What do you notice? What do you wonder? I found this source particularly interesting because it is a first hand journal. I noticed in almost every entry leading up to the one I chose, it was just a typical day to day diary entries talking about going out on the town, and whatever happened at work for the day. While reading through the entire thing I would have never guessed he was taken as a POW. The particular entry that I chose is the day that he went missing. In the few entries before he was officially missing I noticed it was just small entries talking about his achievements and confirmed destructions. I really liked that his fellow men started writing down the achievements in his personal journal. Its almost as if they assumed this would become an interesting historical document in the future.
Source: The Zenos R. Miller World War 1 Diaries are a primary source of Diary entries by Lt. Z. R. Miller and some of his fellow comrades. The particular entry that I chose is written by someone other than Miller on July 20th, 1918.
https://transcription.si.edu/view/17875/NASM-NASM-9A16128-201-202
Context: In the spring of 1918 just before the entry I chose, the Armistice occurred and Russia signed the treaty with Germany formally pulling Russia out of the war. "This allowed German commanders to transport thousands of troops from eastern to western Europe, and launch an offensive to overrun France before American forces could arrive" https://maryklann.wixsite.com/hist110/post/module-14-world-war-i. In the diary entries, the months leading up to Millers capture, he talks about his unit receiving orders and traveling to France to fight the Germans. Just before the entry I chose, there were entry's about Millers achievements of destroying "enemy balloons" and a "Fokker Biplane" which, during WW1, balloons and Fokker Biplanes belonged to the Germans.
Implications/Conclusions: I believe this source just gives a good insight to small missions that assisted with a larger part of the war. The feats that these men achieved during the war are not very well known. and despite all the entries about going out on the town and meeting women and the simple days of just working on their planes, their successful destruction missions clearly didn't go unnoticed.
Discussion Question: If you were in their shoes and captured as a POW, Would you continue to make journal entries?
This is a great question Morgan! I also like that the comments above show that we are a bit divided. I would like to think that I would, like @Geena Pilapil noted, it would be an act of expressing hope that even if I didn't get out, at least someone would know what I had gone through. It would be some way to preserve some sense of autonomy and control (and maybe a sense of familiarity too--as you noted in your post, many of these entries reflected day-to-day tasks, so keeping the diary was a way to maintain a sense of normalcy). However, like @whitneyweinapple1 and @Hamza Dehaini, I agree that it would take a lot of strength to keep up with this in this traumatic situation.
Honistly I don’t know. What would it be for. I don’t think I would unless I would personally have a reason to show someone.
To be completely honest, I don't believe I would do the same. I think I would want to essentially forget or repress what is happening to me or around me in order to mentally get through it. I believe that is pretty selfish of me, however, I think in a dire situation I would not have another way to respond. It is truly impressive and shows the strong will of these people to continue on and relive such events through writing.
If I were in their shoes and captured as a POW, I would continue to make journal entries. I think writing what I went through would give me hope. If I ever got out of there, someone would be able to read my entries and have an idea about what I went through. No one outside the place of imprison could never really know what went on in there, but they could get a glimpse through these entries.