Analysis Of Stephen E. Ambrose's 'Band Of Brothers'

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Evan Palmieri Critical Book Analysis of Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle Nest by Stephen E. Ambrose Copyright Date: 1992. Band of Brothers was written by Stephen E. Ambrose. Ambrose was a history professor at the University of New Orleans and also wrote many books, most of which are about American history. The topic of Band of Brothers is how Easy Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne Division made their way through Europe, taking down the Axis forces. Ambrose’s purpose for writing this book was to tell the stories of the heroes of Easy Company, so that the world would never forget what they did for their country. I chose this book because someone suggested it and …show more content…

Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle Nest is about Easy Company and how they were one of the best units in military history. The book starts at Camp Toccoa where the men must volunteer to be a part of this new parachute regiment that has extreme training where only the best make it. Easy Company’s first assignment was on D-Day. They were assigned to take out artillery emplacements at Brecourt Manor that were making it impossible for allied tanks to move inland. They were able to take out the artillery which allowed the allies to keep moving inland further into France. After D-Day, Easy Company kept getting assigned the hardest missions. They had to take the town of Carentan which was crucial to invading further, they then were part of one the biggest military failures in Operation MARKET-GARDEN, then they withstood the siege of Bastogne where there were very low temperatures and not enough food, ammo, or cold weather gear for anyone. And finally in 1945, Easy Company reached “Hitler’s Eagle Nest” in Berchtesgaden. This …show more content…

I feel that Ambrose did a great job with conveying his thesis, because by the end of the book, I thought that Easy Company could do anything. For example, when Winters led a group of 12 men to take out artillery at Brecourt Manor against a defensive force of 50 elite German paratroopers. With Winters’s leadership ability, he was able to make every correct call, and this is what led to them beating the German force and destroying the guns. Another example that shows Ambrose’s thesis that Easy Company could do things others couldn’t is with this quote regarding the Battle of Carentan; “Captain Sobel had seen to it that Easy Company had spent months of training at night. Forced night marches cross-country, through woods, night compass problems, every conceivable problem of troop movement and control of troops at night. The men were completely at ease working at night,. the ones who could not handle the night were regimental staff officers.” (92). I don’t think that Ambrose showed any bias in his writing. He pointed out when Easy Company was the best, and he would also tell of when Easy Company would fail. One example of Easy Company failing was after the failure of Operation Market Garden. The “Easy Company” was as good as any company in the AEF. Despite this, in the first ten days in Holland, it took a hell of a lick. It failed to

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