The time period prior to World War 1 engaged Europe in a tense conflict amongst the central powers that the result would undoubtedly substantially alter the entire continent. By the time 1914 came, the situation had boiled over to a point beyond democratic settlements. It was time for armed conflict, and that was exactly what occurred. Over the next four years, the European forces were engulfed in violent confrontations that left the participating nations without a young male population. By the end of the fighting, the significant loss of life was beyond anyone’s imagination. The economic and social problems left in the aftermath would arouse changes throughout the world. But no where, not even America would experience the same alterations as did Europe. America only participated in the final year and a half of the war and didn’t experience the same loss of life or catastrophic violence as did Europe. The failure to experience the same changes left America without a perspective that was needed later on during negotiations, a fact that would prove very detrimental to the American cause.

            Following the war, the European victors had their hearts set on making the losing Germans take on full responsibility for the war. In essence, they believed by throwing them head first into the humiliation of defeat. By demoralizing them, similar problems wouldn’t arise knowing the repercussions of failure. Wilson and America didn’t feel as though this was the best way to go about solving these problems. Wilson believed that the only way to successfully prevent any future situations that would allow the conflicts between such powers to go without effective and efficient solutions to the problems before they turned to violence. However, Wilson didn’t have the sway or power that he had hoped he would. Because the nation hadn’t been involved earlier, America really was out of line to think they could institute the policy for reconstructing Europe. It was in this frame of mind that Wilson was forced to back off some of his ideas and adopt the policies of the European nations.

            When America was asked to ratify the treaty and join the League of Nations, the entire philosophy of Wilson was gone and the meaning of what he wanted non existent. Basically, the Europeans got their way and simply put Wilson’s name on it. Other nations hadn’t completely backed the treaty and the League of Nations. In fact, there was no military force to back up the ideals held by the League, giving it no reason to be listened to. The real effects that followed this treaty and the entire reconstruction process was the ill will that would be created in the upcoming years. Just as the hostilities that culminated in World War 1, the feelings of Germany would arouse a sense of retaliation and aggressive nature that would ultimately cause yet another great conflict-World War 2.

Some say the United States won World War One.  They assisted the allies by both sending troops and by conserving items to be sent to the war.  These items included food, electricity, machinery, and money.  People of the United States were able to send large amounts of these items by voluntarily saving and creating them.  American society also changed with America’s entrance into World War One since many job opportunities were presented and since many Americans tried to work harder.  The United States was also one of the major leaders during the Peace Treaty of Versailles.  Wilson greatly helped to create a treaty, however the United States failed to agree to the Peace Treaty of Versailles and to the League of Nations.

            World War I did cause American society to change, maybe for the better.  Many Americans felt it their duty to assist their fellow Americans who were fighting in Europe.  The soldiers fighting for the side of the allies needed food.  However the people still living in the United States also needed food.  So Herbert C. Hoover was placed in charged of the Food Administration.  Through propaganda posters, billboards, newspapers, pulpits, and movies, Hoover was able to get Americans to want to help.  Many patriots began to grow food in their own backyards to assist the men overseas.  Also there were voluntary wheatless Wednesdays and meatless Tuesdays to help conserve food.  Congress also passed the Eighteenth Amendment in 1919, which prohibited all alcoholic drinks, helping to save foodstuffs used in brewing beer.  People supported the prohibition of alcoholic drinks, especially beer since many brewers were Germans.  Hoover’s voluntary method of saving food worked very well, since food exports tripled in volume.  This method was then used by other agencies trying to help the war, such as the Fuel Administration and the Treasury Department. 

            World War I also influenced people in the United States to work harder and to resist strikes.  This was because of the policy that all eligible men who were unemployed would be sent to Europe to fight.  Also many women were given jobs because of the new job opportunities produced by the war.

            At the end of World War I representatives of the leading countries of that time drafted the Treaty of Versailles.  Wilson, the president of the United States, was one of these men.  Wilson wanted this treaty to be based on his Fourteen Points, however this did not happen.  Wilson had to compromise with the other representatives in order to keep his favorite part of the Fourteen Points, the creation of a League of Nations.  The other leaders used Wilson’s love for the League of Nations to get him to make compromises on his other Fourteen Points.        

            American failed to ratify this treaty for different reasons.  One major reason was that Wilson refused to allow the Treaty to be amended by Congress.  He wanted the treaty to be left the way it was.  The fighting between Wilson and Lodge, a senator who wanted to add his own reservations to the treaty, could have also been a factor in this decision.  The United States refused to join the League of Nations because many politicians hated the idea of this organization.  These people did not want to be tangled with alliances, a political belief followed by Jefferson and Washington. 

WWI substantially altered American society. Americans lost their innocence. They also became very materialistic since purchasing items on credit became commonplace. America got a new workforce full of empowered women. They had recently won the vote and found employment opportunities in the cities. Sigmund Freud’s writings had also been translated recently, which stated that sexual repression was unhealthy, and women’s hair and hemlines got shorter.
Wilson was forced to compromise during the peace negotiations because he was very idealistic in his proposal. He didn't take into consideration the bitterness that the French and British would feel against the Germans when he made his proposal. They completely disregarded his forward-looking proposal and fueled resentment in their harsh treatment of the Germans. He refused to join the League of Nations because Germany wasn't included and he thought of it as incomplete and unfair.

Chapter 31

            World War I affected Americans, as well as, Europeans. The entire world was disillusioned. Americans, in particular, were wary of getting involved in foreign affairs. Isolationist attitudes grew more after the war. Negative attitudes towards immigrants and anything “un-American” spread across the nation. Americans were forever changed by the harsh realities introduced by the war, and romanticism was gone.

            Although Wilson was welcomed into Europe as a hero, there were many who were against the fourteen points for peace, at home and abroad. At the Treaty of Versailles, the big four (U.S., Britain, Italy, and France), came together to agree upon the post-war situation in Europe. Wilson’s intent was to create an agreement that would give freedom to the ethnic groups oppressed by European imperialism, and avoid vengeance and future confrontation in between European nations. However, European nations were still concerned with their own imperialistic interests and vengeance on Germany. There was opposition toward Wilson’s ideas.

            At home his opposition was just as great, as it was overseas. Republicans and anti-Wilsonians were against the fourteen points. More importantly, they were against the League of Nations, which Wilson hoped would include each nation and prevent altercations in the future. His opponents assailed his brain-child as nothing vague and useless. Thirty-nine senators proclaimed that the League of Nations would not be accepted in its current state. European nations saw their opportunity to take advantage of Wilson’s weakness. They knew that Wilson would rather have an altered league of nations, than none at all. This was their perfect chance to demand what they wanted or they would walk.

            One of Wilson’s biggest concerns was preventing imperialism and saving self-determination for nations previously denied that right before the war. France was set on attaining the Rhineland because of its rich coal area, but because of the German inhabitants Wilson did not want to just hand over the territory. A deal was made that the Saar Basin would stay under the league of nations and in fifteen years would vote to decide their fate. A similar decision was made when Japan demanded control over the Shantung peninsula and the German islands in the Pacific. When Japan threatened to walk out Wilson compromised by allowing Japan to control Germany’s economic holdings in Shantung and the peninsula to China.

            America failed to ratify the treaty due in part to opposition in congress and Wilson’s own stubbornness. His long-time adversary senator Lodge succeeded in postponing the League of Nations’ creation. Lodge created his own reservations. Wilson refused to accept the reservations and convinced his followers to do the same. He succeeded in his plan to deny Lodge’s reservation, but the plan was voted on again. And again Wilson used his influence to prevent the plan from being passed. He was stubborn in his views and blinded by a personal feud, and because of it, he was largely responsible for destroying his own dream. Isolationist ideas, in addition to, traditionalism, isolationism, and disillusionment crushed any hope for a league of nations.