John Hersey’s Hiroshima from 1946 pushes aside the emotional trauma from the survivors in favour of highlighting the physical ones. This may or may not have been done on purpose. I believe this was a purposeful choice on the part of the writer, so that the audience was left to imagine and sympathize with the victims of Hiroshima. What effect did this have on the book and how do peoples opinions change depending on what they are shown? 

The Historical significance of Hiroshima is one of the most influential themes throughout the book. Reading the beginning of this book gives us a sense of what the people were feeling at the time. Reading the final chapter where John Hersey comes back to the people impacted by the bomb brings the long term historical significance back into our minds. He does this by creating the book with just enough direct facts that they stick in our minds. 

Is the emotional aspect of Hiroshima overshadowed by the physical traumas? I have to say yes. The emotional parts are much less focused upon. In chapter three there is a most graphic description. “He reached down and took a woman by the hands, but her skin slipped off in huge, glove-like pieces.” The most graphic descriptions bring us directly to Hiroshima after the bomb was dropped. 

These physical ailments are much more direct. The emotional toll on the citizens of Hiroshima was most likely as long lasting as the radiation poisoning inflicted upon them. This can not be described in words. John Hersey made a direct choice to put the emotional feeling into the readers mind, left up for interpretation. This means that people who want to take the book into a deeper plane of the imagination are able to, and people who want to leave Hiroshima as a surface level interpretation aren’t forced to think about what they can’t handle. This was incredibly effective as we can see by the masses of the western world that have read Hiroshima and remember its contents. 

How did Hiroshima by John Hersey change the outlook of US citizens on the bomb? The outlook of US citizens was changed as soon as the book came out. The USA saw the atomic bomb as a feat of American ingenuity and a proud moment. The US had ended the war in one foul swoop. The citizens, and most definitely the scientists, had no idea what the total impact of the bomb would be. John Hersey’s Hiroshima completely ruined that idea as soon as it came out. The bomb was humans pushing past where they had ever gone before. This was a treacherous thing. The possibility that humans could turn other humans into permanent shadows of what they once were wasn’t something the US citizens had considered. 

In conclusion, John Hersey’s Hiroshima pushes aside the emotional trauma from the survivors in favour of highlighting the physical ones. This can be seen in the diction chosen and the simplicity of the writing style. This is not a negative thing, as it leaves the depth of feel up to the reader. John Hersey wrote this book for a reason and everyone who has read it, has read it with a similar reason. Hiroshima changed the opinions of a nation.