Analyzing the United Nations Charter

Lesson Plan - Get It!

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League of Nations

After World War I, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson wanted to establish an organization called the League of Nations that countries would join and become accountable to international treaties signed by all the members.

This organization would have the power to prevent future wars by encouraging negotiation and making it more challenging to hide anti-democratic behavior in each country.

• So, what happened?

We know there was a second world war.

• Where was the League of Nations to prevent it?

As you watch the video below to understand why the League of Nations was too weak to succeed, pay attention to the role of the United States Congress.

The U.S. Congress believed that agreeing to international treaties would effectively strip away some of its power, so it did not support the League of Nations.

When the American people were not interested in getting involved worldwide, rallying support around this organization wasn't easy. It was easier in Europe because that is where the most recent war of the time, World War I, had occurred.

United Nations Charter

After World War II and Hitler's fall, there was a renewed sense that an international organization was the only way to ensure peace. This is when the United Nations was created.

In 1945, the organization's founding document was written to convince as many countries as possible to join.

The Charter of the United Nations was structured to justify itself to countries because, as we saw with the League of Nations, governments would not join if they were too afraid of the organization's power. And an international organization without many members would not be very good at keeping peace or affecting change.

• So, how did the authors structure the Charter to persuade as many countries as possible?

Keep in mind that each country had to agree to this document before they could join.

Preamble

As you read the Preamble for the United Nations Charter, try to identify phrases or sentences you think would convince a country wary of joining.

• What did you notice about the structure of this introduction?

It starts by explaining the organization's ultimate goals and then reaffirms that it will exist for "nations large and small."

With the toil of war in mind, the document explains how the U.N. will prevent future world wars through unity and accepting common principles.

Finally, it explains how the U.N. will be formally founded through cooperation between the "respective governments."

• How might structuring the Preamble attract a broad range of countries in this way?

Unsure countries would be reminded of war and assured they could be protected from future wars no matter their country, as long as they committed themselves to cooperation and peace.

This seems convincing, but the document did not stop justifying and supporting the organization's existence.

Article 1

The first article explains the organization's purpose even further. Notice this is placed before everything else as you read.

Imagine you were the leader of a non-western country and, even after reading the Preamble, were hesitant about becoming a member state of the U.N. over concerns about equality.

• How does Article 1 directly address this concern?

All member countries are given the same respect and authority in the organization. This article addressed the concerns many had about the U.N. only being a club for Western Europe and the United States.

Given that the League of Nations did not include any similar statement, it likely made the United Nations more accepted than its predecessor.

Conclusion

You just read the United Nations Charter's entire Article 1, but there are 110 more!

The authors could have placed this article anywhere but decided to put it in the front.

• How does this organization speak to the U.N.'s goals just as much as the words on the page?

Move on to the Got It? section to understand how the authors of the U.N. Charter organized their ideas and the connections drawn between them.