With the Old Breed: Part 2, Chapter 10 Summary & Analysis

When Company K arrives at their new position, Sledge notices many artillery shells on the ground, concluding that the American soldiers they are relieving must have been met with heavy shelling. When Company K meets the soldiers they are relieving, these men all have tragic, vacant expressions that reveal that, as one soldier tells Sledge, “It’s hell up there.”

Sledge and his companions then experience the chaos of battle. They run through an open field exposed to shells and machine-gun fire while the army troops attempt to leave their positions unscathed. Although Sledge is terrified, he knows since Peleliu that he can control his fear, and does not experience the same numbing panic as he did the first time. As Snafu and Sledge reach a side of the ridge where they are to dig their gun hole, they learn that two good friends from the company have died. The news fills them with gloom and anger.

In the meantime, the men notice that Mac is digging an extremely deep pit. They make fun of him for it, even though it is disrespectful to talk that way to an officer. They all laugh about the contrast between Mac’s current fearful attitude and his previous boasting.

That night, it begins to rain torrentially, and the Marines learn that they will take part in a large attack the next day. The next day, the attack fails, and the Marines are forced to retreat because of the enemy’s heavy fire. Sledge remains in his foxhole under heavy rain, hoping that he will not have to serve as a stretcher bearer in the area exposed to Japanese fire. Sledge describes the mud on Okinawa as a terrible source of frustration, making daily life miserable. He remembers seeing pictures of soldiers during World War I suffering from exactly the same dire circumstances, and demonstrating the same disgust.

From his foxhole, Sledge witnesses the pathetic sight of four stretcher bearers struggling to save a wounded comrade in the crippling mud, under enemy fire. Two of the stretcher bearers are soon shot, and the remaining two succeed in carrying the Marine on the stretcher in addition to their newly wounded comrades. From their hidden position, Sledge and his comrades cheer at this sight.

Company K then learns that they will launch another assault the next day. One of Sledge’s friends, overwhelmed by despair at the thought that he might never make it home, comes to speak to him. Remembering the comforting conversation Sledge once had with Hillbilly, he comforts his friend in the same manner. He concludes that such conversations are a crucial, heartwarming aspect of being an infantryman at the front, where only friendship makes life bearable. This time, the attack is partially successful, and Company K is able to move to a quiet area of the front lines before nighttime. Sledge then sees the friend he comforted the night before being carried off on a stretcher, bearing the million-dollar wound that will take him home, far from the war.

That night, the Japanese launch a large counterattack to isolate the 1st Marine Division and cause confusion in the American organization. Sledge and his fellow companions are forced to stay awake all night, hearing the sound of heavy artillery attacking the 1st Marines ahead of them. However, the 1st Marines succeed in killing the hundreds of Japanese who try to corner the division’s flank by arriving through water. They also witness an air attack against the American fleet, with kamikaze planes diving into ships.