Participants in war witness the capacity of humanity and, the survivors, are burdened with the inner struggles of wartime memories. Ooka Shohei’s 1951 major anti-war novel, Fires on the Plain, portrays the degradation of the surviving Japanese forces in the Philippines in the last year of Pacific War. Ichikawa Kon adapted the anti-war novel for film in 1959 and was consistent with the protagonist, Private Tamura, encounters while exploring the struggles between duty to the nation and duty to the self. However, the film diverges significantly from the novel through alterations in the Christian sub-plot, acts of cannibalism, and narrative style in portraying Private Tamura as a victim of war from originally depicted as burdened with guilt. The killing of Nagamatsu, by Private Tamura, illustrates the significance of the alteration on the characterization of the protagonist. The difference enables the film to sharpen the message that war is brutal and inhuman represented by the Japanese solders’ struggles for survival. The novel eludes that there is no relief from all the wartime memories and the burdens of guilt. Different social and historical contexts influence the production of the novel and the film in presenting the consequences of war from different standpoint. Ooka Shohei is a veteran from the Pacific War, who earned high acclaim in the literary genre of war and is among one of the many influential postwar Japanese writers. Ooka Shohei fictionalized his war experiences and used the battle for Leyte Island in the Philippines, in 1944, as a vehicle in the novel, Fires on the Plain. The battle for Leyte Island was an important step towards Philippines’ liberation from Japanese occupation. Japanese defeat in the Phili... ... middle of paper ... ...a seeks to preserve his humanity by returning to a civil society after witnessing the inhuman consequences of war only by acceptance from the Filipinos. Works Cited Fires On the Plain. Dir. Ichikawa Kon. Perf. Funakoshi Eiji. 1959. Hauser, William B. "Fires on the Plain: The Human Cost of the Pacific War ." Nolletti, Arthur. Reframing Japanese Cinema. Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 1992. 193-209. lofgren, Erik. "Christianity Excised: Ichikawa Kon's Fires on the Plain." Japanese Studies (2003): 265-275. Lofgren, Erik. "Ideological Transformation; reading Cannibalism in Fires on the Plain." Japan Furum (2003): 401-421. Ooka, Shohei and Morris Ivan. Fires on the Plain. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc, 1957. Stahl, David C. "The burdens of survival: Õoka Shõhei's writings on the Pacific War." United States: University of Hawii Press, 2003. 96-145.
The fire started by campers thirty miles north of Winthrop in Okanogan National Forest in the Chewuch river valley. The fire was only 25 acres in size when twenty one Forest Service firefighters were dispatched to the fire.
during the war. This novel is able to portray the overwhelming effects and power war has
John Dower's "Embracing Defeat" truly conveys the Japanese experience of American occupation from within by focusing on the social, cultural, and philosophical aspects of a country devastated by World War II. His capturing of the Japanese peoples' voice let us, as readers, empathize with those who had to start over in a "new nation."
Japanese immigration created the same apprehension and intolerance in the mind of the Americans as was in the case of Chinese migration to the U.S at the turn of the 19th century. They developed a fear of being overwhelmed by a people having distinct ethnicity, skin color and language that made them “inassimilable.” Hence they wanted the government to restrict Asian migration. Japan’s military victories over Russia and China reinforced this feeling that the Western world was facing what came to be known as “yellow peril”. This was reflected in the media, movies and in literature and journalism.4 Anti-Oriental public opinion gave way to several declarations and laws to restrict Japanese prosperity on American land. Despite the prejudice and ineligibility to obtain citizenship the ...
It has not only been a trend, but almost a necessity, for novelists who depict wars to depict humanity. Wars are largely, if not totally, alienating; it alienates humans from who they are—or at least whom they think they are—to fighting machines programmed exclusively for mass destruction and ruthless killing. Romantic love and strong sentiment seem to be incompatible with the nature of wars and are rarely found in wars as well. However, in Cold Mountain, Charles Frazier shows us the reshaping of humanity and personality of the male protagonist Inman during the war; he conveys an idea of rebirth in the war—a process of gradually discovering and finally adopting a new, more introspective self-identity; and this journey to rebirth is led by love, courage, and the desire for freedom.
War changes people’s lives; it changes the way people act, the way they think, and what they believe in. The people of Japan hold tradition and honor above everything else, this is something that did not change throughout the war. Though the world is changing right before the Japanese peoples’ eyes, they keep honor and tradition locked into their minds as well as their hearts. Frank Gibney’s statement, “There is no question that the Japanese people had participated wholeheartedly in the war effort.” is partly true as well as not. True in the sense that the Japanese did do certain things that may be counted as participating in the war, yet these acts were not done wholeheartedly.
Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line (1998) is a film that examines the Guadalcanal Battle of World War II, looking past the physical results of the violence, in order to uncover the deeper truths and ramifications of war. The film conveys themes and ideologies that are somewhat uncommon to war films, especially WW II films. In this dark, surreal, journey, Malick takes us inside the minds of soldiers experiencing this battle to capture a remote pacific island from the Japanese. We do not hear or see gruff, hardened soldiers, anxious to die for their country. In fact, there are no heroes in The Thin Red Line. There are only regular men, scared of fighting and scared of dying, who have been thrown into a situation that will forever change their lives. The fighting is not suspenseful or glorious just brutal. Using an ideological approach to the study of film, this paper will examine The Thin Red Line’s messages about the truths of war, and how it challenges our society’s stereotypical view of war as a valiant undertaking where brave men fighting for good battle the evil of the enemy. Consequently, the ideologies that are uncovered will then be used to look at The Thin Red Line as a war film, and how it fits and does not fit into the genre.
Faulkner, William. Barn Burning. First Vintage International ed. N.p.: Random House, 1950. Print. The Country.
Schrijvers, Peter. Bloody Pacific: American Soldiers at War with Japan. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
...ile the war is still happening. The lack of freedom and human rights can cause people to have a sad life. Their identity, personality, and dignity will be vanish after their freedom and human right are taking away. This is a action which shows America’s inhuman ideas. It is understandable that war prison should be put into jail and take away their rights; but Japanese-American citizen have nothing to do with the war. American chooses to treat Jap-American citizen as a war prisoner, then it is not fair to them because they have rights to stay whatever side they choose and they can choose what ever region they want. Therefore, Otasuka’s novel telling the readers a lesson of how important it is for people to have their rights and freedom with them. People should cherish these two things; if not, they will going to regret it.
War is cruel. The Vietnam War, which lasted for 21 years from 1954 to 1975, was a horrific and tragic event in human history. The Second World War was as frightening and tragic even though it lasted for only 6 years from 1939 to 1945 comparing with the longer-lasting war in Vietnam. During both wars, thousands of millions of soldiers and civilians had been killed. Especially during the Second World War, numerous innocent people were sent into concentration camps, or some places as internment camps for no specific reasons told. Some of these people came out sound after the war, but others were never heard of again. After both wars, people that were alive experienced not only the physical damages, but also the psychic trauma by seeing the deaths and injuries of family members, friends or even just strangers. In the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” by Bao Ninh about the Vietnam War, and the documentary film Barbed Wire and Mandolins directed by Nicola Zavaglia with a background of the Second World War, they both explore and convey the trauma of war. However, the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” is more effective in conveying the trauma of war than the film Barbed Wire and Mandolins because of its well-developed plot with well-illustrated details, and its ability to raise emotional responses from its readers.
When the war breaks out, this tranquil little town seems like the last place on earth that could produce a team of vicious, violent soldiers. Soon we see Jim thrown into a completely contrasting `world', full of violence and fighting, and the strong dissimilarity between his hometown and this new war-stricken country is emphasised. The fact that the original setting is so diversely opposite to that if the war setting, the harsh reality of the horror of war is demonstrated.
Marston, Daniel. The Pacific War Companion From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima. Oxford: Osprey, 2007. .
Cooke, Haruko Taya. & Cook, Theodore F. Japan at War: An Oral History. New York: The New
Gamble, Adam, and Takesato Watanabe. A Public Betrayed: An inside Look at Japanese Media Atrocities and Their Warnings to the West. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Pub., 2004. Print.