Noah Halili - Easy Company's Herald and Why We Fight

  Iris March discusses a character archetype called The Herald. She states, “The Herald archetype is the force in the story, usually in the first act, that presents a challenge to the Hero” (March 2023). In my discussion Easy Company throughout this blog, I have analyzed individuals and moments that relate to the Hero’s Journey. However, I believe that the role of the Herald can be attributed not to an individual but rather a group in the case of Easy Company. On one hand, the war itself is the Herald for Easy Company since it is the main thing forcing them to fight. However, a more specific example of the Herald role is found in the Nazis themselves. 

In episode 9: Why We Fight, there is a moving scene where Private Webster begins screaming at surrendered Nazi soldiers. He barrages them with insults and at one point asks them why they are half way across the world fighting a war they wanted no part in. This is a defining moment in the episode as many members of Easy Company struggle to come to terms with the war effort. In my analysis of the paratroopers in Easy Company, I have found that many of the men embody the hero role in their own way. In fact, the miniseries takes the time to have different episodes focus on different individuals. However, every episode ends with a message about the real life events related to the episode and almost always refers to the entire company as if it were an individual. 

Easy Company became one unified body fighting on the frontlines for the entire European campaign of WWII. But what is the answer to Webster’s question? Some would say it is the involvement of the U.S. in WWII following the events of Pearl Harbor. However, I find that the true Herald role for Easy Company is the war itself as that is the overarching issue. The paratroopers join the 101st airborne because, as Carwood Lipton puts it, they want to be the best fighting alongside the best. The call to action by the U.S., after the country joins the war, brings many of the men to the beginning of their journey. This challenge to train, unite, and fight in Europe until their victory in 1945 is WWII and the action of the Nazis. Without the Nazis, the war in Europe is immensely different and Easy Company is likely deployed elsewhere. Both the war and the enemy are things forcing the story and journey that Easy Company embarks on. 


Source:


https://www.irismarshedits.com/post/heros-journey-herald-archetype


Band of Brothers

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