Providence, RI— American POW Memoirs from the Revolutionary War through the Vietnam War, a collection of papers written by fourteen Providence College students and edited by Rev. Jon Alexander, O.P., associate professor of history at Providence College, was recently published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. 

The book is the product of a special topics undergraduate seminar taught by Fr. Alexander in spring 2006, “American Veterans’ Autobiographies from the Revolutionary War through the Vietnamese War (1775-1975) with Special Emphasis on POW Autobiographies and Life Writings. The goal of the course was to produce a book-length manuscript ready for publication.” Fr. Alexander believes that this is the first time that a collection of papers written by students in a humanities undergraduate seminar have been published as a book. 

In the class, students examined individual narratives written by American internment camp prisoners of various wars.  The students’ focus was to examine the construction of the narratives themselves, including plot development, characterization, the authors’ self-presentation, and narration style.   The papers reveal how the context in which each autobiography was written influences the nature of the memoirs.  Noting that it is “very difficult to find out what really happened to these POWs,” Fr. Alexander said that the students used original, historical sources to write an historical study, much like “putting together the pieces of a puzzle.”

Fr. Alexander noted the seminar was designed to provide students with first-hand experiences as practitioners in the field of historical research.  “History can be overwhelming memorization, and content is forgettable.  I want to encourage faculty and students to try something more.” Fr. Alexander’s class is one example of how the Providence College curriculum offers students opportunities for engaged, active learning. 

Noting that the majority of publishable undergraduate research is done in the sciences, Fr. Alexander emphasized that students across all subject areas can experience the same kind of hands-on learning experience. 

American POW Memoirs from the Revolutionary War through the Vietnam War can be purchased directly through the publisher and will be available for sale on Amazon.com in late spring 2007.

Student contributors are

• Sarah Burke of Mendham, NJ, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Kyle Casey of Concord, Ma, a member of the class of 2007, majoring in history;
• Jason Coulombe of Somerset, MA, who received a master of arts in history in 2006;
• Christopher Emmens of Wethersfield, CT, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Michael Eng of Garden City, NY, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Peter Farese of Bellingham, MA, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Thomas Kettmer of Chevy Chase, MD, a member of the class of 2007, majoring in American studies;
• Brigid McDonough of Chicago, IL, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Jessica Pilkington of Seekonk, MA, a member of the class of 2007, majoring in history and American studies;
• Logan J. Reed of Branford, CT, a member of the class of 2007, majoring in history;
• Emily Roach of Milton, MA, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history;
• Stephen Vittorioso of Bolton, MA, a member of the class of 2007, majoring in American studies;
• Lindsay Weber of Morris Plains, NJ, a member of the class of 2006 majoring in political science; and
• Sean Whalen of Nesconset, NY, a member of the class of 2006, majoring in history.

--30--