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1. Give an outline of the various views on serving in the army presented in the three texts.

The one thing, that the three texts have in common is the theme; serving in the army.
In text one, Why they serve, Sarah Palin tells her own story about her son, Track, serving in the army, and she tells about the feelings she has. She sees serving as a way to protect the idea of America, not just geographically. Sarah Palin is proud of her country and the unity, and she is proud of her son. She wonders for what reason some young men and women want to risk their lives to defend their country. For her son, the reason is family. He has young members of the family, and he wants a safe world for them to grow up in. For Track his family is the motivation.
As a contrast to Palins positive view on serving in the army, we have the article A soldier’s story: War affects whole family written by David Zucchino. The article is about the Kahlers family who’s son, Ryan Kahler, suffers from a stress disorder. Ryan’s disorder has had a bad influence on the parents, who now also suffer from a less serious stress disorder. In the article the parents complain about the help their son, and all the other soldiers, who has returned from war, have or have not gotten. Ryan’s parents regret that they were supportive about Ryan getting into the war.
Joel Pitney is the author of the article The Making of a Marine Officer. The article is about Lieutenant Fick – Nathaniel Fick – who is a former marine soldier. Fick is the author of the book One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer. The reason Nathaniel Fick joined the marine is clear. He wanted adventures, to be a warrior and to do something that might kill him – he wanted an excitement that the postmodern culture couldn’t give him.
Fick describes the strong brotherhood between him and the other male marine officers, as powerful and he says that their bond was very strong, because they went through so many things together. Fick does not regret his time in the service. The view on serving in this article is positive.

2. How does Sarah Palin engage the reader in text 1? Illustrate your answers with examples from the text.

Sarah Palin engages the reader in text one by different tricks. For example, she mentions the family bond, which is something almost any reader could relate to. She uses pathos, which is one of the three modes of persuasion, and makes the article very sensitive and relatable.
“I was the mom of a young soldier being sent overseas to defend our country” [1] and “(…) I am filled with a genuine sense of awe” [2], are two good examples of Palin putting her feelings and thoughts into the article, and she uses this to reach the reader. Especially the parents, who have sent their sons and daughters into war are related to the article.
Palin is trying to reach the ‘patriotic I’ inside of the reader with the way she describes America. Here she uses ethos, another one of the three modes of persuasion, because she shows that she knows what she is talking about. “We are the only country in the history of the world that was founded not on a particular territory or culture or people, but on an idea. (…) they are doing much more than defending a piece of land. They are defending the idea of America itself” [3].
Sarah Palin uses intertextuality when she refers to some great personalities. By this she makes the reader think that her opinion is good, because she agrees with some great personality, for example Ronald Reagan.

3. Taking one of the texts as your starting point, discuss what motivates young people to fight for their country.

There are a lot of different things that can motivate young men and women to fight for their country – for their family, for adventure, for their ‘patriotic I’, or maybe because they just want to fight. What motivates the young people is individual.
In text one, Why they serve by Sarah Palin, Palin writes about her son, who has enlisted in the army. She wonders what it is that the young people are longing for, and why they want to put their lives into risk. For her son, the reason starts with his family. He wants his little sisters and brother and his nephew to grow up in a safe and welcoming world, as Palin describes it. I can imagine that this is a reason that a lot of soldiers can relate to. Who wouldn’t want their family to be safe? But there are consequences, which also can affect the family. David
Zucchino has written about the Kahlers family, whose son badly suffers from a stress disorder, and therefor his parents does to. It is a good example of how the war doesn’t only affect the soldiers, who are in it – but also the people who stand them near. Everyone would want their family to be safe – but what if it doesn’t come out like that?
Even though Ryan Kahler has negatively changed since he got home, because of missing counseling, he is happy for enlisting in the army. “It’s matured me. It’s made me stronger, more confident” [4]. This can be another reason for joining the army. If you have been sent into war, you see and hear things, that you cannot let go of – but you learn to live with those things. And this is what matures the young men and woman, and can also be one of the things, that motivate them.
In text three we deal with a former marine officer, Lieutenant Fick. Fick’s reason for enlisting in the army is a little different from the other two. "I wanted something more transformative. Something that might kill me – or leave me better, stronger, more capable. I wanted to be a warrior” [5]. Fick wanted adventure. At the time of his service he has learned a lot, especially about brotherhood. He mentions that him and his group weren’t really fighting for their country – they were fighting for each other. To hear that from a former soldier can be very motivating for young men and women, because they might also want to have such a strong bond to other people, plus an extreme experience for life.
If I ware able to enlist in the army, I would have done it. Since I live in a very safe and secure country, it wouldn’t be for my family, that I would enlist. It would be just like it was for Fick - to be a part of something bigger and stronger, to have the adventure and to put my life into risk.