Casablanca, A League Of Their Own, And The Greatest Generation
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Tom Brokaws The Greatest Generation and the movie A League of their own caught my attention greatly because of their tremendous sentimentalism. Yet, I did not like the movie Casablanca as much. This does not diminish the fact that it was a great movie; I simply did not enjoy how the story line was portrayed. Romance and drama were evidently present, but maybe not in the way I would have liked. Yet, besides any personal opinions I may have on these two productions and book, the combination of the three taught me a lot about World War II.
The book The Greatest Generation was brilliant, if putting aside some unnecessary and excessive wording. I must admit it was not what I was expecting. I did not know what this book was about until I started to read. It took me in an emotional roller coaster that truly surprised me. It almost caught me off guard, as I was sort of expecting more of a “cold narration.” Besides how each of the stories was uniquely captivating, they all taught me one main lesson. That was how this generation was strong beyond belief in a variety of ways.
The young people of those days were forced to mature fast. They went through too many experiences too early in their lives. Young girls taking care of their siblings while mom would be in the factory; young boys who mostly were supposed to be in school were on planes shooting the enemy. Brokaw could have not described this in a better way, “at a time in their lives when their days and nights should have been filled with innocent adventure, love, and the lessons of the workaday world, they were fighting, often hand to hand, in the most primitive conditions possible” In my opinion, to be able to lose all of this in exchange to proudly take responsibility and honor, equals strength and courage.
Not only they nearly lost their childhood and normal teenage years, but the young men and women also had to go through other horrendous experiences. Yet, what leaves me in major awe is how emotionally strong these veterans are. The nurses had to see men dying from losing blood because of a lost arm and leg, while soldiers had to see their own friends sacrificing their lives to save their fellow troops. Still, when they remember today, they hardly, or never, whine. Or so I think, especially after reading when two veterans were remembering the hillside loaded with mines at Omaha Beach, “they described the scene as calmly as if they were remembering an egg-toss at a Sunday social back home.”
Additionally, besides all sentimentalism, the book taught me more about the military. Mainly, about the GI Bill. I knew that, thanks to it, many young men that never even dreamed of having a college degree now had the opportunity right in front of them. Yet, I was unsure of when it was created. I thought that maybe it was after Vietnam, not any sooner.
A League of their own has always been an all-time favorite of mine. I remember when I was around twelve years old and my father invited me to watch it with me and told me how it was going to be an entertaining lesson of history. I do not know if what I loved the most about it was the energy and passion of the girls, the great plays, the hilarious lines, or the drama that evolved around all of the above. This movie is simply the perfect mix of drama, comedy, and of course, baseball. Just like the book The Greatest Generation, it takes you in an emotional roller coaster, while teaching you of the great people of this generation. Although, the movie focuses the most in women and their roles pre and post World War II.
Because of the war, virtually every healthy young man was drafted-including famous baseball players. The fields emptied and that All-American tradition was disappearing, at least momentarily. The solution? Creating the All-American Girls Baseball League. Those women left their houses and farms behind to play ball. At first it could be said that the creators of this league wanted to entertain audiences in other manners, or say, use the girls more as “eye candy,” but these girls proved to be really good at the sport.
I have to bow down to the director, as he successfully gathered several elements together, while being true to his main story line of the womens baseball league. He teaches you quite a bit about World War II, but the lines and scenes used to portray this period were so entertaining that you would never think that you are getting a complete history lesson at the same time. For instance, it is showed how women were exclusively housewives in the first scenes, where Dotty and Kit are shown with the cows, running around their farm, cleaning, setting up the dining table. Also, a simple line from Kit was enough to let us know how single