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The novel Lone Survivor is a heroic and riveting narrative of endurance against impossible odds. What makes the book so intense and compelling is the audacity of the situation. Four men stand against 200. The SEALS kill massive amounts of enemy fighters, but are eventually overcome by the sheer size of the enemy forces, resulting in all of their deaths except marcus Luttrell's, the book's author. I definitely recommend it to anyone who likes action or military books. It is about 400 pages and not a tough read.
Lone Survivor Book vs. Lone Survivor Movie
I was pleasantly surprised by how well the movie turned out. Yes, there were small differences between the movie and the book, but the two were very similar. Almost all of the differences between the film and book were in the dialogue. The author, Marcus Luttrell, wrote this book as a tribute to the Navy SEALs who died on Operation Redwing alongside him. He wanted the world to know their story of heroism and what all they did for their country. Due to his desire for his comrads' story of courage, patriotism, and perserverance to be told, he helped the directors make the movie as close as possible to the reality of the failed operation that took place in the mountains near Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
Character Analysis
· Marcus Luttrell- Marcus Luttrell is the main character and the “Lone Survivor.” He is one brave, tough and true Navy SEAL. This was the man who survived an RPG, and was thrown from a cliff, but still he survived. He is a strongly built man with dark hair with a hard jaw line.
· Billy Shelton- the man who helped Morgan (Marcus’s twin) and Marcus train for the Navy Seals before they were of age to sign up. Billy is an ex-marine who has a stocky build. When training Marcus, Billy seemed ruthless. He was a somewhat short guy who is a bit on the older side and going bald.
· Petty Officer Matthew Gene Axelson- Marcus calls Matthew by the name Axe throughout the book. Axe was not yet thirty, six foot four, had piercing blue eyes and dark curly hair. He was born in California and was married to a woman named Cindy. He was smart, brave, and an American hero. Marcus describes his actions thusly, “He held the left flank on the mountain for two hours, under fire. He was shot twice, both times badly hurt but still he kept fighting.”
· Lieutenant Michael Patrick Murphy- Marcus calls Michael by the name Mikey throughout the story. Mikey was not yet thirty,very smart and a natural leader. Most of all, he was a smart-ass. Mikey was strong, hilarious, and brave. This was the man who risked his life to call in support. He was shot about five times and still hung on to fight for a few more minutes. He too was tall with darker hair and was married.
· Senior Chief Daniel Dietz- Marcus calls Daniel by the name Danny throughout the book. Danny was an awesome Navy SEAL who was six foot three, thirty-seven, married to Norminda, and a father of seven. He was a friend, a brave man, and was very defensive of his Navy SEAL team. This was Marcus’s close friend. He provided them cover fire all afternoon, then got wounded and still kept fighting. He had relatively the same build as the other men.
Petty Officer Shane Parton- Shane was a twenty-two year old surfer and skate boarder from Las Vegas, Nevada. He was the primary communications operator, highly intelligent and a smart-ass, much like Mikey. Shane was a big, robust guy with blond hair and a relatively insolent grin. He knew what to do at all times and was always very calm. Shane was killed aboard the helicopter when it was shot down.
· Billy Shelton- the man who helped Morgan (Marcus’s twin) and Marcus train for the Navy Seals before they were of age to sign up. Billy is an ex-marine who has a stocky build. When training Marcus, Billy seemed ruthless. He was a somewhat short guy who is a bit on the older side and going bald.
· Petty Officer Matthew Gene Axelson- Marcus calls Matthew by the name Axe throughout the book. Axe was not yet thirty, six foot four, had piercing blue eyes and dark curly hair. He was born in California and was married to a woman named Cindy. He was smart, brave, and an American hero. Marcus describes his actions thusly, “He held the left flank on the mountain for two hours, under fire. He was shot twice, both times badly hurt but still he kept fighting.”
· Lieutenant Michael Patrick Murphy- Marcus calls Michael by the name Mikey throughout the story. Mikey was not yet thirty,very smart and a natural leader. Most of all, he was a smart-ass. Mikey was strong, hilarious, and brave. This was the man who risked his life to call in support. He was shot about five times and still hung on to fight for a few more minutes. He too was tall with darker hair and was married.
· Senior Chief Daniel Dietz- Marcus calls Daniel by the name Danny throughout the book. Danny was an awesome Navy SEAL who was six foot three, thirty-seven, married to Norminda, and a father of seven. He was a friend, a brave man, and was very defensive of his Navy SEAL team. This was Marcus’s close friend. He provided them cover fire all afternoon, then got wounded and still kept fighting. He had relatively the same build as the other men.
Petty Officer Shane Parton- Shane was a twenty-two year old surfer and skate boarder from Las Vegas, Nevada. He was the primary communications operator, highly intelligent and a smart-ass, much like Mikey. Shane was a big, robust guy with blond hair and a relatively insolent grin. He knew what to do at all times and was always very calm. Shane was killed aboard the helicopter when it was shot down.
Summary
At the beginning of the book, Marcus Luttrell describes his childhood and training with Billy Shelton starting at a very young age to prepare for the Navy SEALs. After joining the U.S. Navy, he tells about his experiences during the miserable weeks spent completing SEAL training. Next, Marcus and the rest of SEAL Team 10 are sent to a town in Afghanistan, in the Hindu Kush mountains. Marcus, Danny, Axe and Mikey were roped out of a helicopter. Their mission, Operation Redwing, was to stake outside a village and capture or kill a high positioned Taliban member that was a known associate of Osama bin Laden. One night in June 2005, while hiding out, the team encountered three shepherds, causing a difficult and life threatening decision. They knew if they let the three sheperds go that they would notify Taliban members in the area, but if they killed them, they would be crucified by the liberal media and go to jail for life. The SEALs knew that killing the three sheperds would be the correct tactical decision and that letting them go they could cost them their lives, but if they killed them they would be attacked by liberal media back home and go to jail for killing innocent poeple. After a heated discussion, they decided to vote, which ended with the decision to let the goat herders go.
Soon enough, Taliban fighters arrived on a hill above Marcus and his men. The four SEALs were outnumbered 200 to 4 and once the shooting began, Taliban fighters continously fired from their superior position. The SEALs amazingly held their own for quite a while, but it was only a matter of time before they began getting hit. Marcus and his men would get shot and keep shooting and killing Tailiban fighters. Even though many of SEALS had taken many fatal wounds, they ignored the pain and continued to fight and kill the Tailiban. However, the human body can only lose so much blood and take so much damage before shutting down. Danny, Mikey, and Axe reached that point, leaving Marcus on his own. Soon enough, Marcus was hit by an RPG and blown off the mountain. He was badly injured and had no choice but to hide from the enemy. He still ran into a few fire fights in which he managed to win, but he had to move as quickly and stealthily as possible to remain hidden from the Tailiban. The rest of SEAL Team 10 found out what was happening and sent a rescue team consisitng of eight Army special operations soldiers and eight SEALS on a helicopter to rescue Marcus and his team. On arrival, the helicopter was shot by an RPG causing the helicopter to blow up and kill everyone on board.
Meanwhile, Marcus ran into a Afghan man who was not too fond of the Tailiban and took him back to his villiage. The village was very friendly torwards Marcus, gave him food, shelter, and protected him from the Tailiban. The village truly committed to protecting him at all costs. The villagers and Marcus even had a fire fight against the Tailiban in order to save him. Eventually, Marcus is rescued and the story wraps up with him visiting the families of the fallen SEALs and reuniting with his family and friends.
Soon enough, Taliban fighters arrived on a hill above Marcus and his men. The four SEALs were outnumbered 200 to 4 and once the shooting began, Taliban fighters continously fired from their superior position. The SEALs amazingly held their own for quite a while, but it was only a matter of time before they began getting hit. Marcus and his men would get shot and keep shooting and killing Tailiban fighters. Even though many of SEALS had taken many fatal wounds, they ignored the pain and continued to fight and kill the Tailiban. However, the human body can only lose so much blood and take so much damage before shutting down. Danny, Mikey, and Axe reached that point, leaving Marcus on his own. Soon enough, Marcus was hit by an RPG and blown off the mountain. He was badly injured and had no choice but to hide from the enemy. He still ran into a few fire fights in which he managed to win, but he had to move as quickly and stealthily as possible to remain hidden from the Tailiban. The rest of SEAL Team 10 found out what was happening and sent a rescue team consisitng of eight Army special operations soldiers and eight SEALS on a helicopter to rescue Marcus and his team. On arrival, the helicopter was shot by an RPG causing the helicopter to blow up and kill everyone on board.
Meanwhile, Marcus ran into a Afghan man who was not too fond of the Tailiban and took him back to his villiage. The village was very friendly torwards Marcus, gave him food, shelter, and protected him from the Tailiban. The village truly committed to protecting him at all costs. The villagers and Marcus even had a fire fight against the Tailiban in order to save him. Eventually, Marcus is rescued and the story wraps up with him visiting the families of the fallen SEALs and reuniting with his family and friends.
Theme of Lone Suvivor vs. Theme of Lord of the Flies
The theme of Lone Survivor and Lord of the Flies is to never give up. This is a very apparent theme of Lone Survivor because Marcus survived against almost all odds by not giving up on himself. Even when all of his SEAL team had been killed and he had been shot by an RPG, he killed many more taliban fighters and managed to get out alive with the help of a nearby village.
The theme of never giving up is also very clearly depicted in Lord of the Flies. Here the boys are stranded on an island in the middle of the ocean after a plane crash. All odds are against them because they are so young and there are no adults to help tell them what to do, what not to do and how to survive. The boys never give up and eventually are rescued.
The ability to never give up is a quality that usually is not shown in most peoples lives. It is a rare quality, which enabled Marcus and the boys in Lord of the Flies to live the rest of their lives.
The theme of never giving up is also very clearly depicted in Lord of the Flies. Here the boys are stranded on an island in the middle of the ocean after a plane crash. All odds are against them because they are so young and there are no adults to help tell them what to do, what not to do and how to survive. The boys never give up and eventually are rescued.
The ability to never give up is a quality that usually is not shown in most peoples lives. It is a rare quality, which enabled Marcus and the boys in Lord of the Flies to live the rest of their lives.
Writing Style
Lone Survivor is written in the form of a narrative told by Marcus Luttrell. Since Marcus was a part of all the action and the only survivor of his SEAL team, he was able to write a very accurate and detailed eyewitness account of Operation Redwing. This story attracts a large crowd because it is a true story of survival against all odds and it is a rare look inside a SEAL operation.