Blind Man’s Bluff
Sometimes in literature, the characters in the story make an important contribution to society. In the novel, Blind Man’s Bluff, by Sherry Sontag and Christopher Drew, the brave men and women that served in the Navy’s ‘Secret Service’ did just that. If it wasn’t for them, many more lives would have been lost and more land would be destroyed. They had to endure many hardships and suffer for this country.
This book is compiled of many missions that happened throughout the Cold War. It shows what the Naval Program was like during that period and how it changed due to advancing technology. These people operated the spy submarines and risked being killed or captured by the Soviets. One example of this is when Commander Charles R. McVean took his crew and tapped a Soviet telephone line at the bottom of the Sea of Okhotsk. This stopped a potential nuclear war. They also started to make submarines that could dive deeper and explore murky depths.
Other submarines are used for surveillance. If we were suspicious about a certain ship, a surveillance submarine would so out and spy on the ship and see what they were up to. These subs played a huge roll in the war. If a ship was transporting weapons or bomb making materials to the enemy, the sub could ratio to US forces and take over the ship. One very brave commander in the war was Norman G. Bessac. He commanded the USS Gudgeon, which was an old diesel engined submarine straight into enemy territory. The Gudgeon was caught and pounded by enemy subs. One of the very important subs in the war was the Cochino. It monitored the development of the atomic bomb that the soviets were making. Unfortunately the Cochino crashed into the Tusk and set the after-battery on fire. This eventually caused the end of Cochino. Nine days after the Cochino sank the Air Force found evidence that the Soviets detonated a nuclear device.
Humes’ novel is about the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, dubbed the G.I. Bill of Rights, and contains stories of several men and women whose lives were changed because of this bill. Humes expresses how some individuals disliked the G.I. Bill, but not he. Throughout the novel, Humes expresses how the G.I. Bill was good for the country and presents those opposed in a negative light. For example, Humes writes,
The book Outlaw Platoon written by Sean Parnell is a soldiers’ tale of his platoon in one of the most dangerous places on earth. This book is a non-fiction riveting work that tells the story of a platoon that spent sixteen months on an operating base in the Bermel Valley, the border of Pakistan. This mission the men were sent on was part of a mission called Operation Enduring Freedom. This book is extremely relevant to the war that we are still fighting in Afghanistan and the humanitarian work that continues. We still have men in this area fighting and losing their lives everyday. It is the focus of ongoing political debates and the purpose of our involvement there is an ongoing question in the minds of many Americans. In writing this book, Parnell makes it clear in his author’s notes that he indeed was not trying to pursue one political agenda over another. His goal as not to speak of all members of the platoon and expose their identities and the types of soldiers they were but instead to showcase some of the men’s bravery and abilities during the war. Parnell believed that he owed it to the men to write something that would show the world what these men go through during combat in an honest and raw account. Another purpose of Parnell’s in writing this book is an attempt at making sure these men are given a place in American war history.
It is apparent that the topic of war is difficult to discuss among active duty soldiers and civilians. Often times, citizens are unable to understand the mental, physical, and physiological burden service members experience. In Phil Klay’s Ten Kliks South, the narrator struggles to cope with the idea that his artillery team has killed enemy forces. In the early stages of the story, the narrator is clearly confused. He understands that he did his part in firing off the artillery rounds, yet he cannot admit to killing the opposition. In order to suppress his guilt and uncertainty, our narrator searches for guidance and reassurance of his actions. He meets with an old gunnery sergeant and during their conversation, our narrator’s innocence
Things began to roll when a US-based U2 sky plane took photos of some USSR intermediate ballistic missiles with the capability of transporting nuclear heads. The situation got worse when the USSR dispatched 42 medium range missiles and 24 other intermediate range missiles to the Cuban. After the United States threatened to attack Cuba, UUSR withdrew her weaponry. The Cold War gets to give a description of the US-USSR relationship during that phase. The Cold War intensified in the late 1940s and the early 1950s because of the hysteria that the US citizens developed.
This magnificent novel is a definite must read for military men because Bahr effectively combines the interesting history of the Battle of Franklin with the psychological affects of battle. Though the novel inherits some natural flaws, the pros outweigh the cons. This short read becomes very satisfying as the story progresses. Also, Bahr shatters the concept of the Confederates being hicks and cruel slave owners, but that they are actual people too, who experience war just the same as someone form the Union.
Mahoney, Harry Thayer, and Marjorie Locke Mahoney. Gallantry in action: a biographic dictionary of espionage in the American Revolutionary War. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1999.
SoRelle, Larry Madaras and James. Unit 3 The Cold War and Beyond. McGraw-Hill, 2012. Book.
O’Brien’s unique verisimilitude writing style fills the novel with deep meaning and emotion. Analyzing the novel through a psychological lens only adds to its allure. Understanding why characters act the way they do helps bring this novel to life. The reader begins to empathize with the characters. Every day, the soldiers’ lives hang in the balance. How these soldiers react to life-threatening situations will inspire the reader. Life has an expiration date. Reading about people who are held captive by their minds and who die in the name of war, will inspire the reader to live everyday as if they are currently in the
Whether fortunately or unfortunately, the limits of innovation are often put to the test. In the case of a submarine launched to sea in 1938, the USS Squalus, bad luck proved disastrous. Within minutes of a test dive, twenty-six men drowned. Years later, Peter Maas compiled the known information about the tragedy into The Terrible Hours: The Greatest Submarine Rescue in History. Over the heartbreaking journey of hopelessness to hope, crisis to survival, and depths to ascension, Maas weaves the sad tale depicting the unknown dangers that technology possesses.
Gregory, Ross. Cold War America: 1946 to 1990. New York, NY: Facts on File, 2003.
"Manhattan Project." The Cold War--1945-1991. Gale, 1992. U.S. History in Context. Web. 13 Jan. 2014. Article.
Smith, William Y and Anatoli I. Gribkov. Operation ANADYR: U.S. and Soviet Generals Recount the Cuban Missile Crisis. Chicago: Edition Q, 1994.
As I examined the Cold War, interesting stories and facts appeared that fascinate our minds with wonders about what it was like back then. But, by pulling out three main points, I was able to understand the basics of the Cold War and get an insight into what really happened and how it affects the world that we live in today.
Lafeber, W. (2002), America, Russia, and the Cold War, 1945-2000. 9th edn. New-York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
21st century, we live in the era of technology-driven world. Human never stopped the development of technology, because we always have a natural tendency to pursue a higher level of human being. Technology is the best evidence of human intelligence, has shown that we are different from other animals. We live with technology since we born. Although it has intervene our daily life heavily that we can’t no longer live without, nobody can deny the achievements it has brought to us.