#705 World War II: Oral histories

The StoryCorps trailer in Seattle. Source: KUOW.

StoryCorps stations activities  

• Listen. “StoryCorps’ mission is to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world.” Visit a handful of these six “virtual” listening stations containing oral histories from World War II:
  1. Ready for war (3:13)
  2. The day taps echoed through Belgium’s Hills (2:09)
  3. Dot the welder (2:34)
  4. Germans in the woods (2:30)
  5. Living to tell the horrible tale of Pearl Harbor (2:43)
  6. Remembering Austria before WWII (8:58)
• Comment. The goal for each station is to engage in a kind of silent discussions that involves both listening and written contributions. As you listen to each clip, write down responses, questions, or connections to each recording.
• Respond. You can respond to your classmates’ notes with your own note and/or a star sticker to serve as a kind of “like” or endorsement to their comment.

Reflections on oral history

• Which individual comments from your peers stood out to you?
• What themes did you see emerge in the oral histories and in our comments?
• How might we connect these clips to other  texts or topics we have discussed?
• What can oral histories show us that other types of texts might not be able to?
• How might you use this source as evidence in an essay or other assignment?