Commentary On The Book 'Unbroken'

Entry 1: Preface – Page 50

The preface of Unbroken takes place in the future, after Louie Zamperini has abandoned running, enlisted in the army, and crashed into the ocean with a plane full of American soldiers. In this two-page glimpse at the outcome of the events in Louie’s life, the most significant aspect is the resilience with which Louie carries out his actions on the raft. Although Louie’s crewmates have given up on life and accepted the defeat of being killed by a Japanese war plane, Louie does not allow the plane crash and starvation to demoralize him and cause him to forget the country for which he was fighting (xvii-xviii). This display of honorable character prompts me to wonder if I could ever have Louie’s courage when all hope seems lost. The starving and stranded Louie would rather dive into shark-infested waters than be taken without a fight (xviii). Louie’s resilience reminds that even in the direst circumstances, if one has not lost hope, survival is always a possibility.
After reading this section of the book, I was confused by the placing of the Graf
“The Flying Coffin” became “Super Man,” a shift paralleling the unfavorable and reckless life Louie had initially enveloped himself and the later change in character that strengthened him as an individual and possibly lengthened his lifespan (63). After viding Louie’s depiction as a valiant soldier in newspapers, I was getting the impression that author Laura Hillenbrand wanted the readers to believe that war was a heroic venture and dying for one’s country was a courageous deed (77). However, soon Hillenbrand altered my perception by describing planes that crashed due to accidents, harsh weather, and human error (82). These unnecessary deaths were comprised of the non-heroic deaths that were not shown in newspapers and, thus, held back a true understanding to civilians of the gruesome