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Jason Cottrell
2015
The Lasting Scars of War
Through William Manchesters essay, Okinawa: The Bloodiest Battle of All,
Manchester conveys his belief that Americans are disillusioned about the realities of war when
asked to participate in the dedication of a monument thats purpose was to unite the Americans,
Japanese, and Okinawans killed during the battle. As a former Marine who took part in the 82
day fight which suffered 200,000 deaths, Manchester brings to light the disillusionment and
stigmatism that Americans felt towards Okinawa. Manchester fights against this by providing a
structured argument while interspersing different tones and personal experiences throughout his
essay to strengthen his argument.
Although Manchesters feeling towards the battle of Okinawa is of grief and sadness, it is
evident that Manchester focuses his attention on the American populace primarily because their
disillusionment on war has grown them into a people who are unpatriotic and unsupportive
towards soldiers who have, Sacrificed their futures that you might have yours (505).
Manchester also mentions how American literature has made people to believe in a
Romanticized view of war(498) that promises a glowing aura of selfless patriotism (498). It
is through this deceit that Manchester explains led him into joining the Marines. As Manchester
jumps from the scenes of the battlefield to his childhood life, he effectively argues for the
disillusionment of Americans by providing his own experience and showing evidence through a
well-structured essay.
Through Manchesters choice of rhetoric, Okinawa: The Bloodiest Battle of All is easy
to understand and believe because he effectively argues his point of view. One rhetorical method
Manchester uses is structure. In most paragraphs, Manchesters structure begins with an
assertion and concludes with a brief snapshot of personal experience. The assertion usually
covers what the general, uninformed American populace believes while the personal experience
comes from Manchesters own childhood or from the battle of Okinawa. For example,
Manchester argues that the attendance levels at Memorial Day parades is so few because people
are misinformed about what sacrifices are involved during war. From this assertion, Manchester
gives hard evidence from his life by saying that, It was rather diminishing to return in 1946 and
discover that your own parents couldnt even pronounce the names of the islands you had
conquered (500). Manchester argues that Americans have grown accustomed to their own lives
at home and are unwilling to relate to soldiers sacrifices, even when it involves loved ones. So
through structure, Manchester makes his argument by backing up an assertion with personal
experience, thereby gaining the readers trust and participation in the text.

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Manchester also fortifies his argument by applying good support and evidence. Not only
does Manchester involve his own experiences, which instantly gain the trust of the reader, but he
also backs up his argument by providing statistics and facts that make him sound very
knowledgeable. For example, Manchester reveals some of his experiences when he says, By
day, the mud was hip deep; no vehicles could reach us. As you moved up the slope of the hill,
artillery and mortar shells were bursting all around (503). By using this type of wording and
vivid personal experience, Manchester immediately draws the reader into the battle and has them
experience what he went through. With this type of support, Manchester successfully grabs the
readers attention and gains their trust. He also offers statistics and facts when he says,
Logistically, it took nineteen men to back up one man in combat (500). Along with evidence,
statistics are important because it is factual which is always trustworthy; regardless of who it
comes from. By effectively utilizes statistics and personal experience, Manchester gains the trust
of the reader because he comes across as more professional and knowledgeable concerning the
Okinawa conflict. With this rhetorical tool, Manchester is able to make a better argument for his
case against the disillusionment of America.
Another rhetorical tool used throughout the essay is tone. Through his tone, Manchester
involves the readers emotions by instilling a sense of sorrow and remorse for war while at the
same time, speaking of the brutality of it. By engaging the feelings of the reader, Manchester has
an easier time of convincing his readers of what he believes. Because the essay is centered on
the dedication of a monument, Manchester immediately evokes solemnness and sorrow because
two countries who had once been enemies were coming together with a common grief (497).
He says, Each group honors the memor of men who tried to slay the men honored by those
opposite them (497). Manchester begins with a tone of seriousness because not only was
human life taken in the war, but because he wants the reader to take him seriously. Along with a
tone of solemn observance, Manchester also uses a tone of brutality, this is seen when he writes
about how he was instructed to fight with a Kabar. He says, You never cut downward. You
drove the point of our blade into a mans lower belly and ripped upward. In the process, you
yourself became soaked in the other mans gore (501). Although this tone is horrific to a person
who regards human life as important, Manchester uses it to gain respect from his readers by
showing them that he, too, was a soldier and knows firsthand what war is like. By using
different tones, Manchester appeals to the readers different emotions and affectively grabs the
readers attention.
By affectively using the different rhetoric tools, Manchester successfully communicated
his justification for his absence from the dedication and very logically pointed out the flaws of
thinking that only glory comes from war. Manchester also helped his argument when he utilized
his personal experiences on the battle field. Thus, Manchester came across as a knowledgeable
man who supported every claim with evidence and numbers and was able to draw the reader
along emotionally through the way he presented his story. Manchester also effectively used the
tone of his essay to match the topic at hand, when he was speaking of sorrow he conveyed a

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sense of mournfulness, and when he communicated his own experiences of war he spoke in a
harsher tone, imitating the rough speech of a Marine. By utilizing all of these rhetorical methods,
Manchester was able to gain the readers attention by presenting himself as an educated man.
Through all these rhetorical techniques, Manchester effectively argued his point that Americans
are disillusioned about war and clearly argues why he is unable to attend the dedication of the
monument.