Hiroshima by Hersey Book Review Example

SECTION ONE

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Hiroshima was such an ideal target for the American bombing because it was densely populated and thriving city and bombing it would have a great dent on the Japanese psyche, leading to their withdrawal from World War II. Hiroshima was an ideal target because it was a great seaport and Japan profoundly depended on it to carry out its international trading activities. America knew that Japans international trading activities would be stifled by bombing Hiroshima. America knew that Japans economy would be severely affected by stifling of international trading activities. A country that has been weakened economically cannot afford to continue taking part in a war. America foresaw that bombing of Hiroshima would lead to a total surrender of Japan from World War II.

SECTION TWO

Reverend Mr. Kiyoshi Tanimoto is one of the central characters in the book. He survived the Hiroshima atomic bombings. Tanimoto was a pastor of Hiroshima Methodist Church. On the fateful day of the bombings, Tanimoto woke up at five oclock in the morning. He was alone in the house because his wife had gone to pay a visit to her friend with their five-year-old son. Mr. Tanimoto had slept uncomfortably because of the fear that Hiroshima could be attacked by B-29s (Hersey 14). He had moved all the portable things from the church to a house that was two miles from the center of the town, a safe distance from the probable target area of the bomb. Tanimoto had little difficulty in moving Bibles, chairs, hymnals and church records; he moved them by using a pushcart. However, he had experienced problems with moving the organ console and an upright piano. On the previous day, Tanimotos friend Matsuo had helped him move the piano out to Koi. Tanimoto had promised Matsuo that he would help him transport his daughters belongings to a safe place; that is why he had woken up so early. On that very day, Mr. Tanimoto had cooked up his breakfast; this was despite the fact that he felt awfully tired because of the effort of moving the piano, the day before (Hersey 15). By six oclock, Mr. Tanimoto was at Mr. Matsuos house, where he found out that the burden that they were supposed to carry was a large Japanese cabinet that was full of clothing and household goods. A few minutes after they had started to carry the cabinet, an air raid siren went off warning people of approaching planes. However, residents of Hiroshima were unperturbed by the air raid siren since it had been going off every morning, anytime an American weather plane came over (Hersey 17). As Mr. Tanimoto and Mr. Matsuo were moving the cabinet to Koi, suddenly, a tremendous flash of light cut across the sky, from east to west, from the city toward the hills. The flash of light seemed like a sheet of sun. Both Mr. Tanimoto and Mr. Matsuo reacted with terror to the flash of light (they had time to react since they were about 3,500 yards from the center of the explosion). Mr. Tanimoto then threw himself between two big rocks in the nearby garden. All over a sudden, he felt a sudden pressure and pieces of fragments fell on him. Mr. Tanimoto then raised his head high and saw that a house that was nearby had collapsed (18). Mr. Tanimoto later saw that the concrete wall of the nearby estate had collapsed. He saw Japanese soldiers retreat from a hole that had been built to act as a haven (safe areas) in anticipation of the bombings. The Japanese soldiers were bleeding furiously from their heads, chests, and backs. The soldiers were silent and dazed. What seemed to be a local dust cloud grew darker with time (Hersey 19).

The authors purpose in telling so many anecdotes about life before the bomb is to make readers understand that lives of ordinary Japanese citizens were severely affected from a negative point of view by the bombings.

SECTION THREE

Nausea is one of the side effects from radiation sickness. Some of the victims were nauseated from the strong odor of ionization that had been given off by the bombs fission (Hersey 54). Vomiting was the other side effect of the radiation sickness (Hersey 75). The bombings had created an environmental full of dreadful heat yet water was scarce. As a result, body systems of survivor compelled them to vomit.

Wounds of victims of the bombings had gas gangrene in them, and as a result, the wounds took a long time to heal (Hersey 77). Gas gangrene was a product of the atomic bombings. Body parts of victims whose wounds had gas gangrene had to be amputated lest they died. Gas gangrene made the wounds to grow wider, swollen and flamed (Hersey 92).

Headache, fever, diarrhea, malaise and falling hair were other side effects of the radiation sickness (Hersey 102). The radiation rays destroyed body cells by causing nuclei to degenerate. There was also an appearance of blood disorders, bleeding of gums, white-blood-cell counts plummeted sharply, and there was also an appearance of petechiae on the skin and mucous membranes (Hersey 103). Reduction in some white-blood-cells reduced the capacity of patients to resist infection, and as a result, wounds took a longer time to heal. Infections in the chest cavity and keloid tumors were the most potent side effects of the radiation sickness (Hersey 103).

SECTION FOUR

Majority of the physicians and surgeons had their offices, hospitals and equipment and medicine destroyed and scattered. Majority of the physicians and surgeons also had their bodies incapacitated to varying degrees. Given that majority of physicians and surgeons were killed and their equipment and medicine destroyed and scattered medical, and rescue efforts had little impact because there was the lack of adequate manpower and appropriate equipment and medicine to make the efforts a success (Hersey 41).

Work Cited

Hersey, John. Hiroshima. New York: Penguin Books. 1946. Print.