Alvin York was originally a blacksmith from Tennessee, York, and was drafted into World War I. As a young man, he was often exposed to violence, but after listening to a visiting preacher's sermon in 1915, he felt enlightened, shunned violence, and became an assistant pastor. However, he was drafted into the army for World War I. He tried sought exemption from combat, stating on his registration car, "don't want to fight," but the military denied his request. During training, he showed "disciplined living" (Cavanaugh, Time) and superior shooting skills, but was still ostracized by the other soldiers due to his pacifist beliefs.
On October 8, 1918, however, York saw that fighting and killing was a necessary evil in order to prevent the death and wounding of his unit, and was able to find it in himself to fight back against the Germans. During the battle, York charged up the hill against machine gun fire, killed 19 German soldiers, and captured the remaining 132 German prisoners that had surrendered.
York subsequently returned as a war hero and received high military honors.
York is now seen as proof that one must sometimes kill for the sake of saving others.
1 comment:
Wow this guy is legit. He must have been really motivated to protect his unit. However, it's a little sad to see a guy who was a pacifist before the war and then kills all these people in the war. It shows what WWI did to so many people. I wonder how he must have felt after the war.
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