In the book Citizen Soldiers by Stephen E. Ambrose, the title explains mainly what the book is about. The title itself gives you the insight about how the war was fought through the perspective of a regular citizen fighting in the biggest war in history. During the war there were many casualties, as a result more regular citizens were being drafted to go right into battle. In this book Ambrose exemplifies the fact that there were many regular citizens in the war and that they took the situation that they were in and made better of it and overcame it to come home as heroes.
The men of the story were ordinary citizens put into an extraordinary situation and came out on top. These men often bonded together through some of the harder times, for example in the text there was a time where one soldier was able to be sent home to the states but refused it because he wanted to stay with his friend. “It’s either I stay here or he comes too,” those were the feelings of many people in the war that shared a special attachment with another man.
The book was able to clarify many of my questions left over from Band Of Brothers, like how the men of the companies got along with the newer recruits and how they shared their feelings for them. I soon realized that the citizen soldiers of this book had their really close friends but they really didn’t see the new people as intruding on their war lifestyle and being too anxious to fight. They didn’t react to cruelly...
The dramatic realization of the fact that the war will affect a member of the Chance family is apparent in this quote. The amount of sorrow and emotions felt by the Chance family, and for that matter, all families who had children, brothers, husbands, or fathers, drafted into what many felt was a needless war. The novel brings to life what heartache many Americans had to face during the Vietnam era, a heartache that few in my generation have had the ability to realize.
War is a very tough and gruesome thing that people have to deal with even though no one likes it. It takes a special person to enlist and go fight for their country. Someone who's tough and can handle seeing the things they have to see day after day, no matter what just to defend their country. Now imagine being only fifteen and sneaking into the army just to do what's right and needs to be done. It was the mid 1940's while WWII is raging through Europe as Hitler and his numerous followers and soldiers are terrorizing mainly the Jewish population killing millions. Jack Raab, a fifteen year old boy, dreams of being a hero, so when he hears about what's going on he sees it as his chance to be one. Leaving his family in New York with his brothers
In the United States, it is practically impossible to walk down most streets without coming across a homeless person. The issue of homelessness has worsened because of the number of veterans back from our most recent wars. They have resorted to homelessness as their only refuge after being unable to maintain a stable home and/or not receiving the treatments they need. But as veteran homelessness demands more attention, especially in California, various solutions are being brought to action. The “housing-first strategy” being offered to homeless veterans and those endangered of becoming homeless, has played a major part in moving California closer to having an end to veteran homelessness in 2015.
Although Band of Brothers is similar to many other non-fiction war novels, what makes this novel standout is the authors ability to prove to the reader that the Revolutionary war wasn’t just about lining up and killing as many people as possible, but rather the strategic approach that was needed for the Americans to even stand a chance against the powerhouse British army. What the braves soldiers went through in a time where they didn’t even have shoes to cover their feet was astonishing. Kelley’s main focus is to prove to the audience that the Revolutionary War was a demoralizing event in history. Kelly does a wonderful job capturing this by displaying in graphic detail, which in some instances, was hard to fathom. Kelly provides the reader with detailed mapping throughout the book providing the reader a better opportunity to visualize the battles as the occurred. In addition, Kelly’s tops it off by displaying detailed background about each “Giant” before their time in the spot light giving the reader the opportunity to build a relationship with each
Veterans are viewed as the strongest people in the United States. They constantly deal with daily struggles such as disability and unemployment after their services. After serving in a branch of the United States military, many veterans have trouble finding work. While there are, at times, things that need to be overcome for veterans to be able to work, they are often skilled workers and deserve the opportunity to succeed in the civilian workplace.
Tragic events occur not only in the United States, but also all over the world. From these tragic events communities, families, and the government decide to place memorials for people that were lost and as a thank you for people protecting the citizens of the country. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, The Wall, in Washington D.C. is one of these cases. However, what exactly was the purpose of this memorial? The purpose of putting up the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was not only to thank the veterans for their bravery, but to remind future generations about happened during the Vietnam War. Also, the memorial is important to help people and the veterans to accept the fact that the war actually
... could not help themselves, they were not going to be helped. If struggle were encountered, men had personalized ways to reconnect with the real world, and if a tragedy were encountered which affected the entire company, they also found a combined way to cope with this pressure. The priorities of men during the war shifted greatly toward emotional connections to people and events other than the war, and it was these connections that helped them survive and return home. Coping with the stress and burden of war is not an easy task for anyone, yet in The Things they Carried, O'Brien depicts men dealing and coping as much as they can, using only their primeval resources. They learn how to cope with the barest necessities in life, and they learn how to make use of the smallest opportunities to obtain the most relief and joy from every moment in life.
I agree with Ambrose’s conclusions about the comradeship these men experienced and military facts he presented. They were backed with insurmountable evidence in the forms of letters and interviews, in addition to being presented both rationally and passionately. Band of Brothers not only matched up with and supported the information in the textbook on World War II, but added a whole new dimension to the war. By examining World War II through the miniscule scale of a single company rather than the larger scope of entire armies, Ambrose helps the reader to better understand the courage and sacrifice of individual soldiers. The book could not be improved any way: it provided important historical facts and interesting details throughout, kept me constantly engaged with an interesting story, and provided useful and moving lessons on the comradeship formed under stress and the immense satisfaction of being a part of something much bigger than oneself. I thoroughly enjoyed Band of Brothers for many reasons. The detailed way Ambrose described combat maneuvers and military conflicts was very engaging. It was interesting to read about World War II from the perspective of the soldiers actually on the front lines fighting. Getting to hear their opinions and
The friendships and bonds that formed in the jungles of Vietnam between the members of Alpha Company help them to survive on a day to day basis. Not only while they were in Vietnam, but also in dealing with their lives back in the United States. Without the bonds of friendship none of the men of Alpha Company would have survived mentally or physically the strains and trauma of the Vietnam War. In the end it is realized that the men not only carried their gear and weapons, but they carried with them bonds, friendship and a connection that only the men of Alpha Company will ever really understand.
The soldiers feel that the only people they can talk to about the war are their “brothers”, the other men who experienced the Vietnam War. The friendship and kinship that grew in the jungles of Vietnam survived and lived on here in the United States. By talking to each other, the soldiers help to sort out the incidents that happened in the War and to put these incidents behind them. “The thing to do, we decided, was to forget the coffee and switch to gin, which improved the mood, and not much later we were laughing at some of the craziness that used to go on” (O’Brien, 29).
It is apparent that during war time emotions are checked at the door and ones whole psyche is altered. It is very difficult to say what the root causes of this are due to the many variables that take play in war, from death of civilians to the death of friends. However, in "Enemies" and "Friends" we see a great development among characters that would not be seen anywhere else. Although relying on each other to survive, manipulation, and physical and emotional struggle are used by characters to fight there own inter psychological wars. Thus, the ultimate response to these factors is the loss and gain of maturity among Dave Jensen and Lee Strunk.
Band of Brothers is a fascinating book that captures moments lived by soldiers during World War II. It specifically relates to the History of a small unit of paratroopers known as Easy Company, 506 Regiment, 101st Airborne. It is a story that follows the company from its inception to the capture of Hitler’s nest. It begins with the training of these soldiers at Camp Toccoa, Georgia. The 140 members of easy company who were young men from different social levels were physically and mentally trained. This particular company had an extremely harsh training, but many believe it is because of this training that they were considered as one of the best rifle companies in the army.
“Why would you want to interview me when there are plenty of people back home that would be easier to interview in person?” asks John Stout. He is about 5’11, has dark black hair and his eyes are a rich chocolaty brown. He is tan and has a strong muscular body. John is currently deployed in Bagram Afghanistan. He departed on July 7th, 2016 and will not return until April of 2017. He grew up in Fort Ripley, MN and graduated from Brainerd High School in 2014. John is very close with his Mother, Father, Brother and Sister. He grew up with a wrench in his hand and always helped his Father work on project cars and fixing things around the house. To John, family is everything. His family always took vacations and every summer, he gets to travel around the United States for Army training. John grew up in a military family. His Father works as a Warrant Officer in the Minnesota National Guard and his Brother, Curtis, is in the Marine Corps and is also deployed right now.John has always wanted to serve his country
As times change, so too does the role of a citizen in American society. The current situation in America calls everyone to take on the role of an active citizen and put their best foot forward. We as a nation face many social, economic, and international conflicts. It is the common belief in America that we are to set the example for democracy. If this is true, then Ralph Nader describes our situation best, “There can be no daily democracy without daily citizenship” (DoOneThing.org). To set the example that is needed, citizens must employ the three forms of citizenship in everyday life.
...nd embarrassed with their true desires not to fight. There is no freewill at this point because they feel obligated to be the patriotic men. They are confused not knowing the reason for this war but that it is “to stop the Communists, plain and simple” (O’Brien 45). Unfortunately is it not plain and simple, even a million words would not be able to express the experiences that these young men endure. Unlike the Lone Ranger, the soldiers would rather flee due to the natural human instincts toward a dangerous situation. Yet, they suppress their true feelings and fight with all they have. As we can see, the ones that fight to help people that they hardly know are indeed the regular, normal, and everyday human beings. With this in mind, we cannot count on the Lone Ranger to come to the rescue; rather, the heroes are right before our eyes. They are an “everyman.”