Attitudes of World War 2

Attitudes of World War 2

‘World War II and the events that followed changed Australia more than any other event in our history’. (The Australian 2000, pg 30) The purpose of this paper is to support the hypothesis that, as a result of World War II Australia’s sense of security was questioned, new social aspects and national identity were aroused, and new economic and industrial implications were recognized. To prove the above hypothesis the attitudes and historical events will be analysed to determine the perspectives attained by Australian’s.

The Second World War saw Australian’s come face to face for the first time with the prospect of an invasion that might dispossess them of their island continent. ‘The war would test the defences of the decaying British Empire as never before and determine whether ‘White Australia’ would receive another breathing space in which to secure its proprietorship over the land’. (Day, D. pg 250) The Japanese moved southward to Australia’s northern shores revealing the reality of war. Now the Australian public was faced with their fears, ‘… there was nowhere to escape… Undaunted, some Australians fled to relatives in the bush… rather than fall into the hands of an [alien] Asian invader’. (Day, D. pg 272) Within society radical literature and artworks, published in the Bulletin (a newspaper), regarding Japanese invasion began to emerge as the constant threat of attack came to the forefront of the ‘British Australia.’ (The Australian 2000, pg 30) Literature is a representation of the populations emotions at the time, therefore, one may suggest, as stated, the populous of Australia was scared and angry. The attitude of their security as a nation was unpredictable and left them defenseless and scared.

After World War II, Australia was subject to many social changes in society from, ‘the post-war immigration program which directly led to the eradication of the ‘White Australia Policy’, (The Australian 2000, pg 29) and the creation of a multi-cultural...

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