The Spring 2010 Todd Lecture Series presented author and military historian, Rick Atkinson. His topic was "Bringing Back the Dead: History, Memory, and Writing About War." Mr. Atkinson is the best selling author of five books including The Long Gray Line, In the Company of Soldiers, Crusade, and two Volumes of his liberation trilogy, An Army At Dawn and The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy 1943-1944. He has worked as a reporter, a foreign correspondent and editor. His awards include the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting, the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for public service, and the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for history. He was also awarded the 1989 Gerald R. Ford Award for Distinguished Reporting on National Defense. Mr. Atkinson has also held the Gen. Omar Bradley Chair of Strategic Leadership at the U.S. Army War College and Dickinson College. He is presently working on the third book in his trilogy.

Mr. Atkinson has a poor opinion of current journalism. He used adjectives such as "shallow, fatuous, arrogant, simplistic, self-absorbed….Stop me if you disagree." The audience was in agreement.

Mr. Atkinson spoke of his Trilogy. The first book, published in 2002, deals with the invasion of Morocco and the battles with the French and the Germans in North Africa. The second book was published in 2007 and is takes place in southern Italy in 1943 and 1944. The third book studies the period from Normandy to May of 1945 when the war was ended. He stressed that we must understand what came before Normandy. At this time he has completed his research. He has 6,000 pages of notes.

He said that many twentieth century authors have neglected literary style and basic skills in their eagerness to write about the events in the war. The result is dull, solid monographs. Mr. Atkinson said that an author can learn much from novelists and historians. The novelist and historian are seeking the same thing,.. to recreate events and to retell the story. Shelby Foote, a fine novelist who has written many books about the Civil War, does not use footnotes. It is important not to lose sight of the story. The writer should tell stories. The narrative can be a powerful tool. It can make the account accessible. This tool is too important to leave to the novelists.

The U.S. Army has collected 17,000 tons of records from World War II. This suggests an opportunity. Shelby Foote said, "Fact isn’t a truth until you love it." He said that his role as an author is " to find the brushstrokes to bring the dead to life." Mr. Atkinson often uses letters home to accomplish this. He used letters from a soldier who began his letters with "Beloved Wife". This helped to bring his narrative alive and kept it alive as the soldier grew and changed. He feels that the real war will never get put into the books. "War is always worse that I knew how to say." wrote Samuel Hines in The Soldier’s Tale.

The author’s task is to reconcile order from disorder, to show the soldier’s perspective as opposed to the real event. The writer must follow the characters carefully to empower the imagination of the reader and provide authentic details. War shapes us and is a lens for looking at ourselves. It is the mental trellis that puts us in time and space. The author must write as truly as he can. While Mr. Atkinson was working as a correspondent at General Petraeus’ side the General said, "Tell me how this ends."

He discussed the relationship between the military and the media. The first correspondents worked during the Crimean War. By the time of the Second World War there was mass literacy. There was communication through the radio. The mission was different then. The reporters were in uniform and subject to censorship. . The reporters are no longer in uniform. By the time of the War in Vietnam the relationship between the military and the media was toxic. The media became convinced that the officers were lying to them. It is a professional relationship, but there is always conflict.

During the question and answer period he advised the student that when writing he is looking for a voice and a style in which to tell a story and convey information. Mr. Atkinson likes to use historical illusions…Caesar was here…..Joe Smith was here.

When asked to compare the Generals of today with Generals of earlier generations, Mr. Atkinson stated that the generals of today are as good as the generals of the Greatest Generation. The generals today are better prepared than the generals that preceded them. They are more physically fit, better educated, and have a broader view of military affairs. Some of the earlier generals "didn’t get it at all." He said that it is common to fire generals for a good cause. Today’s conflicts are a different game.

A student asked if there is a greatest generation. Mr. Atkinson replied, "Greater than the Founding Fathers? Greater than the leaders during the Civil War? Greater than Patton? Their sacrifices and achievements cannot be understated. That makes them into demigods with feet of clay." Twenty years time, or a generation must pass in order to see clearly.

When asked to give advice to a budding writer Mr. Atkinson said to be accurate and professional. "Non -professionals retail History. Have models. Learn from the masters." He said to gather material, learn the landscape, and set a date to stop writing. Mr. Atkinson uses a huge outline. He likes to tell the story through human voices at all levels. "Write a lot."