Hiroshima: BBC History of World War II

This documentary is produced by the BBC and it focuses on the atomic bomb dropped in Nagasaki. I have used sections of this documentary on two units, my 10th grade World history class in my World War II unit, and on my Japanese Internment unit for my 11th grade US history course. I really appreciate that that this film offers the testimonies of Japanese citizens who actually experienced the atomic bomb. Those first hand testimonies are extremely important to record, and they offer insights about the event through the eyes of people who experienced it. The way in which it portrays the destruction as experienced by civilians was also very compelling and it allows students to wonder if so much destruction was necessary. This film also offers plenty of opportunities to discuss critical themes in history, such as the use of science for good or for destruction, or discussions on the ethics of war seeing as how the bomb was dropped in an area inhabited by civilians. I personally feel the film has a bias favoring the US, but that is up to individual interpretation and it offers an opportunity for students to discuss this topic. This film is available on Netflix.
edited by nramon on 1/19/2016