Use the excerpt to answer the following questions.

Question

Eugene Sledge was a 19 year old US Marine who fought at Peleliu and Okinawa. He wrote of his experiences in his memoir, “With the Old Breed” which were later highlighted in Ken Burn’s documentary, “The War” and HBO’s series, “The Pacific.

“...Japanese tactics as playing dead and then throwing a grenade―or playing wounded, calling for a corpsman and then knifing the medic when he came―plus the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, caused Marines to hate the Japanese intensely and to be reluctant to take prisoners.

My experiences on Pelieliu and Okinawa made me believe that the Japanese held mutual feelings for us. They were a fanatical enemy; that is to say, they believed in their cause with an intensity little understood by many postwar Americans―and possibly many Japanese, as well.

This collective attitude, Marine and Japanese, resulted in savage, ferocious fighting with no holds barred. This was a brutish primitive hatred as characteristic of the horror of war in the Pacific as the palm trees and the islands. To comprehend what the troops endured then and there, on must take into full account this aspect of the nature of the Marines' war.”

Source: Excerpt from E. B. Sledge, “With the Old Breed”

List two reasons US Marines hated Japanese soldiers .

According to the passage, did the Japanese have the same hatred for US Marines? Why?

What were the consequences of this mutual hatred?

(This is a 6 point question)



(6 points)
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Answer 1

List two reasons US Marines hated Japanese soldiers:

1. Deceptive Tactics: The Japanese used tactics such as playing dead and then throwing grenades, as well as pretending to be wounded and then attacking medics, which fostered distrust and animosity among US Marines.

2. Historical Acts of War: The sneak attack on Pearl Harbor is another significant reason that contributed to the intense hatred felt by US Marines towards their Japanese adversaries.

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According to the passage, did the Japanese have the same hatred for US Marines? Why?

Yes, according to the passage, the Japanese held mutual feelings of hatred towards US Marines. Sledge notes that the Japanese were a "fanatical enemy" who believed in their cause with an intensity that was not fully understood by many postwar Americans and possibly even by many Japanese. This illustrates that the Japanese perceived the conflict very seriously and harbored strong feelings against the Americans similar to the respect of animosity felt by the Marines.

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What were the consequences of this mutual hatred?

The mutual hatred between US Marines and Japanese soldiers resulted in savage and ferocious fighting, characterized as having "no holds barred." This meant that both sides fought brutally, leading to horrific combat situations and contributing to the overall violent nature of the war in the Pacific. The intensity of their hatred and the willingness to engage in such primal combat reflected the brutal realities of war in that theater, shaping the experiences and memories of the soldiers involved.