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LLT 180.997 - Heroes at War Study Guide

Homer

LLT 180 – Study Guide – Homer

Know the following characters (who and what they do)

 Human – Agamemnon (Atreides), Achilles, Calchas, Menelaus, Nestor, Odysseus, Diomedes, Ajax (the Greater, son of Telemon), Chryseis,  Briseis, Thersites, Patroclus, Hector, Andromache, Priam, Hecuba, Paris, Helen, Aeneas, Helenus

   Divine – Athena, Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Ares, Aphrodite, Artemis, River Scamander

Topics to Mull Over

• Qualities and leadership of Agamemnon (actions by which they are shown)
• Qualities and leadership of Achilles (actions…)
• Qualities and leadership of Hector (actions…)
• What skills in a soldier are most admired by Greeks and Trojans?
• What skills in a king/chief are most useful to Greeks or Trojans?
• What actions are considered shameful by Greeks or Trojans?
• Why does Homer call Achilles the ‘best of the Achaeans”?
• Why is Achilles so important to the Achaean troops?
• How is this war different from modern infantry fighting?  How, the same?
• Which, if any, of the ‘heroes’ of the Iliad would you want to be like?  Why?
• What purposes does the ‘display of forces’ in Book 2 serve?
• What handicap(s) do the Trojans have in this war?  What advantages?
• How is Hector’s situation/position/duty different from Achilles?  How the same?
• Are there international ‘rules’ to this war?  (i.e. any conventions that both sides recognize and can be counted to agree upon)
• Are there common values between the Greeks and Trojans?
• Perceptions: How does the war sound?  What does it look like?
• How do the gods behave?

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LLT 180 – Study Guide – Crane

Know the following characters (who they are; what they do): Henry Fleming, Jim Conklin, Wilson, Jimmie Rogers, the lieutenant, the captain, the colonel, the general.  Be also familiar with the actions of Colonel Chamberlain at Gettysburg.

Know Army ranks, enlisted and officer, in order and know unit terminology (brigade, regiment, company).

Be prepared to ask questions of Professor Piston and Captain Koch on Crane—and to comment upon the information that each guest shares.

Topics to ponder:

• What is Henry Fleming’s notion of a hero in war at the start of his military experience?
• What does he view as shameful behavior in war?  What is his greatest fear going into combat?
• How similar or different are your views of war heroism to Henry’s?
• What does combat in the Civil War look and sound like?  Do film recreations match Crane’s descriptions?
• What sort of leadership do the officers of Henry’s unit provide?
• To whom does Henry, as a new private, look for leadership?
• What is his first combat experience like in Chapter 5?  What are his emotions at this point?
• What are Henry’s emotions in his second combat event in Chapter 6?
• By Chapter 11, what is Henry’s picture of ‘the hero’?
• How does Henry get his wound in Chapter 12?  How does it change his outlook afterwards?
• What are the emotions of his experience in combat in Chapter 17?
• What is your view of Henry as a soldier?  Is he heroic?
• What are the dominant emotions of combat as described by Crane?
• How is combat in the Civil War different from combat for the ancient Greeks?  What values are different in 19^th century America?  What values are the same?

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LLT 180.1 Study Guide – WWII

Know the basics of WWII action in the Pacific Theater and on the Eastern Front in Europe,
           particularly how the battles of Guadalcanal and of Stalingrad fit into the overall scheme.

 Be able to locate the Soloman Islands and Guadalcanal in the Pacific and Stalingrad (Volgograd)
           in southern Russia on maps.

 Be prepared to ask questions of Professor Trobisch on the German army, especially
          German’s Eastern Front..

 Observe Japanese culture as evidenced in Lt. Inui's diary vs. US view of Japanese in WWII

 Observe combat conditions and military values of the German army in the German
           film of WWII “Stalingrad”.

 Topics to ponder:

• What are the values of the Japanese army as reflected in Genjirou Inui’s diary?  What behavior is given greatest praise?  What behavior is considered shameful?
• Mr. Inui’s introduction says that his diary is full of ‘disadvantage, disgrace, and shortcomings.”  What aspects of his performance as an artillery officer is he referring to?  Do you agree with his assessment?
• What did war on Guadalcanal look and sound like?
• What were the worst hardships for the Japanese on Guadalcanal?
• How good was leadership in the Japanese army?  What sort of leadership did Lt. Inui’s superiors provide for him?
• What issues were uppermost in Lt. Inui’s mind during his service, judging from his diary?
• What effect did the climate and terrain of Guadalcanal have on the Japanese?
• What effect did the climate of Russia have on German troops in WWII?
• What did German soldiers value?  What behavior is given praise?  What behavior is considered shameful?  Are there common values between the enlisted men and their officers?
• Are the German and Japanese conceptions of excellence, ‘heroics’, different from those portrayed by Homer or Crane?
• Do you share any values with Japanese or German soldiers (as described by Inui and portrayed by the film ‘Stalingrad’)?  Do you have quite different values?
• Do you find anyone, either in the German film or in Mr. Inui’s diary, to be heroic in your own terms?

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Study Guide – Korean War

Know the political context of the Korean War.

Be able to locate Korea on a map of Asia, and to locate the cities of Pusan and Pyongyang on a map of the Korean peninsula.

Observe battle and civilian conditions in Korea as depicted in the Korean film ‘Tae Guk Gi’.

Be ready to ask class guests questions about his experience in the Korean War.

Topics to Ponder (based on the book, film, and interview):

• What are the values of the Korean people and of the ROK (Republic of Korea) Army during the Korean War?
• What values did Shin bring to the military, developed by his culture and family?
• What issues were uppermost in Shin’s mind during his service as he recollects it?
• What effect did the landscape and climate of Korea have on troops?
• What are the special difficulties for a soldier fighting in his own homeland as displayed by Shin?
• Does Shin recount any actions that you would call heroic?
• Do you share any of Shin’s values, in or out of the military?
• Are Korean conceptions of excellence, ‘heroics’, different from those displayed by Homer, Crane, or Inui?
• What are the particular hardships of the Korean War for Korean War veterans.

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Study Guide – Vietnam

Know the following people from McDonough’s book (who they are; what they do): Phil Nail, Jim Barnes, John Killigan, James King, John Hernandez, Nhan, Chong, Miss Ky, Larry O’Brien, Pete Spangler, Robert Palloman

Be able to find Vietnam on a map of Asia.

Be ready to discuss veterans presented by your classmates.

Be ready to ask questions of any class guests.

Topics to Ponder (based on book, film, guests):

• Values that McDonough, as a junior officer in the infantry and the Platoon Leader, emphasizes with himself and his men
• Values that McDonough has in common with other Lieutenants that you have observed (Henry’s officer in ‘Red Badge’, Inui in ‘My Guadalcanal’, von Witzland in ‘Stalingrad’).
• Actions covered by the book or presentations that you would consider ‘heroic’.
• Particular hardships of combat in Vietnam, especially terrain and weather
• Relationships between western soldiers, American and Vietnamese
• American leadership qualities in Vietnam
• How well what you learn about Vietnam from class sources matches your previous impressions of that war.
• How closely the values of McDonough and other Vietnam veterans looked at match your own

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