Jolene
Legendary Mashine
Joined: 29 Apr 2007
Posts: 6998
HP: 10 MP: 0 Lives: 0
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 Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2008 7:26 pm
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At first, This Is The Army seems like a mess of cheesy, irritating patriotism without much thought behind it. Aside from the catchy tunes, it seems pointless to watch. Yes, this was what they used to keep people's morale up on the home front in World War II; why do we care? However, looking at this musical gives us a good deal of insight into what the times were like, as entertainment often does. We get to see what the people of that time period considered entertaining, what their fears were, what their sense of humor was like, and what they valued. It also enables us to see the more personal side of the war, as opposed to looking at it as a timeline of battles.
This Is The Army shows us that the participants in this war are different from the participants of any other war the United States has had before. Black soldiers and white soldiers are fighting together in the army. Women are not quite fighting yet, but they're in the medical sections of the army and working on those other types of things. Some people in this war have just finished fighting World War I, and have an idea of what it is like to have been in a war before. There is a large effort on the home front, too, even for people who are not in the army, to manufacture, to recycle needed materials, grow "victory gardens," and so on. So, even those who are not actively participating in the war are participating in the war effort. More people than ever are participating in this war; it is something that everyone in the country is a part of.
From This Is The Army, we can also see the participants' attitudes toward their participation. Obviously, the event of war is not a happy event, and those who are on the front lines are not the happiest to be shooting and killing, and running the risk of getting killed themselves. However, there is a very strong feeling of patriotic unity going on during this war. It seems as though everyone is more willing to "grin and bear it." In fact, they use the musical as an opportunity to cheerfully mock their circumstances, such as in the song where the soldiers sing about hating to get up in the morning. War is difficult, but when there is a strong feeling of unity, it is easier.
Another thing that This Is The Army shows us about the time period is the racial attitudes. This is clearly shown by the minstrel show that is in the musical. At this time period, blacks are simply entertainment for whites to laugh at. Looking at the black section of the army backstage, and when they are first invited to be part of the show, you can see they are not happy about being there. They want to be the intelligent people that they are, but they know that if they defy the stereotype they will be mistreated. Therefore they have to force themselves to fit in the stereotype that has been set for them to appease the whites and get treated respectfully. They go into the musical knowing they will be laughed at and not laughed with.
This Is The Army is actually a lot more meaningful than it seems. It is important to watch if you want an understanding of the second world war. Entertainment is always very telling about the times, the ideas and the behaviors that go with that time period. From watching this, we can see that the war is different from any other because everyone is all in it together. War may not be the best circumstance to be in, and racial attitudes may not be the greatest either, but everyone participates with a feeling of patriotic unity. |
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