“Hiroshima” by John Hersey Explores Unique Perspectives on the 1945 Bombing

On Aug. 6, 1945, Hiroshima, Japan was the victim of an atomic bomb dropped by the United States. Over 100,000 people were estimated dead, with thousands still remaining unnamed today. While it’s impossible to accurately account for every person’s experience in the bombing, “Hiroshima” by John Hersey does an incredible job of sharing six unique perspectives from the tragic event. 

Hersey explores the perspectives of Mrs. Hatsuyo Nakamura, Dr. Terufumi Sasaki, Reverend Kiyoshi Tanimoto, Miss Toshinki Sasaki, Dr. Masakazu Fujii, and Father Wilhelm Kleinsorge, each with a story vastly different from the next. From a mother of three children to a German priest, Hersey captures a variety of experiences to share with the world. 

The novel utilizes a unique structure, consisting of five parts reflecting each stage in the tragedy, from the moments before the bomb dropped to decades after the event. Each character’s story begins as an isolated perspective, but as the novel continues, some perspectives merge together and characters interact with each other through their own perspective. While this stylistic choice seemed confusing at first, it ultimately ended up making the novel that much more impactful and engaging, capturing an even more realistic telling of the events. 

Hersey’s portrayal of the events through the eyes of each character made the story incredibly unique; something that not a lot of authors are able to achieve. Originally written in 1946, just a year after the bombing, “Hiroshima” only included four chapters, telling the story through a few months after the bombing. In 1985, Hersey updated the novel, adding a fifth chapter, “The Aftermath,” adding details of the characters’ lives years after the explosion and going into detail about what each person did with their life.