When discussing events in history, we often ask ourselves: how has it impacted our country as a whole? This question also leads us to inquire about the necessity of our country's actions, and even their ethical standing. It's universally believed that throughout history, particular movements were essential and others were merely an impulsive course of action. In John Hersey's novel Hiroshima, readers are given a vivid depiction of the horrifying aftermath that many citizens of Hiroshima were subjected to after the atomic bomb was dropped. Such a tragic event in history is bound to be analyzed and portrayed in various different ways, but again, we must ask ourselves: was the decision to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki ethical, legal according to international law, or even necessary? After reading this novel and extensively researching the topic, readers should believe that the decision to drop the atomic bomb was unethical, illegal according to international law, and indisputably unnecessary.
The slaughtering of over 250,000 people, in my opinion, can never be argued to be ethical, no matter what the purpose for action is. An excerpt from Hersey's novel gives the melancholy perspective of one of the six survivors he depicts in the novel. Immediately after the dropping of the atomic bomb takes place, he writes, "From the mound, Mr. Tanimoto saw an astonishing panorama. Not just a patch of Koi, as he had expected, but as much of Hiroshima as he could see through the clouded air was giving off a thick, dreadful miasma. Clumps of smoke, near and far, had begun to push up through the general dust. [ ] Houses nearby were burning" (Hersey 18). This illustration of Mr. Tanimoto's new vision of his once safe city is a clear example of what many real-life Japanese citizens endured during the bombings. Another graphic portrayal of those affected from the bombings is where Hersey writes about Dr.