1. Do research on the decision to drop the atomic bomb. You can find Web sites with many official documents that explain the thinking of the time. Present arguments both pro and con. 2. Pretend you are one of the survivors of the bombing. Write ten journal entries and explain […]
Read more Study Help Practice ProjectsStudy Help Essay Questions
1. How does Hersey use details to make his interviewees come alive for the reader? 2. What techniques does Hersey use to show the limited viewpoints of each person? 3. Where does Hersey use irony? 4. Examine carefully the factual details Hersey uses, such as the abnormal water drops after […]
Read more Study Help Essay QuestionsStudy Help Full Glossary for Hiroshima
abrasions and lacerations scrapes and jagged tears or wounds. admonition an admonishing or warning to correct some fault. analogous similar or comparable in certain respects. anomaly departure from the regular arrangement, general rule, or usual method; abnormality. atavistic displaying characteristics of remote ancestors. atrophy a wasting away, especially of body […]
Read more Study Help Full Glossary for HiroshimaCritical Essays Events Surrounding the First Atomic Bombs
Making the Decision Hiroshima still makes the headlines. Today, if a nuclear test occurs, the leader who ordered it can expect to be the recipient of a telegram from the mayor of Hiroshima. Until there are no more nuclear weapons in the world, an eternal flame continues to burn at […]
Read more Critical Essays Events Surrounding the First Atomic BombsJohn Hersey Biography
Early Years John Richard Hersey was born in Tientsin, China, on June 17, 1914, to American missionaries Roscoe M. and Grace (Baird) Hersey. Growing up in China, Hersey was out of the mainstream when it came to American attitudes and culture. He spoke Chinese fluently. Hersey exercised his imagination with […]
Read more John Hersey BiographyCharacter Analysis Reverend Kiyoshi Tanimoto
The Reverend Kiyoshi Tanimoto is a Methodist minister with a parish in Hiroshima. A “cautious, thoughtful man,” he has sent his family to the country. The concerns of his parish weigh on his mind. Throughout the novel, Tanimoto’s acts of mercy and compassion are juxtaposed with his feelings of helplessness […]
Read more Character Analysis Reverend Kiyoshi TanimotoCharacter Analysis Dr. Terufumi Sasaki
Dr. Sasaki’s life is one of compassion, hard work, wealth, and ghosts. He displays his compassion, and hard work is an essential throughout his life. The pursuit of wealth sometimes seems to be his defense against the ghosts that haunt him after August 6, 1945. As a young doctor at […]
Read more Character Analysis Dr. Terufumi SasakiCharacter Analysis Father Wilhelm Kleinsorge
Father Kleinsorge, a German priest, leads a life of selflessness both before and after the bombing. After the bombing he contends with the effects of that illness for the remainder of his life but he struggles on, often sacrificing his own health to help others. His sense of duty is […]
Read more Character Analysis Father Wilhelm KleinsorgeCharacter Analysis Mrs. Hatsuyo Nakamura
The reader feels a great deal of sympathy for Mrs. Nakamura. Her husband’s death, her pity for her neighbor who is taking apart his house, and her concern for her children all paint a picture of a woman who had many troubles in her life before the bomb even fell. […]
Read more Character Analysis Mrs. Hatsuyo NakamuraCharacter Analysis Dr. Masakazu Fujii
Before the bombing, Dr. Fujii is a physician with compassion and concern for his patients and workers. After he survives the blast, he continues to help those around him even though he is terribly injured. This is a decided change from his usual lifestyle where he enjoyed himself and “did […]
Read more Character Analysis Dr. Masakazu Fujii