The Korean War

I feel that this reading accurately depicts the Korean War as the “forgotten” war.  Even in my high school history classes, I remember just skipping right over it or spending a maximum of 30 minutes on it.  I believe that the Korean War is actually a significant war to any history cirriculum because it is important to our current and future relations with North Korea.  I find it almost shameful of the government to cover up the happenings of the Korean War.  From the misleading headstones (p. 157) to the names of soldiers being added to the World War II memorial, I feel that the government’s shadiness was just plain disrespectful to the men and women who served in this supposed non-existant war.

Wages of War Chapters 23-27

While reading the chapters, the thing that really stuck out to me is the sheer numbers and statistics of the Vietnam War.  It was appalling to me that the average age of the soldiers was just over nineteen.  These soldiers were no where near emotional maturity.  This factor alone was probably a huge contribution to the large number of veterans that came back from Vietnam with PTSD.  On page 354, it is mentioned that over 100,000 soldiers were addicted to alcohol/opiates and that close to 80,000 never received any help.  I feel that this would heavily influenece the American public’s image of the average Vietnam veteran.  Going hand-in-hand with the drugs and alcohol, close to 250,000 young veterans could not find jobs which in part can be attributed to their addiction.  The government, to a small degree, did seem to acknowledge its previous mistake of limited support to veterans: $15 billion was awarded to veterans.  This included 172 hospitals, 117 nursing homes, and 230 outpatient clinics.

Born on the Fourth of July (Part 2)

I found Chapter 4 the most emotionally difficult chapter for Ron Kovic to write, as made apparent by his use of third person.  It seemed like a roller coaster of emotions for Kovic, a mixture of pride, pain, and embarassment.  Kovic’s recollection of the parade seemed like the first time since his injury that he really felt like an outsider to society.  In the hospital, Kovice was surrounded by other disabled soldiers and at home he had the support of his family.  This parade put him in front of an audience of outsiders for the first time.  I felt sympathy for Kovic because his participation in the parade should have been a moment of great pride for him, which it was at first, but the parade quickly made a turn for the worse.  I felt especially bad for Kovic when the commander was saying that Americans should get behind the war for disabled veterans yet the townspeople could not even wave back to Kovic when he was in the car.

Born on the Fourth of July

I found Ron Kovic’s book to be really intense; I believe that he has been the most straight-forward and graphic of all of the primary sources we have read.  Even though I will go on to reference specific pages, thus far I feel every page has been strong in both emotion and description.  The major tool that Kovic used to create this mood and tone is diction.  Kovic’s choice of words is instrumental in making every line powerful. 

There were two situations that really caught my attention in the introduction.  In the introduction, on page 17, Kovic tells of his experiences in protesting the war.  After learning that Kovic is paralyzed, it really sinks in how terrible this war really was.  The fact that the police would abuse and arrest one of the country’s own veterans, especially a severely disabled one, really demonstrates how polarizing the Vietnam War was.  On page 19, Kovic makes mention of the war in Iraq and of how he sees the similarities of it and the Vietnam War.  Kovic is the first primary source that has made reference to another war and in a negative way at that.  Students always hear that history helps us learn to not repeat mistakes that we’ve already experienced.  It is disheartening to know that a Vietnam veteran can see that the Iraq War is almost exactly like the Vietnam War but worse.

The Greatest Generation Comes Home

There was one quote in this selection of reading that really grabbed my attention.  On page 63,  James B. Conant said the following: “The demobilization of our armed forces is a God-given moment for reintroducing the American concept of a fluid society.  If it is handled properly, we can insure a healthy body politic for at least a generation.  Handle it improperly and we may well sow the seed of civil war within a decade.”  I found that I agreed with the first part of Conant’s statement.  If the veterans’ return home was handled properly, it would be a chance for great change and growth in our country.  It would allow a troubled aspect of our country to be corrected and changed for the better.  The last part of Conant’s statement I believe is a little far-fetched.  I do not believe that the veterns would have the power nor the organization to start a civil war.  I do not believe that the veterans would result to physical violence after they just returned from brutal combat.  It seems to me that it would be a little extreme to speak of the veterans starting something along the lines of a military coup.

Doing Battle, Part 2

There were two aspects of Fussell’s return to civilian life that really caught my attention: the description of his at-the-time unrecognized post-traumatic stress disorder and his comparison of Harvard to army life.  On page 183, Fussell goes into great detail about the embarrassment and extent of his disorder.  I found his descriptions really sad, especially when he described how people laughed at him or attributed his behavior to alcohol.  I found it interesting that Fussell said no one had heard of or recognized his behavior as post-traumatic stress, when, to me, it would seem obvious that his behavior mirrored that of a soldier.  For example, as described on page 183, it would seem logical that a soldier’s reaction to a loud noise would be to protect himself.  The other aspect of Fussell’s return to civillian life was his unique way of comparing the snottiness of Harvard to army life and rank.  On page 193, Fussell described the attitude of Harvard faculty towards graduate students as similar to the way senior army officers treat junior army officers.  I found these aspects interesting because they demonstrate that even the most minute details of civilian life are important and significant to veterans.

Doing Battle

While reading Doing Battle, there were three things that really caught my attention.  The first thing that caught my attention was Paul’s change in attitude during the war.  Paul shifted from romanticizing the war to describing the brutal things he was forced to witness and expressing disgust.  This change can be seen from the different descriptions on pages 103, 105, and 118.  On page 103, Paul greatly romanticizes the war by describing the wine, the bread, and the girls.  Then on page 105, Paul views a dead soldier who was a meer boy.  This page represents Paul’s transition from viewing the war as almost like a game to understanding the brutal reality of the war.  On page 118, the effects of the war can be seen on Paul.  On this page, Paul goes from talking about bread, wine, and girls to eating a mixture of cheese and his comrade’s blood.  I believe this would make anyone stop romanticizing the war.  The second thing that caught my attention was Paul’s laughter over the Purple Hearts.  It’s ironic to me that the veterans of the wars before fought so hard for recognition and medals, yet the World War II soldiers could care less about the medals.  I thought this maybe could be attributed to the brutal scenes witnessed by every soldier in World War II.  The third thing I noticed was on page 147.  By this war, the doctors understood how powerfully addicting morphine was yet there was still soldiers who became addicted.  I found it interesting how all of the wars and the various experiences of them came together during World War II.

The Diary of Alvin York

I actually found the diary of Alvin York very interesting because of the lack of description in York’s entries.  I often found myself wondering why York even kept a diary; a lot of his entries were kept to four or five words.  Due to his minimal description and frequent religious references, it seems that York is a humble person who was only interested in doing his job.  In the entries of October 8th, where he describes his capture of 132 German soldiers, York continues his modesty and repeatedly thanks God and that he was just doing what he had to do.  This diary was interesting for me to read because, aside from high school history textbooks, one of the only outside texts I have read pertaining to World War I has been Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front.  Though the novel is fictitious, it is based on Remarque’s own traumatizing experiences during World War I.  York’s diary is a stark contrast to my previous views of a soldier’s life during World War I.  Remarque portrayed World War I in the most graphic descriptions possible, while York simply stated where he was stationed and what he had done that day.  York even took time in some entries to recount stories of his time back home.  This diary definitely broadened my perspective of how different some soldiers’ experiences can be.

To Appomattox and Beyond

While reading the chapters, I was caught off guard and a little shocked by the description of the drug and alcohol addiction that many of the Revolutionary soldiers developed.  History books typically do not focus on or mention this aspect of soldiers’ lives during or after the war.  The estimation that 45,000 veterans became addicted to morphine during the war seems outrageous to me.  While the text states that the large number of morphine addicts stems from the sympathy of the doctors, I can not help but think that the large number is a reflection of the limited medical knowledge at the time of the war.  This takes me back to the previous chapters where the hospitals were described as far from sterile.  These descriptions make me feel sorry for the veterans that not only had to sustain wounds but could not even receive adequate medical attention.

Response to Watkins’ Co. Aytch (Part 2)

One of the things that came to my mind when reading Chapters 13-17 was the difference in the Revolutionary War soldier’s attitude towards medals and the Civil War soldier’s attitude towards them.  During the post-Revolutionary War years, we saw organizations, such as the Society of Cincinnati, spring up which consisted of veterans awarding other veterans medals and honors.  The Revolutionary War veterans wanted to celebrate their hard work and wanted the general public to recognize them for it.  On the other hand, the Civil War veterans did not really care for the false honors.  From Sam Watkins’ memoir, he gave the sense that the respect of the other soldiers was more important than two yellow stripes on his arm.  Watkins describes the ludicrous nature of which the honors and titles were given out with on page 171; a soldier could move up a rank just by picking up a flag rather than fighting.  I found humor in Watkins’ idea that he “would have quit fighting and gone to picking up flags, and by that means [he] would have soon been President of the Confederate States of America” (171).  On pages 196 and 197, when Watkins is describing John Whittaker, you can see by the language Watkins uses that he had more respect for Whittaker’s character and courage than for any title Whittaker could have had.  Watkins even ventures to say that “in intellect [Whittaker] was far ahead of most of the generals” (197).  From these concluding chapters, I can say that I recognized a transition from the Revolutionary War where soldiers wished for the respect of the genereal public to the Civil War where the soldiers wanted to gain the respect of their peers.