E.B. Sledge - Peleliu and Okinawa

E.B. Sledge's With the Old Breed is the author’s first-hand account of the atrocities of Peleliu and Okinawa, a microcosm of the intense hatred that developed within the young man; rules and perceptions of combat were turned inside out, fighting to the death, giving and expecting no quarter was the norm. Sledge goes through a number of evolutionary stages with respect to his views on war. Initially with Sledge's induction into the marines, followed by his training through boot camp and infantry school, and subsequently describes his pre-combat deployment to Pavuvu. Sledge then recalls his days in combat, assigned as an assistant gunner on a 60mm mortar on Peleliu and Ngesebus. Sledge then recalls his second stint in combat during the assault and capture of Okinawa, followed by the end of the war and eventual demobilization. Special emphasis placed on the intellectual and ethical aspects of warfare.

Eugene Sledge, born November of 1923 in Mobile, Alabama; Graduated from Murphy High School in 1942; subsequently joining Marion Military Institute then he enlists in the Marine Corp at Marion, Alabama in December of 1942 after completing his freshman year. Sledge, transferred to Georgia Tech and placed in an officer's training program, feared that the war will be over before he can graduate. Sledge and about one-half of his class deliberately flunk out and subsequently transferred, with a wink from their commanding officer, to the enlisted ranks in the Marine infantry. "Of course it was the Marines that attracted this high-spirited, patriotic boy, unable to resist the 'dress blue trousers, khaki shirt, and white barracks hat' of the recruiting sergeant. It wasn't long before he became acquainted with the less attractive side of life in the Marines --- the ritual humiliations and abuse incident to indoctrination and infantry training." Sledge, caught up in the groupthink of serving his country, the façade behind the reality of being a Marine is clearly hidden to him at this point.

Sledge is transferred to San Diego and enters boot camp. He is assigned to Platoon 984 under Drill Instructor Corporal Doherty. Doherty demands a relentless regime of exercise under stress and focuses heavily on discipline during stressful situations, “At the time, we didn’t realize or appreciate the fact that the discipline we were learning in responding to orders under stress often would mean the difference later in combat.” Throughout the memoir, Sledge notes that his survival in combat was due in large part to Doherty's unrelenting demand of discipline under stress. Sledge's attitudes toward war were still quite idealistic, a gung-ho young man eager for combat and eager to serve, joined by many others with similar interests. His early enlistment was designed to get into the marines and into a combat company as quickly as possible.

The horrific reality of war hit hard and fast, proceeded as