Unbroken Essay

Britney Chungag
Tobias
WBHS American Literature Summer Reading 2015 Assignment #2
17th August 2015

Survivor

Unbroken is the tale of Louis Silvie "Louie" Zamperini a former American war prisoner survivor. Unbroken shows how Zamperini survived and stayed strong in his darkest hours in the Japanese concentration camps of World War II. Unbroken is a very spiritual book that proves that not giving up, staying strong, and being motivated will help you in life. Louie Zamperini was able to overcome a lot of horrible experiences by keeping a positive spirit and mind (set). The point of my essay is that hanging onto bravery and remaining strong all the while being in the belly of the beast will help you survive.

They say behind every strong man is

a stronger woman; in this case behind Louis Zamperini was his family. “They, like the Zamperinis, refused to conclude that their boy was dead (4.21.25).” Louie’s family never gave up on Louie coming home. Even after everyone gave up on him and stopped searching. Louie’s family is where Louie not only got his strength, but some of his motivation to survive in the Japanese concentration camp. “Somewhere in those jagged days, a fierce conviction came over Louise. She was absolutely certain that her son was alive. (3.13.49)” Louise Zamperini, Louie’s mother, never gave up hope that Louie was alive. Others might consider that not being able to except the facts. Personally, that is strength.
Zamperini was strong no doubt about that. He was strong physically and mentally. Zamperini had the option of going home while he was a POW. All he had to do was read a propaganda script the Japanese wrote. Japan wanted to use him to lower America. “Without dignity, identity is erased. In its absence, men are defined not by themselves, but by their captors and the circumstances in which they are forced to live (Page 183)”. Zamperini refused and was put back in the concentration camp. Standing up for what is right will cost you though. As if his life at that point couldn’t get any worse, he became a bigger target at the concentration camp. Often as POW your dignity and pride is reduce to nothing. Louie Zamperini was different on the other hand, he gained dignity by not compromising his values. Your family has a lot to do with your identity; they contribute to your weakness and strengths. Your likes and dislikes, your prejudices. As much as your family has to do with your identity and how you handled things, so does your history.
Louie’s experiences when he was younger in a way it helped prepare him for what he was going to experience in the Japanese concentration camps.

"Louie was a marked boy. Bullies, drawn by his oddity and hoping to goad him into uttering Italian curses, pelted him with rocks, taunted him, punched him, and kicked him." Louie experienced brutality at a young age though not as harsh as in the concentration camps, it did helped him. Louie Zamperini could most defiantly take a punch. This came in handy when Louie had to deal with beating every day, especially from the head guard The Bird. It wasn’t only the group beatings that helped Louie, but also Louie’s past life of crime. “The same attributes that had made [Louie] the boy terror of Torrance were keeping him alive in the greatest struggle of his life (3.14.34).” Louie was a juvenile delinquent. He was smoker at five and a drinker at eight. He stole any and everything from local business and neighborhoods. His family was convinced that he was headed for a life of crime. Louie did however proved everyone wrong by changing his ways when he reached high school. When in the concentration camps Louie used some tricks from the past. Not only to survive, but to also keep entertained. “Confident that he was clever, resourceful, and bold enough to escape any predicament, he was almost incapable of discouragement. When history carried him into war, this resilient optimism would define him (Page 6-7)”. He stole food from the concentration

camp kitchen. Gave a prison guard bad haircuts in order to keep his sense of humor alive. “The boldest captives would walk up to the guards, look straight at them, and speak in English, using a querying tone”. This is just a small act of rebellion that Prisoners of Wars (POWs) used because a good percentage of the Japanese guards did not understand English. Louie Zamperini was even able to cheat death. As a teen Louie practiced how long he could hold his breath under water. Zamperini later used that skill when the Japanese bombed the lifeboat Zamperini was on with two other crew members. When in troubling situations we sometimes don’t know what to do, and can no longer see a clear road ahead of us. You just need to remember that no situation is permeant though it seems impossible now if you can just handle it for a little longer you will make it through it.
You are only as stronger as the people who you have in your corner; people can either build you up or tear you down.

“Come on Mac. Shut up”. . They spent forty-seven days lost at sea. It wasn’t easy, and Mac’s constant negative energy was not helping. Survival is not always based on the necessities of life. It has just as much to do with a positive spirt and mind set. “Louie and Phil's hope displaced their fear and inspired them to work toward their survival, and each success renewed their physical and emotional vigor. Mac's resignation seemed to paralyze him and the less he participated in their efforts to survive, the more he slipped. Though he did the least, as the days passed, it was he who faded the most. Louie and Phil's optimism, and Mac's hopelessness, were becoming self-fulfilling”. As humans we are often our worst enemies, and fill ourselves up with so much negative self-talk instead of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Mac was always saying how they were going to die at sea, and that they wouldn’t make it. In emergency situations everyone will either stick together and try to remain positive or fall apart. It’s about loyalty and trust. “We beat them by making it to the end”. The best way to prove others wrong to be tenacious. Pete Zamperini once said ‘A moment of pain is worth a lifetime of glory (Page 34)’. In hard situations people often give up and stop trying. However if chosen to push through and continue despite the bad circumstances the reward

in the end is worth everything that has happened. You cannot have glory before pain, it is the exact opposite. It takes a lot to make it in a tough situation. First comes the pain then the reward.