I think it is very interesting how most people are unaware of the Bataan Death March. This was one of the many horrible attrociaties that occurred during World Ward 2. The march consisted of brutal violence that was directed at the surrendered soldiers who were toughing it through. This violence that the Japanese directed towards the soldiers was underlyined entirley by creulty.
It is strange to me how history determines which attrocities in times of war will be remembered more than other ones. An obvious example of one that is far better known is the Hollocasut. The Bataan Death March it seems is known by far fewer persons which I think is a bad thing because occurances such as these must be known by everyonee.
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I agree. In all the years of schooling and hearing stories from my grandparents, I don't recall hearing much about the Death March. It certainly is a topic that should be given more publicity because so many American lives were lost.
One reason we might not hear as much about Bataan, is that it was, at least in part, the result of a surrender by the Americans. Not exactly a proud moment in history.
An idea came up in a different history class of mine and I thought it was reasonable, but not completely justified... here it is...Few know about the Bataan Death march now because we are on friendly terms with Japan. The USA dropped an A-bomb on Japan already, so we have had our revenge. Bringing up old scars would be more detrimental than healing.
The atrocities that Americans and Filipinos faced in the death march are overwhelming. It seems a shame that high school teachers (mine did not anyway) do not share this information with students. The Holocaust is studied, but not other similar events. Our soldiers died for this country, but the hardships are not discussed. As part of our history, it is important to know the sacrifices that were made.
As someone mentioned in one of my earlier posts I'm sure some of it has to do with our Euro-centric background. Our history books focus on what happened in Europe because we can relate to it easier than what happened in Japan.
I do disagree however, that we should not talk about it as it was "not exactly a proud moment" or that it would be "bringing up old scars". Surely everyone as heard that those that do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. It seems to me the more any war we can learn the better for the future.
It is very interesting what is deemed as important information on WWW II. I am noticing that a lot of things that we discuss in class or see in the readings are not common knowledge among most people. There are some many different facets of the war that are important to know. By only focusing on pieces of the war we are depriving ourselves the chance to as Matt said, learn from our past.
I agree with Matt when he says that this has something to do with our Euro-centric views. In addition, I wonder if in the limited time during high school, etc., the curriculum instead focuses more on the Holocaust to serve the purpose of teaching students a broader, maybe more accessible, lesson in morality.
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