Literary Analysis #1

Topics and Events
1. When Men Must Live is a personal recollection of the tributes, tragedies, and triumphs that occurred during James T. Murphy's tour of duty as a radio operator in the U.S. Army Air Corps and would become a Japanese POW in the Phillippine Islands during World War II and also on how he got through it all alive and sane(a). It's basically a detailed story of his personal experiences of the war and the life of a prisoner and how it would change him forever, a central theme is man's own inhumanity to man (b).

2.The author wrote  about his personal experiences as a POW because it was such a huge and traumatic event in his life that he had to tell the world about it. Not many people could live to tell the tale of being a prisoner of war, but he is one of the few and is nearly proud of how he survived.

3. At first I chose this book because my dad read it and I asked if we had any good non-fiction books around the house and he said it was a really good book. My initial interest for the book came to me when I saw that it was the authors actual experiences and I was curious of how it was for him personally. Books on wars especially those written by those who were there always interest me because here is a perfect non-biased perspective that isn't coming from a historian making assumptions. It contains real true feelings and experiences, and that is what kept me interested once I started reading.

4. The book is very realistic. Throughout the story there are real life political and military decisions explained and how they affected the war. The horrific events that he endured throughout the story are real events that happened all too often, but aren't very well documented because of how high the death rate was among prisoners. A real personal recollection of these true events is hard to find. I actually did make some connections between the events in the book and those that are still happening today. Not much has changed in the treatment of POWs since WWII and even though there isn't a world war going on right now, there is still torture of those captured in battle and its as gruesome as ever. Humanity hasn't changed in its cruel treatment of itself even after the harsh lessons of war.

People
1. He told his story with a definite view of him versus the world, and the world being the Japanese. His descriptions of them and the things they did to them really characterized them as sub human and really painted the picture of inhumanity. His tone is descriptive as if he isn't leaving out any details. He tells the story as it is without exaggerating, every word counts. What this says about the author is that he isn't writing his story as a "tall tale" to make it more interesting, but uses accurate wording to make the story seem as amazing as it is, just with what really happened.

2. James Murphy: As a new recruit he was fairly average looking. Average height and muscle size with dark hair and just had a happy look to him. Near the end of the story and his imprisonment he was very skinny and sickly looking due to lack of food and water and the ordeal of the Bataan Death March. He was excited to join the military in anticipation of the U.S. joining in on WWII in 1939 when he left for training. Patriotically he joined with full intent of defending the country he loved. As the war went on though he began to see the futility of it all. If he was a fictional character, I would definitely use indirect characterization because it would be fairly easy to figure him out by his actions.
     Kenneth O'Donnell: Short and stocky he definitely had a Napoleon complex. He always saw challenges as him versus the world and that he always had to prove himself. He joined as soon as he could after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He saw it as an attack on him personally and he knew he had to get his revenge. His aggressive attitude would get him captured and sent to the same camp as Murphy and they would become friends trying to survive together. He would be another character perfect for indirect characterization.

3. The two would be very interesting to write about because they compliment each other with Murphy as a real life example of Captain America and Kenneth being a combination of Rambo and GI Joe.

Style
1. Although it was a very personal story, it was written very journalisticly. He was simply reporting his experiences and true feelings to paint the picture of what truly happened and that is what makes the book so interesting. Its like a history book, only written by those who were really there.

2. The descriptions of setting and emotion are fairly lengthy but it doesn't take away from the story making it sound exaggerated. The author focuses more on action than dialogue. The story is more about his own personal experiences and thoughts so there isn't a whole lot of conversation because its about his personal struggle. This gives the effect that he isn't so much writing to just tell the story, but to give his own personal insight on it all.

3. The author uses simple descriptive words so imagery is easy to obtain. One example is when he managed to steal an apricot like fruit and he described it so simply, but you could still feel just how much it meant to him. He didn't have to use complicated and flowery words to describe the simple satisfaction he got from it, even though it was probably just short of a miracle for him. Another is when he was describing the agony of the Death March and of all the words he could have used, he used simpler ones that would need their full definition to describe what he felt.

4. The authors attitude toward the subject and plot of the story was analytical. It was as if he understood why the things that happened, happened. He recognized everyone as their own person. One example is when a guard had the full opportunity to shoot him for leaving his group but didn't and he gave his hypothesis on why. His attitude toward the audience is almost like he is writing to his kids. It was as if he was writing to say "Here's the story of my life." and that he was providing wisdom.

5. The book includes many historical documents and pictures of the actual people that were there to give the audience more of a background and to connect more with the characters. Also at the beginning of each chapter there is a famous quote that correlates well with the story. One by the Secretary of War under the Franklin Roosevelt Administration, "There comes a time when men must die..." this would become the title on the front cover with "die" replaced with "live".. It also makes the book more informative and interesting.

Enduring Memory
My lasting memory is a little cliché but it is a theme that is still relevant today and that is man's inhumanity to man. This happens in all kinds of forms and degrees today around the world. From genocide to bullying. An example of this is actually one of the main events of the book. The POWs were forced to march from camp to camp with little food and water. Most of Murphy's friends would die not by the hands of the enemies, but by one of the most preventable causes: exhaustion and neglect. The march reduced the strongest of men to mere children because of the conditions. It makes me feel fortunate to live in the time and place that I do now. Another is the great pleasure he got from the simplest of things. In one passage he describes his true happiness when he found a guava tree and picked a bunch of fruit. Even at gunpoint he still picked them. Threatened with death he still did the things that brought him hope and happiness even in the darkest of times. This too makes me feel fortunate for all the things I have and these two events in the book I will remember for a long time because of how fundamental they are to us as people. The simplest things are what make us who we are and even under the worst circumstances, we can still come out on top.