what they were fighting for, they had no idea why they were fighting,

1) Explain why many soldiers felt that there was an ideological void in the meaning and purpose of the war.

2) Discuss some attempts that the media made to fill this void and discuss why these attempts did not resonate with the soldiers. What were troops told they were fighting for?

3) Explain the consequences of this ideological void on the psychological states and lives of individual soldiers.

Essay Topic 2

During the war, advertisers took advantage of the prevailing patriotic spirit to help sell their products.

1) Discuss how and why advertisers were able to take advantage of the war.

2) Explain why consumers were particularly susceptible to encouragements to support the war effort. What did the "one voice" movement have to do with this phenomenon?

3) Assess how acceptable the practices that advertisers used during this time were. Did these campaigns constitute war profiteering, or were they valid business models? Use information from the book to support your opinion.

Essay Topic 3

Many soldiers believed in Talismans.

1) Describe what a talisman is and why they concept was embraced by soldiers.

2) Discuss the types of objects that were used as talismans and why their origins caused them to be considered important.

3) Speculate as to how seriously most soldiers believed in the protective powers of the talismans.

4) Discuss the importance of the talismans as devices to comfort and reassure soldiers placed in brutal and violent conditions.

(see the answer keys)

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