Is The Second World War a Turning Point in History?
The 20th century saw a remarkable shift in the way that vast numbers of people lived, as a result of technological, medical, social, ideological, and political innovation. Due to the continuing industrialization and expanding trade, conflicts started to appear among countries all around the world. Terms like ideology, world war, genocide, and nuclear war entered common usage staring from the 20th century. Among all the conflicts, the Second World War was the most noticeable one, since it influenced the future development of the whole world. I believe that this article could help you understand its significance towards the 20th century History in a deeper manner. In this article, I will compare the developments of the world before and after the Second
World War, so as to help me decide whether we should regard
WWII as the turning point in the 20th century History.
Formation of economic organizations
The great Powers also formed a number of economic organizations like the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (1948), the European Economic Community (1957) and the European Free Trade Association (1960) to speed up the economic recovery in Europe
Conclusion
For a time to be regarded as a turning point in history, there should be some important events that resulted in significant changes in different countries and in different aspects like political situation, people’s life, ideologies and international relations. Based on this criterion, the Second World War saw a great change in various aspects in the world, including:
Changes in the political situation
The fall of totalitarianism in some countries, decline of Germany and Japan, creation of two blocs and decolonization are important changes.
Changes in the balance of power
The fall of international status of European Powers, rise of two superpowers, increasing status of China showed the balance of power after 1945 is changed.
Increasing popularity of nationalism and communism
Noticeable changes include the spread of nationalism and communism.
Changes in the international relations
The formation of the United Nations and the Cold War changed the relationship between countries respectively.
In conclusion, the Second World War had significant and long-term impact on the political situation, balance of power, ideologies and international relations in Europe. Therefore, this article concludes that the Second World War could be regarded as a turning point in the 20th century History.
Before 1945, the weakness of China invited the aggression and exploitation of the great Powers. China was often defeated in foreign wars and she suffered from the economic exploitation of the great Powers. Nevertheless, during the Second World War, China helped the Allies to defeat Japan. As a consequence, after 1945, she became one of the “Big Five” in the world and became one of the permanent members in the Security Council of the United Nations Organization. Also, the great Powers were willing to give up their rights and privileges in China after 1945.
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