The Monuments Women of World War II

        In the midst of World War II, with people fighting and destruction everywhere, what started out as a small group of thirty men set out to rescue works of art. These people, who were in almost as much danger as those at war, had a different plan. While other people intended to hurt, these men were determined to save. Now, a new movie, "The Monuments Men" is coming out, starring George Clooney, that tells the untold story of these heroes. However, this movie ignores the fact that there were "Monuments Women" too.
     In the article "Not All Monuments Men Were Men" by Tom Mashberg, we learn about the women who helped save art. There was Ardelia Ripley Hall, a scholar who assisted in hunting down many pieces of art that had been stolen by the Nazis, such as a portrait of St. Catherine by Rubens. There was Edith A. Standen, a captain in the Women's Army Corps. She ended up having a job at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Rose Valland, who appears in the movie "The Monuments Men" played by Cate Blanchett, was an operative of the French Resistance who risked her life to spy on the Nazis. All of these women had a common goal and did whatever it took to achieve it. They are no longer living today, but another one of these Monuments women, Anne Olivier Popham Bell, is. The article includes an interview with her.
     When it comes to the author's craft, I noticed that Tom Mashberg starts out with a very compelling first sentence that works very well as a hook. "In February 1952, as Europe rebuilt after World War II, Ardelia Ripley Hall arrived in Bonn, Germany, to play her part in a bold American military mission that had begun about a decade earlier." The hook sort of outlines the intensity of the piece - how it focuses on war, but a different part of the war we don't really know about - and makes you want to read more. The next craft move I noticed was that Tom Mashberg also mixes in info about the upcoming film. An instance of this is when it says "Rose Valland, whose role is depicted briefly by Cate Blanchett in the film..." Another is '“The Monuments Men,”' which has now been adapted into a movie by that name, due out on Friday from George Clooney." I thought the author did this to partially advertise for the movie and partially to draw your attention out of the history he's presenting us with, you know, to give us a break. I noticed he also gives specific dates for the various events he mentions, which helps make it seem more real. Finally, Tom Mashberg uses powerful words to convey his point, such as "plundered," "fabled," and "catastrophic."
     I found this article very interesting, because even though I've studied World War II, focusing mainly on the Holocaust, in the past, I never knew about these Monuments men and women. This article is great because it gives you the facts, but tells them to you in a compelling way that involves a narrative structure. This article both encouraged and discouraged me from seeing the movie. Encouraged, because now I'd like to see what I've learned about depicted on the big screen. Discouraged, because according to the article, the movie focuses mainly on the Monuments men, overlooking the heroic women. I tried to figure out which the author was aiming for, and I decided that he wants us to see the movie, but wants us to also bear in mind that, like most films, it doesn't tell the full story. With the historical information he provided us with, we can now view the movie in a broader lens.