The Art of War / Normandy Invasion
American Studies
50 Shared Points
Due: _____________
Over the past few days we have been looking at the Allied invasion of the European continent at Normandy, France.
We have been comparing that battle and the combatants’ successes and failures to what Sun Tzu predicted in his masterpiece
The Art of War. Even though Tzu did not predict the advent of airplanes and did not foresee the 3,000 ship armada that the
Allies brought down upon Europe, he did foretell that if certain pieces of advice were followed, then success in battle would
follow. Were his predictions correct for this battle, a pivotal battle in world history? If the combatant that held the majority of
the advantages won, why? If the combatant that was facing greater odds won, why? That question is yours to answer.
ASSIGNMENT
1) Revisit ALL of your notes and texts on the Normandy Invasion, also called D-Day, also called
Operation Overlord.
2) Create a chart of the Germans’ advantages and their page numbers, as stated by The Art of War.
3) Create a chart of the Allies’ advantages and their page numbers, as stated by The Art of War.
4) The charts may be “combined” into one like we did for Pearl Harbor.
5) Remember who actually won this battle.
6) Weigh the evidence from the texts and from The Art of War.
7) Determine which factors help the winner win. Which factors, according to The Art of War, were
the MOST instrumental in helping the winners win.
8) Create a SOAP thesis that offers 3 (three) advantages that the winners had that allowed them to
win the battle. Remember that this could be things the winners actually did or things the
losers did or didn’t do but still contributed to the other side wining!
9) Write a well-crafted essay (including a conclusion) wherein you defend your thesis statement
and prove that it is a VALID statement (not necessarily a TRUE statement, remember, but one that
is a reasonable argument.)
ESSAY PROMPT
What, according to The Art of War, controlled the battle’s outcome?
THESIS CREATION HELP
In looking at the advantages that the winner had, the following three were the MOST impactful in helping
them to win:
1) _____________________
2) _____________________
3) _____________________
NOW…..DEFEND THAT THESIS (ONE BODY PARAGRAPH OR SET OF BODY
PARAGRAPHS PER PRONG!)
TEXTS AT YOUR DISPOSAL
1)
2)
3)
4)
Ambrose – Prologue and Chapter 1
Ike’s letters to the troops
Statistic sheet
Your textbook
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
Film – Ike
Film – The Longest Day
Film – Band of Brothers
Film – Saving Private Ryan
In-class lecture notes
*** All texts used, must be cited both in the body of your essay and in a properly formatted works cited page.
*** You must use at least 5 direct quotes from The Art of War.
*** You must use at least 8 direct quotes / paraphrases from at least 4 other texts
FINAL REQUIREMENTS
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Write a complete essay (Intro, body, conclusion!)
Write in 3rd person.
Write in the past tense.
Cite everything!
Remember that writing IS thinking. You MUST pull all this information together, then think, and
THEN write about your thesis
Works Cited Page
RUBRIC
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The American Studies / Freshman Year rubric will be utilized with this essay.
Please see attached
This is to be submitted to Turnitin.com
Bibliographic Information for texts 5 – 8
Text 5 – Ike
Title: Ike: Countdown to D-Day
Director’s Name: Robert Harmon
Performers’ Names: Tom Selleck
Media Format: DVD
Distributor: Sony
Year Issued: 2004
Text 6 – The Longest Day
Title: The Longest Day
Director’s Name: Andrew Marton
Performers’ Names: John Wayne
Media Format: DVD
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Year Issued: 1998
Text 7 – Band of Brothers
Title: Band of Brothers
Director’s Name: Tom Hanks
Performers’ Names: Damien Lewis, Ron Livingston
Media Format: DVD
Distributor: HBO Home Video
Year Issued: 2002
Text 8 – Saving Private Ryan
Title: Saving Private Ryan
Director’s Name: Steven Spielberg
Performers’ Names: Tom Hanks
Media Format: DVD
Distributor: Deamworks
Year Issued: 1998
Text 9 – In Class Lecture
Given by: Randall Peterson and Chris Warner
Location: Legacy High School
Title: The Normandy Invasion