Thirteen Days, by Robert Kennedy, is a portrayal of the drama surrounding the Cuban missile crisis, and an analysis of the ordeal. There are two sides to this conflict which was played out in the post-World War II era. On one hand you have the Communists of the Soviet Union, whose desire to bring all of Europe under their heel would nearly spark a war that would annihilate the human race. On the other stands the Americans who wished the “vindication of right” and to prevent the further spread of Communism.The tensions begin to mount after Germany and Berlin were divided among the victorious countries of the Allies and three major power blocs formed. The countries that had been newly formed in the aftermath of the war declared themselves to be neutral. The western countries, led by America, and the Soviet Union, along with its newly “acquired” countries, formed the other two. The Soviet Union had surrounded itself with Communist satellite countries, and was taking every opportunity to impose Communism onto any other country possible. In response to this policy the U.S. announced the Truman Doctrine, which was aimed at controlling the Soviet encroachment, and the Marshall Plan, designed to support the recovery of war-devastated Europe to make Communism less appealing. However, two things came to pass that sent shockwaves through the U.S. The first of which was the Communist overthrow of the Chinese government, which began to instill deeper fear of Communism. The second was the Soviet Union’s newly discovered atomic ability. Now the U.S. was not the world superpower, did not have sole possession of the most powerful weapon in the world, the weapon that was the edge we needed to keep Communism in check. These events contributed to the anti-Communist furor that swept the country for the next twenty years which resulted in “witch-hunts” that ruined many lives and careers, most often unju...
