Ordinary Courage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Ordinary Courage - Essay Example The army was originally created on June 14, 1775, and most of the Continental Army was disbanded on November 3, 1783 after the treaty of Paris. A small residual force continued at West Point and some other frontier outposts, until Congress created the United States Army by their resolution of June 3, 1784. Joseph Plumb Martin truly and personally understood how difficult the soldier’s life was. After joining the militia himself in 1776 at 16 years old Joseph Plumb Martin served in the Continental Army, and in 1830 wrote a memoir which presented a truthful portrait of war, about the traversing of the mid-Atlantic colonies, from Connecticut over to Pennsylvania and down through Delaware with his compatriots, and describing what the war was like from the point of view of an ordinary person. Joseph Plumb Martin (1760-1850), it should be noted, was a mere Private in the army, and his account does not involve the usual heroes of the Revolution. Joseph Plumb Martin’s opinion of the leadership of the Continental Army is somewhat negative, in that he did not feel the leaders held very idealistic concepts concerning the war. However he tells that he respected them in that he found them to be brave and courageous, as he thought everyone who had participation in (that) war was; that it was their strength and perseverance which held the men strong. So although he did believe they were a quintessential part in the leading, fighting, and success of the war, I believe that he also somewhat felt negatively towards them. Martin felt that they were â€Å"†¦very austere†¦and kept us constantly employed day and night; there was no chance of escaping from†¦their†¦vigilance.† (p.24). Martin describes of the suffering that was experienced by himself and his fellow men, as he names ‘Fatigue, hunger, and cold’ as constant companions to these raggedy soldiers. He also recalls that whenever the leaves and

Wu zholiu's orphan of asia and taiwanese students studying in japan Essay - 1

Wu zholiu's orphan of asia and taiwanese students studying in japan - Essay Example ndaries of history and literature and through a discussion of comparison between Taiwanese and Japanese literature try to understand the effect that history has on literature. Orphan of Asia was written by a writer facing the crisis of identity that was just as common to any other Taiwanese. The book was written during 1943, two years before Taiwan attained independence. The book belongs to the period when Taiwan was a colonized country, and it generates just as much empathy for Taiwan as a literary work describing Hiroshima and Nagasaki event would generate. Belonging to a period when Taiwan, Japan, and China indicate much more openness in their relationships, the literary work forces its readers to think about human nature and their unending quest to gain power. The literary works also lay before us the option of choosing a peaceful and non-discriminatory path in contrast to the one that leads to capturing power (or rather power capturing us). The work also indicates how different people can be within their own country. Some people prefer to remain loyal to the serving master and thus gain their master’s ‘blessings’ while other prefe r to do what’s right which often goes against the way of the master. However, the only thing binding the people is their nationality in the same way that the thread binding Westerners and Easterners is ‘being human’. Wu Zhouliu was born in 1900 and after completing his education in a kÃ… gakkÃ…  (public school), he went to Taipei Teachers College. Later he joined a kÃ… gakkÃ…  as a teacher but left the job because of discrimination against Taiwanese. He went to China and became a reporter for a newspaper, he was afraid to come back to Taiwan as the Japanese officials suspected him. However, during the Pacific wars he had to return to Taiwan, as he feared Chinese wrath. He was not able to live peacefully as long as Japan continued its colonization. He died in 1976, because of a serious cold condition, at the age