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Response paper to Kenneth Delaney’ Interview Transcript

Kenneth Delaney is a war veteran from World War II who speaks about his experience in the war. He was born in Long Island, New York and was enlisted to the army from civil life. In his interviews, Delaney shows pride in his service at D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Hurtgen Forest. His heroics are illustrated by the numerous wounds he suffered but still continued to fight in battles in the world war. He was clearly a brave soldier and mentions it in his interview. When he landed on Omaha Beach, for instance, his first reaction was not nervousness. He was shot and dragged himself to a safe place as the battle raged on and his colleagues got killed as he watched. He recuperated nevertheless and went right back to the war, fighting in the Battle of Bulge.

The Battle of Bulge was not for the soft-hearted. Kenneth Delaney was recuperating at a hospital when the medics told them that anybody that was able to walk or crawl was required in the field. The American army was overwhelmed and these brave men had to endure pain in order. His response to the devastating attacks on the American troops in Belgium. He speaks of soldiers whose spirits could not be broken and his own account of how he participated in the war is a testimony of how these soldiers during that time (Delaney 1). Although his story became popular and was actually documented there are other battles heroes whose activities we will never know. Despite fighting when not in the perfect health state with injuries from previous battles, Kenneth got injured in the battle of Bulge and had to seek treatment once more. The narrative of the Battle of Bulge was crucial as was every soldier that was countering Hitler’s effort to split the allies as they moved towards Germany.

The D-Day was a battle that began in 1944 and lasted between August and June of that same year. Kenneth Delaney was part of 156,000 soldiers who made up the Allied forces that invaded France and managed the mission to liberate Western Europe from the control of Nazi Germany. This invasion was among the largest amphibious assaults in history. Kenneth recalls watching landing craft they were using to land on the beach being blown up as well as the ships that they used from England (Delaney 2). As soon as they landed, Delaney was shot in the foot. He crawled among fellow members of his troop mourning and hollering from wounds. There were no medics to cater to the overwhelming medical need of all the wounded soldiers. Most medics were wounded or dead. When some medics managed to reach there side, they only had enough manpower to help one individual at a time. Delaney gave the chance to other people he felt needed more attention and went back to the crossfire. He used his rifle spraying the Germans although he had no clear sight of his targets. What counted was he did as much as he could at that particular moment.

There were many heroes in the Second World War that will not be appreciated that they ought to be for their bravery and sacrifice for the nation. Although some like Kenneth Delaney came forward with their stories, there is still nothing the world could do to repay the man for his sacrifice. His tone in his interviews about battles that wounded him and nearly got him killed has no regret. He appears happy that he was shot at the Battle of Bulge or at Normandy even before he was ready to get into the fight. Most people would have taken advantage of the injuries to stay away from the Battlefield, but not Kenneth Delaney a true American hero and embodiment of the true meaning of patriotism.

Works Cited

Delaney, K. T. “Memoir : Kenneth T. Delaney: Experiencing War: Veterans History Project (Library of Congress.” American Memory: Remaining Collections, memory.loc.gov/diglib/vhp-stories/loc.natlib.afc2001001.01930/pageturner?ID=pm0007001&page=1.