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War Memoir Project: The Green Glass Sea By Ellen Klages

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War Memoir Project Navtej Kathuria 4/6/17 QELASS8 For the War Memoir Project, I have read the book: The Green Glass Sea written by Ellen Klages, which presents the events of the construction of the atomic bomb (Manhattan Project) during World War II through a work of fiction. When considering the genre of literature known as “war memoirs,” a fictional novel resembles an abstract concept and delivers the story through a nontraditional style of writing. This book is not as detailed as history textbooks are, but with prior knowledge, the book provides a massive amount of insight into the beliefs of the scientists during the construction of the atomic bomb. The outcome of historical conflict, is always told by the victor and most often, the …show more content…

Rarely is there a record where a story is interwoven into the diary/journal and the historical importance, is considered a secondary priority. In this book, having had some prior knowledge of the war, the information available in the text is provided in a more evasive manner which forces the reader to analyze it at a more thoughtful level. The author ties a story about two girls who are children of scientists into an elaborate novel that explains the struggle of the scientists in the process of completing the Manhattan Project and supposedly ending the war. The perspective of the United States citizen’s, as explained in history textbooks, differed greatly from that of the scientists. The scientists were extremely impressed and astounded by the scientific advancement and excited to be the first intellectuals to ever split an atom open. The scientists never believed, even in their wildest dreams, that the bomb would be used- its presence in the United States would hopefully radiate fear and cause the Japanese to retreat. “Oh god Suze. We would never want to use this. We want the war to end as soon as possible.” (p.96) When the American public came to learn of, they had no hesitation supporting the government’s actions to use the bombs and destroy the most populous cities in Japan: Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Against the will of the

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