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Unbroken, By Laura Hillenbrand: Character Analysis

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When Louie Zamperini finally returned home from his journey as a bombardier, castaway, and POW, he was asked of his experiences. Louie replied, “If I knew I had to go through those experiences again… I’d kill myself” (233). Ever since he was a young boy, Louie was resilient and determined, whether it was stealing from the local bakery or becoming a track star. During his time as a captive in Japanese POW camps, he would depend on these traits to survive. In Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken, the theme people often reveal their true natures in their darkest moments is illustrated through the use of character. In many cases, people show their true colors when exposed to hardship and suffering. During his time as a POW, living under the harsh …show more content…

The Bird, Mutsuhiro Watanabe, took his pain and anger out on Louie, who he resented for his accomplishments. Watanabe was from a family of high ranking military personnel, and expected to become a prominent soldier, but he was rejected. Hillenbrand explains, “His failure derailed him, leaving him feeling disgraced, infuriated, and bitterly jealous of officers” (173). The Bird saw Louie as everything he was not; a strong willed, successful Olympian, and a high ranking POW. Of course, from the minute he discovered him, “The corporal was fixated on Louie, hunting the man he would call ‘number one prisoner,” (179). The Bird’s jealousy of Louie’s accomplishments coupled with his own failures, generated a vigorous hate and determination to break Louie’s will. Unsurprisingly, at Omori POW camp, Mutsuhiro Watanabe became notorious for his degradation and abuse, including emotional torture. Once, The Bird forced a POW to “stand all night saluting a flagpole, shouting the Japanese word for ‘Salute!’ - Keirei! - leaving the man weeping and out of his mind” (174). Corporal Watanabe was a broken man. Often after he harassed a prisoner he collapsed in regret. Watanabe was unpredictable and malicious. As can be seen, after his failure to become an officer, Mutsuhiro, ‘The Bird’ Watanabe, fell apart. Ashamed, he became a violent maniac, praying on and torturing Louie, jealous of his

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Directly after returning home, Louie seeked revenge on his most brutal captor, the Bird. “Louie had found a quest to replace his lost Olympics. He was going to kill the bird” (Hillenbrand 361). Louie become fixated on returning to Japan and became even more violent. This all changed when he began serving God and became a new man.

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“Dignity is as essential to human life as water, food, and oxygen. The stubborn retention of it, even in the face of extreme physical hardship, can hold a man 's soul in his body long past the point when the body should have surrendered it” (Hillenbrand 189). In the novel Unbroken, written by Laura Hillenbrand, Louis “Louie” Zamperini goes through several life-threatening experiences. After being a troublemaker as a child, and an Olympic athlete, Louie straps up his boots and becomes a bombardier for the Army Air Corps. After a traumatizing crash and a forty-six day survival at sea, Louie is taken captive by Japanese officials.

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The famous scientist, Albert Einstein, once said, “Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character”. In Laura Hillenbrand’s book Unbroken, Louie demonstrates the importance of these words with his confident personality. Through fighting in the war, getting stranded at sea, and being tortured in prison camps, Louie still remained strong and hopeful. If it wasn’t for his confident personality, he may not have made it through these trials. A delinquent from a young age, if Louis put his mind to something, he couldn’t be stopped.

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This quote symbolizes the wildness and fear stimulated by the Bird and how extreme the anxiety is that Louie has inherited. Not only was the Bird controlling Louie’s physical actions, he was getting inside his head: “At night, the Bird stalked his dreams, screeching, seething, his belt buckle flying at Louie’s skull. In the dreams, the smothered rage in Louie would overwhelm him, and he’d find himself on top of his monster, his hands on the corporal’s neck strangling the life from him,” (Hillenbrand 271). This quote illustrates that when a fear or

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One of the top ranking staffs, known by the POWs, was the Bird. He would always chase and seek Louie out to beat him, to humiliate him. No matter how many times he tried to blend in, he couldn’t escape. Even after he escaped, the Bird still haunted him, including in his dreams. “Next!

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Louie Zamperini and Mutsuhiro “The Bird” Watanabe: Character Comparison Like snowflakes, all people are extremely unique. Therefore, it can be assumed that we all have a different outlook on the world and will handle what the universe throws at us in our own way. In the young adult novel, Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand conveys this theme, war and trauma can have profound and varied effects on different people experiencing it in a similar way. She does this by showing the reader extremes at opposite ends of the spectrum: Louie Zamperini and Mutsuhiro Watanabe.

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Some would say being abused mentally, physically and objectified daily would eventually break a person, but not for Louie Zamperini and Miné Okubo. In the novel, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Louie's military plane crashes and then is taken in by the Japanese after afloat at sea for months. Louie is beaten, starved and mentally abused while trapped in three different Japanese POW camps. In the article, “The Life of Miné Okubo” by Expeditionary Learning, Miné, an American citizen was forced into a Japanese internment camp inside the U.S because she had Japanese heritage. Louie and Miné were treated as invisible through dehumanization and isolation while inside the camps.

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Everyone got warmer”(235). Despite knowing the severe beating he could endure by the Japanese, Louie risked his own well-being to provide a basic comfort to his fellow soldiers. Tragically, the Japanese soldiers brutally attacked Louie for his ingenuity. Louie Zamperini’s intelligence and thoughtfulness

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The acts that the Bird did to the POWs shows that he wanted to haunt them in their dreams and drive them to the point of insanity: “Watanabe combined beatings with acts meant to batter men’s psych’s” (243). By saying this, Hillenbrand gives readers a picture of a sadistic man who received some type of enjoyment by terrifying the

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The Japanese prison guards try to strip Louie of his dignity in many ways, most commonly, physical abuse. A common torture method used in the POW camps was putting a 100 pound wooden beam on the prisoners shoulders in attention and standing up until you collapse. A beating would soon follow if the prisoner lowers the beam. When the Bird had coerced Louie to this task, Louie grimaced, knowing that it would be a painful day.

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The POWs tried resisting as much as they could. Something they would do was steal and sometimes try to stand up against the guards, although this would come with the cost of them being beaten. The bird was one of the guards that would beat them if they dared to move or place their hands to cover their faces. So instead of moving, they took it, taking every strength in their body to not mess up and move. Some of the prisoners paid them back by stealing.

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“To persevere, I think, is important for everybody. Don’t give up, don’t give in. There’s always an answer to everything”-Louie Zamperini. This man, Louie Zamperini was a bombardier for the US in World War II. He and his crew were shot down and forced to survive at sea for forty six days.

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Migrating to a new country, being stranded at sea, or surviving an abusive Prisoner of War (“POW”) camp can be daunting. Even though these difficult situations tend to weaken you, the main characters Ha (from Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai) and Louie Zamperini (from Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand) grew stronger through challenges. At first, both characters faced challenges that seemed impossible to overcome. Yet, Ha and Louie learned to adapt to situations, stand up for themselves, and remain hopeful. Ultimately, they both developed into braver, more resilient, and confident individuals.

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Unbroken is the best word that can be used to describe Louie Zamperini. In the book Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, there are three other adjectives that can be used to describe Louie Zamperini, the main character. These adjectives are determined, compassionate, and defiant. These attributes can be proven through not only Louie’s actions, but his thoughts as well. These are the three different characteristics of Louie.

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