Posted By: NCTA Work Projects
Posted On: June 19, 2019
Oliver Jia, NCTA Student Worker
Written by China-born American journalist John Hersey, Hiroshima is a seminal work that was among the first to “humanize” the Japanese people for Western audiences following the conclusion of WWII. It covers the stories of six survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb which gives it a highly personal style. Americans previously only saw the atomic bombings of Japan through newsreels, and the intense feelings of wartime hatred resulted in the public being largely in favor of their use. With Hersey’s explicit account, however, many were able to sympathize with the Japanese far more and it fueled debate that continues to this very day.
The book itself is written in plain language and is not difficult to follow even after over 70 years from its publication. Since it was originally composed as a work of journalism for The New Yorker, it always had mass appeal in mind which allowed it to sustain a continuous legacy as a classic. It has high value in the classroom whether related to history or even just standard American literature. Although dealing with heavy themes, I think that Hiroshima is perfectly acceptable for use from the middle school level onwards. Educators can utilize it as a way to inspire students to consider both sides of the argument regarding the atomic bombs, while it also does a good job at educating young students about the final days of WWII for both Japan and America.