People may sometimes start to forget about the nuclear provocations of North Korea, but then the TV News reports on it again and we are reminded. Our people become numb to threats from North Korea, so we are not surprised anymore. However, North and South Korea have never ended their war, we are just in a period of ceasefire. We shouldn’t forget that the war is still a serious problem.
Band of Brothers is an American war drama created for HBO in 2001 and directed by Steven Spielberg, that expresses the cruelty of war. Band of brothers follows the stories of a military crew during World War 2. The 10-episode series had a budget of approximately $125 million and included the appearance of 500 people. Band of brothers was a popular drama not only for America but also for the whole world, winning seven EMMY awards and a Golden Globe Award, along with many other awards. Band of brothers is part documentary and part drama, and includes real war veteran’s interviews as an integral part of the series. The directors and producers made a series that could be used to study history. Now let’s look at some details from a few episodes of Band of brothers.
# Episode 1) “Are you a war hero grandpa?” – “No, I just fight with heroes.”
This dialogue is in the last episode of the drama. Richard D. Winters, who is a real war veteran of World War 2 was commander of Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. Winter’s was one of the soldiers at Utah Beach for the attack on the German military the day after the allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. At that time, the German military had one platoon but Winters had only 13 soldiers. Actually it was not fair. This battle was called the Brecourt Manor Assault. The point of this episode is about the 13 soldier’s comradeship and solidarity. As we know through interviews, Winters didn’t assume himself to be a war hero. He just considered his 13 soldiers to be heroes. You may be impressed with the solidarity that the guys show. Why don’t you think about what your attitude would be in this kind of situation?
# Episode 2) “Have you ever eaten chocolate?” – “No, it's my first time”
In the 4th episode during the operation of Eindhoven freedom, there is a scene that compares a young boy’s purity to the cruelty of war. Webster, the hero of the story, hands a chocolate bar to a little boy, and smiling at that boy, everyone’s heart is touched. There is no joy in war but the little boy’s smile is so pure. There is no blood and pain in that scene but we feel very sad.
# Episode 3) “I will go there”
Many people choose this scene as the best scene from Band of brothers. This is the 7th episode. Instead of incompetent commander Dike, first lieutenant Spearce was inserted into enemy troops to connect with another company and returns to his company after his brave choice. We can witness true leadership and the spirit of sacrifice through first lieutenant Spearce. There are so many kinds of leadership, but it is not easy to sacrifice oneself. If you want to be a leader, how about emulating first lieutenant Spearce’s leadership?
Some people evaluate World War II positively because it led to human progress. Sure, that might not be false, but if you watch this drama you won’t think that way. Band of brothers contains realistic cruelty and devastation. I swear, war should never be repeated. Our nation should break away from the ceasefire and think more about the international situation. The government also should pay attention to security. Most of all, we should reunify with North Korea as soon as possible. It is time for the whole nation’s attention and patriotism. < Copyright © The Gachon Herald All rights reserved > |