Art Object: Cultural Context

This artwork is the monument to the flag-raising at Iwo Jima. The reason I chose this work was because of its strong effect on the outcome of World War II. The island of Iwo Jima is located around 1200 miles away from Tokyo, Japan and could be a critical checkpoint for United States aircraft to land and refuel, if it was captured. Also, American forces believed that there could be many emergency rescues ran out of this location and that considerable time could be saved in doing so using this island. Japanese officials also had radar located on this island, and as a result the Americans were not able to get through the area without being noticed. This island had three airstrips that the Japanese used for launching there kamikaze attacks off of. The United States thought that this island would be fairly easy to come by, however Japanese forces begged to differ with them.

The battle at Iwo Jima proved to be severly detrimental to both sides of the war. Before invading the island, the American forces assumed that there would not be a lot of resistance there. However, after the troops landed, they quickly became bombared by Japanese gunfire. The Japanese were well known for their sneaky locations and took the upper hand at the start by being well hid from the front lines of the U.S. forces. After sustaining the initial blows of the first few days, the Americans re-grouped to turn the tables in their favor. Towards the end of the battle, Japanese troops became starved, and desperate, committing suicide or surrendering themselves.

The Japanese troops lost over twenty thousand men and the American forces sustained over twenty seven thousand troops. After the Americans took over Iwo Jima, the island was only mainly used for air and sea rescue missions and occasional stops for minor problems. After the war ended in 1945, many Americans looked back on the battle of Iwo Jima and wondered if the island was really necessary for the American force to win in Japan. It was, and the victory at the small island of Iwo Jima proved to be a large factor in the Allied win in World War II. The memorial is dedicated to all marines who have given their lives in battle, whether in World War II or in any other war.