Hersey’s new journalism style is the reason “Hiroshima” is so powerful.

The last few weeks my class has been reading Hiroshima by John Hersey.

Personally I love to read, and I’ve read many types of books. Despite this, I’ve never read anything like Hiroshima. I found Hersey’s style very unique, it’s neither solely factual or imaginative. This book is a prime example of “the in between”. Hiroshima is an amazing illustration of new journalism.

New Journalism: journalism that features the author's subjective responses to people and events and that often includes fictional techniques meant to illuminate and dramatize those responses. – Miriam Webster Dictionary.

John Hersey, unlike many American journalists of the time, immersed himself into his work. As pointed out by Eric Schlosser in this video, Hersey accomplished unique work by leaving his comfort zone.

 

By experiencing the subject of his book, he made personal connections. Providing him with personal stories and perspectives. Additionally Hersey was very passionate about fiction literature, and had written fictional books. All of these factors contributed to the new journalism evident in Hiroshima.

Overall Hersey combines traditional journalism and techniques used in fiction writing. An article by Craille Maguire Gillies, does a great job of highlighting specific quotes that embody those combinations. 

My favourite of these is this quote,

This moment is very emotional and carries a lot of weight.

Hersey’s method of mixing fact and the character’s reactions, creates many moving moments such as this one. Here are some other similar moments that really resonated with me…


Although these quotes don’t prompt emotion by using many fancy descriptions, comparisons or metaphors, it still is powerful. Hersey simply describes the scene, what creates the power is the characters dialogue. The added perspective allows readers to sympathize and understand the subject. Hersey does his best to give the survivors a voice, rather then adding extra background knowledge.


Not only did Hersey’s style create inffluential moments, his new journalism approach effected multiple themes found in
Hiroshima.


 

The theme I think is most prevalent throughout the book is survival and adaptation. I think the method in which Hersey wrote Hiroshima greatly impacted these themes. If he hadn’t chosen to depict specific survival stories and include fiction styles, He wouldn’t have written “The Aftermath.” The Final portion of Hiroshima featuring the survivors 40 years later, Arguably the most important part of the book. Without “The Aftermath” readers cannot understand the most significant consequence of the bombing, it’s long lasting effect.

Not only would readers be unaware of the bomb’s massive influence on the world. Without Hersey’s storylines, it’s likely Hiroshima wouldn’t gain much sympathy or understanding.


Overall The style Hersey chose, is what made his book so powerful. He steered clear of long statistics and focused on providing information through a story. If Hiroshima had too many numbers, it would seem boring or detached. If it had too many descriptions and comparisons, it would’ve been deemed unreliable. I truly doubt this book would’ve been as influential and historically significant without it’s specific style. Hiroshima, whether you liked it or not, is a story that will always be powerful.

 

 

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