HL: THE COLD WAR AND THE AMERICAS ESSAY QUESTIONS

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PAST ESSAY QUESTIONS
19. Examine the application of Truman’s policy of containment in the Americas. (May 2016)
20. Discuss the domestic effects in the US of its involvement in the Vietnam War.
19. Evaluate the impact of the Cold War on the domestic policies of either Canada or one Latin American country between 1945 and 1981.
20. Evaluate the impact of Eisenhower’s New Look foreign policy on two Latin American countries.
19. Examine the reasons for, and methods of, US intervention in Chile in the early 1970s.
20. Evaluate the factors that influenced US military intervention in Korea.
19. Evaluate the impact of Jimmy Carter’s human rights policies on Latin America’s relationship with the United States
20. Discuss the factors which influenced the foreign policy of either Canada or one Latin American country between 1945 and 1960.
19. Discuss the aims of President Kennedy’s Alliance for Progress and analyse its impact on Latin America during the 1960s
20. Analyse the impact of the Cold War on the foreign policy of either Canada or one country of Latin America from 1945 to 1965.
19. Explain the changing nature of the United States’ involvement in Vietnam between 1963 and 1975.
20.Examine the effects of McCarthyism on society and culture in the United States from the late 1940s to the late 1950s.
MARK SCHEMES
19. Examine the application of Truman’s policy of containment in the Americas.
Candidates are required to consider the policy of containment and apply specific evidence as to its application in the Americas. Consideration may be given to either the depth or breadth of knowledge exhibited. While most candidates may concentrate on Truman’s presidency, others might discuss the application of this policy under other presidents up to 1981.
Indicative content:
• The creation of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in 1947 would lead to the use of covert operations against Latin American governments and political movements that were suspected
of supporting socialist agendas seen as sympathetic to communism.
• In 1947, the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Rio Pact) provided a regional “self-defence” agreement to oppose aggression or armed attack against any American state. This agreement bypassed the authority of the United Nations and would be used by the US to justify overt and covert action against democracies that supported liberal reforms.
• In 1948, the Truman administration helped to establish the Organization of American States (OAS) to provide collective security in the hemisphere and to provide mediation in disputes among its members. The 21 countries pledged to oppose communism in the Americas. The main US objective was maintenance of the status quo.
• In Chile, Gonzalez Videla won the support of the Communist Party in the 1946 elections and included three Communists in his initial cabinet. In response to pressure from the Truman administration, Gonzalez Videla removed the Communist members of his cabinet, broke a Communist-led coal miners’ strike and, a year later, outlawed the Communist Party.
• In 1952, responding in part to the request of President Anastasio Somoza of Nicaragua, the Truman administration authorised the shipment of weapons and money to groups opposing the democratically elected leader of Guatemala, Arbenz. US motives were largely based on Arbenz’s land reform proposals that threatened the interests of the American-owned United Fruit Company. While the 1952 attempt to remove Arbenz was unsuccessful, Eisenhower
would achieve his removal through the covert efforts of the CIA, and thus continued the implementation of containment.
• Canada’s response to containment often required a decision as to whether it would support US Cold War policy or establish a more autonomous foreign policy. These decisions were affected by Canada’ increasing economic interrelationship with the US. In general, Canada was initially
quite supportive of Truman’s containment policy, serving as a founding member of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and sending over 20,000 soldiers to fight in the Korean Conflict.
• If candidates choose to discuss the containment policy post-Truman, the following items may be discussed: for Eisenhower, they could focus on Guatemala and Cuba; for Kennedy, Cuba; for Johnson, the Dominican Republic; for Nixon, Chile; for Carter, the shift away from containment
to human rights.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, it is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.
20. Discuss the domestic effects in the US of its involvement in the Vietnam War.
Candidates must offer a considered and balanced review of the impact of the Vietnam War on US
society and its institutions. The discussion of effects both during and after the war is relevant.
Indicative content
• The economic effects include the cost of the war effort and its impact on society, military
spending leading to budget deficit and inflation, and the erosion of consumer confidence.
It compromised Johnson’s Great Society programme.
• It led Congress to replace the military draft with an all-volunteer army. It contributed to the
reduction of the voting age to 18 (“old enough to fight, old enough to vote”). It also led to the
restriction of the president’s ability to send American forces into combat without explicit
Congressional consent.
• Opposition to the war also had an impact: there were demonstrations and riots, traditional
values were questioned, events such as Kent State weakened public trust in the government
and led to the questioning of the abilities of their leaders, and the impact of the press also
played a role.
• Johnson’s decision not to run in the 1968 elections.
• The impact of the war in the US Presidential campaign and election.
• The war weakened military morale, it changed the attitudes of the people of the US towards
similar conflicts and temporarily affected political activity.
• There was a high number of casualties among US soldiers and there was a significant physical
and mental toll on war veterans and sections of society.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, it is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.
19. Evaluate the impact of the Cold War on the domestic policies of either Canada or one Latin American country between 1945 and 1981.
In their responses, candidates must select Canada or one Latin American country and provide an
assessment of the extent to which its domestic policies were affected by the Cold War. Answers
may identify individual factors and analyse their positive and/or negative impact on their chosen
countries ́ domestic policies, or there could be a more holistic approach that identifies positive (and negative) aspects drawn from a group of related factors.
Note: For Latin America, Cuba will be a popular choice but focus must be on the domestic impact
of the Cold War and not on events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962).
Indicative content
Canada:
• There may be an analysis of the fear of communist infiltration and the concerns about spies and
subversives.
• Governments ́ caution about the expansion of welfare schemes (for fear of being labelled as
pro-communist) could be discussed.
• The increase in defence spending may be addressed.
• The impact of the Cold War on Canadian immigration policies may be discussed.
• The decline in Cold War tensions allowed the government of Canada to turn its attention to
domestic issues.
Latin America:
• There may be analysis of the fear of communism and the potential for greater restriction on
political participation, the activities of political parties and freedom of the press.
• Increased involvement of the military in politics/government could be discussed, as could the
suspension of civil and political rights and a consequent lack of democracy.
• The influence of the US on domestic affairs in, for example Nicaragua and/or Chile may be
addressed.
• With regard to Cuba, the social and economic effects of the embargo may be sources of
discussion, as could the role of the USSR in the Cuban economy, and/or domestic programmes
to improve social and economic conditions. The Mariel crisis may also be referenced.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, it is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.
20. Evaluate the impact of Eisenhower’s New Look foreign policy on two Latin American countries.
Candidates must appraise the various effects of the New Look policy on their chosen two Latin
American countries. They may choose to address those countries separately or they may wish to
assess common or shared themes and provide an overall assessment. It is not essential that each
country is given equal coverage; however responses should be supported and offer a reasoned
conclusion.
Indicative content
• Popular Latin American countries for this question could include Guatemala, Cuba or the
Dominican Republic; the only caveat to candidates’ choices is that countries selected must have
been affected by Eisenhower’s New Look foreign policy.
• For Guatemala, the US worked to overthrow Jacobo Arbenz Guzman. The US saw his land
reform and communist sympathies as detrimental to US interests and trained forces to
overthrow him, which they did in June 1954. Guzman was replaced by US-supported Carlos
Castillo Armas who, three years later, was assassinated by his own generals. For Guatemala,
Eisenhower’s policy meant an end to a popular socialist government, domination of its economy
by the US-owned United Fruit Company, years of military control and repression, and poverty
throughout the country.
• For Cuba, Eisenhower continued to support the repressive Batista regime until 1958, when the
US implemented an arms embargo denying Batista additional weapons to fight Castro. While
the US supported Batista, Cuba was strongly affected by American business, legal and illegal.
Batista was repressive to most of his people, and the majority lived in poverty. After Castro
came to power, the US implemented economic sanctions against Cuba and eventually planned
the Bay of Pigs operation. The attempted coup was carried out during the Kennedy
administration, but it was well underway during Eisenhower’s presidency.
• For the Dominican Republic, the US had long supported the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo. After
Castro’s victory in Cuba, the US thought Trujillo would be similarly overthrown and attempted to
replace him. The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) worked with dissidents to remove
Trujillo from office, but nothing was accomplished before Eisenhower left office.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, it is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.
19. Discuss the aims of President Kennedy’s Alliance for Progress and analyse its impact on Latin America during the 1960s.
Candidates should look into the aims of Kennedy’s Alliance for Progress and then make an
assessment of its short and long-term impact or effects on Latin America. Treatment of impact may be positive, negative or some aspects of each.
Through the Alliance for Progress the United States was to spend $10 billion in the region, over tenyears, to develop infrastructure, provide technology and industrial material. Public and private Capital would be channeled to elected reformist governments in Latin America whose reform proposals met with the approval of the US. Latin American governments were to institute
programmes of social (including land), and political reform.
With regard to aims, candidates may distinguish between those that were “idealistic” and those
dominated by US “self-interest”. Aims that might represent US idealism include: to attempt to
solve the issues of political instability, poverty and inequality in the region (all considered sources of social discontent and revolution); to promote democracy; to eradicate illiteracy; to foster cooperation between North and South; to create a free trade area to facilitate goods and capital flows within the Americas; to increase the per capita income; to achieve price stability and curb inflation. Aims that might represent US self-interest include: to prevent other Cuban-style revolutions; to counter the spread of communism in the region; to carry out a “peaceful” revolution and thus, preserve hemispheric stability under the leadership of the US. US business interests aimed to avoid nationalization and to preserve their investments and profit-potential. Evidence of positive impact may include: the growth in regional output in Latin America in
the 1960s; illiteracy was not eliminated although it was reduced; in some countries, the number of
people attending universities doubled or even tripled; increased access to secondary education;
health clinics were built across Latin America.
Evidence of negative impact may include: it proved difficult to reconcile the goal of promoting
democracy with that of no more Cubas; reformist governments had little authority and introduced limited reforms: in Colombia the success was partial since there was no significant land distribution and shanty towns grew around large cities; Betancourt introduced minor social reform; only one
million out of 15 million peasant families benefited from land reform; land reform continued to be resisted by traditional elites; success in improving health care was hindered by population growth;
although minimum wage laws were passed, the minimum wages offered were set very low; US
loans eventually had to be repaid and aid money had to be spent on purchasing US products;
beneficiaries in the end had to borrow more money to pay off their debts (leading to an increase in foreign debt with serious consequences in the 1980s); corruption and inefficiency in the
implementation of the programme; the programme was regarded with suspicion among Latin
American nationalists (seen as another tool for US domination). Social unrest was not appeased;
the 1960s was a decade of social turmoil and guerrilla warfare. Candidates will probably refer to
the failure to promote democracy; in Latin America during the 1960s thirteen constitutional
governments were replaced by military dictatorships lasting well into the 1980s. For example: 1964 coup in Brazil; 1966 in Argentina (Onganía); in Perú, in Uruguay.