Introduction America's initial response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 was one of disbelief and shock. This attack took place on a Sunday morning and what surprised many was that a small island nation located on the Asian continent could pull off such a feat thousands of kilometers away from its true homeland. Much of this shock and disbelief was based primarily on the stereotypical view Americans had of Japanese people: short people with Oriental features who seemed exaggerated. This shock turned to anger, which prompted American leaders to act quickly. One day after the attack, President Roosevelt delivered a speech labeled “December 7” before the joint session of Congress. “Yesterday, December 7, 1941 – it is a day that will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Japanese Empire.” This speech was so powerful and will definitely live in infamy. The Senate was expected to vote unanimously in favor of the war, but notably the House vote was not entirely unanimous as a pacifist called Jeannette Rankin voted against the war. His intention was to demonstrate that a good democracy is not expected to vote unanimously in favor of war. Exactly three days after the attack, Italy and Germany declared war on America, which prompted Congress to pass another unanimous resolution that fully implicated America in World War II. The Basics of the War The Pacific War began with surprising Japanese victories. The Japanese arrived in Manila in January 1942. American forces held out until early May, after… middle of paper… Americans standing with Britain in its darkest and finest hour. Random house. ISBN 978-1-58836-982-6. Rhodes, Anthony. Propaganda: The Art of Persuasion: World War II, p257, Chelsea HousePublishers, New York, 1976Sabin, Burritt. “The War's Legacy [sic]: Dawn of a tragic era,” Japan Times, 8 February 2004 (accessed 10 June 2005). Silent Victory (Philadelphia: Lippicott, 1975) Stokesbury, James L. (1980). A brief history of World War II. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc. p. 171. ISBN 0-688-03587-6. Sulzberger, C.L., “The American Heritage Picture History of World War II” “The Attack on Pearl Harbor: The White House Reaction, 1941,” EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005). The Japanese Merchant Marine in World War II (Annapolis: United States Naval Institute Press, 1993) Willmott, op. cit.; Peattie and Evans, op. cit.