There are many ways to get a feel for the events of the 20th Century. One way is
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There are many ways to get a feel for the events of the 20th Century. One way is through the analysis of primary source documents. Few documents set the stage for the second half than Winston Churchill's 1946 speech in Fulton, Missouri. Officially entitled "The Sinews of Peace", it came to be known as "The Iron Curtain Speech", in which Churchill laid out the challenges for the West in general, and the US and Britain in particular, regarding what would soon be known as the Cold War. Your assignment this week is to not just read Churchill's speech, but read between the lines to answer the following questions in a well written 2-3 page document: Churchill believes the Soviet Union "desires the fruits of war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines." How might those expansionist desires challenge the Western principle of national political self determination, a cause it championed during World War 2? Churchill's speech acknowledges "Russia's need to be secure on her western borders," but at the same time it raises concerns about Soviet actions in Eastern Europe. Is Churchill being inconsistent? Or does he provide concrete justifications for those concerns? In his speech, Churchill asserts "There is nothing they (the Russians) admire so much as strength, and nothing for which they have less respect for than military weakness." If he isn't advocating a direct military confrontation with the Soviet Union, then what is he saying? Churchill delivered this speech to an American audience, but after reading it one might conclude it could have been given in any western country. Why did he pick the US? http://www.historyguide.org/europe/churchill.html There are many ways to get a feel for the events of the 20th Century. One way is through the analysis of primary source documents. Few documents set the stage for the second half than Winston Churchill's 1946 speech in Fulton, Missouri. Officially entitled "The Sinews of Peace", it came to be known as "The Iron Curtain Speech", in which Churchill laid out the challenges for the West in general, and the US and Britain in particular, regarding what would soon be known as the Cold War. Your assignment this week is to not just read Churchill's speech, but read between the lines to answer the following questions in a well written 2-3 page document: Churchill believes the Soviet Union "desires the fruits of war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines." How might those expansionist desires challenge the Western principle of national political self determination, a cause it championed during World War 2? Churchill's speech acknowledges "Russia's need to be secure on her western borders," but at the same time it raises concerns about Soviet actions in Eastern Europe. Is Churchill being inconsistent? Or does he provide concrete justifications for those concerns? In his speech, Churchill asserts "There is nothing they (the Russians) admire so much as strength, and nothing for which they have less respect for than military weakness." If he isn't advocating a direct military confrontation with the Soviet Union, then what is he saying? Churchill delivered this speech to an American audience, but after reading it one might conclude it could have been given in any western country. Why did he pick the US? http://www.historyguide.org/europe/churchill.htmlExplanation / Answer
The speech was made by Winston in March 1946 at Fulton, Missouri. Iron Curtain is used metaphorically in two different ways. Firstly it would mean the end of a period and secondly to say a closed geographical border.
After the end of World War 2 in 1945 to the end of the Cold War in 1991, the Iron Curtain formed a boundary that divided Europe into two areas. Iron Curtain symbolized efforts of the Soviet Union to keep itself away and the satellite states from open contact with the West and non-Soviet controlled areas. The Iron Curtain took border defenses between countries of Europe in the middle of the continent. Some of the common borders were marked by the Berlin Wall, and it is Checkpoint Charlie which served as a symbol for the Curtain.
Churchill believes that the Soviet Union ‘desires the fruits of the war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines. His speech brought about the thought that the Soviet Union is trying to establish communism in the Eastern European government and around the world. In the speech he seems to present a solution that he thinks will be best to combat the threat of war relying on the United Nations and how efficient he sees the United Nations. Churchill builds a new hope to the process and makes it clear that the New World Organization will be based upon a solid foundation, and it will not be a disappointment. In the speech, he aims at building the credibility of the United Nations. He called out for the people to be equipped with an international armed force rather than appeasements which will result in the building up of the military by the German and Italian fascists. Churchill explained the benefits of freedom and stated that those who enjoy freedom should fight for it and stand up for it and also for the rights of a man. He explains the difficulties experienced after a war like collapsing of the economy and so in a case of another war it would be difficult for the people and the government.
In the speech, Churchill asserts that there is nothing the Russians admire so much than the strength and nothing they have less respect than the military weakness. By saying this, he does not encourage for war. Instead, he is calling upon other European countries to show their military strength which should be admired and respected by the people. He provides means in which a new war can be avoided. He states that “if all British moral and material forces are joined with the fraternal association, the highroads of the future will be clear.” By saying that he is trying to say that all the English speaking people should form a long lasting relationship band, British will gain a strong military power and from that, they show and signify to Russia that they are strong.
Churchill also believes that this is the time that people value their power that they get to help in giving solutions to the real life problems related to issues of war. The Russians are so proud of the strength displayed because they are sure it will yield to the right fruits when it is put into practice.
In conclusion, the general speech by Churchill can be seen as an illustration urging the people to keep off from war and fight for peace in all means possible. To achieve the best these people need to borrow from the past actions and experiences and also take up, the lessons learned as our second chance for a new beginning.
References
Churchill, W. (2009). Iron Curtain Speech. Great Neck Pub..
Harbutt, F. J. (1988). The Iron Curtain: Churchill, America, and the Origins of the Cold War. Oxford University Press.
Muller, J. W. (1999). Churchill's" Iron Curtain" speech fifty years later. University of Missouri Press.
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