Where Men Win Glory Jon Krakauer Analysis

Jon Krakauer’s biography of Pat Tillman as told in Where Men Win Glory, is a gripping and inspirational story that is full of contradictions. Pat Tillman was his own man and he was an independent person. However, the United States Department of Defense and the Executive Branch of the government exploited his fame to depict him in a way that they could use to manipulate the media. Throughout the biography, Krakauer shows readers the glaring differences between how Tillman actually was, and how the media wanted to portray him. Aside from exploiting his life, the media and the government also exploited him in death. The ease with which they did this stands to show the true power of media and culture to manipulate the opinions of the nation. The …show more content…
The incongruence of Tillman’s refusal to be interviewed and the government’s obsessive media coverage of him is one example in a long line of contradictions. Additionally, Tillman was reserved and modest which made it even more difficult for others to exploit him. Despite the Department of Defense’s efforts to depict him as the perfect American hero, Tillman wanted to be more than that. Nearly everyone who interacted with him described him as a good listener and a deep intellectual thinker (Krakauer, 18). Additionally, he strayed from the military “norm” of throwing his rank around. He was inherently respectful of everyone around him even those who were below him in the hierarchy, and he didn’t believe in putting others down (Krakauer, 318). Also, Tillman had no interest in being used as a tool by the government or the media, in life or in death. When discussing his potential death with a fellow soldier Tillman said, “I don’t want them to parade me through the streets,” (Krakauer, 349). The glaring difference between Tillman’s quiet heroism and the government and media portrayal of him shows that Tillman’s story is one full of