Study Help
Practice Projects
1. Do research on the decision to drop the atomic bomb. You can find Web sites with many official documents that explain the thinking of the time. Present arguments both pro and con.
2. Pretend you are one of the survivors of the bombing. Write ten journal entries and explain what you are seeing and feeling at strategic points of the bombing.
3. If you were Mr. Tanimoto and you were writing letters to your friend in America, the Reverend Mr. Marvin Green, what would you tell him in the aftermath of the bombing? Write five letters on various days that explain what you are seeing and feeling.
4. Research the effects of radiation poisoning. How do the cold, hard facts compare with what you have read about the survivors in the novel?
5. Where do you see glimpses of Hersey's attitude toward the Japanese in his book? How would American readers have reacted to his viewpoint in 1946? Today?
6. Make a collage of August 6, 1945. Explain why you chose the pictures used to make the collage.
7. If someone were to add a sixth chapter to this book in 2045, what would it be about? Be sure that your content is consistent with Hersey's thinking and structure.
8. Use pictures from this event to illustrate a graphic/technology presentation of what the book is about.
9. Create a Web site about the book using Hersey's background, a map, photographs from the time, and your reaction. Design pages to inform and involve your audience, and invite readers to post their thoughts and responses to the book.
10. Prepare an interview with friends playing the roles of the six survivors. Ask for their impressions of the experience (using the book to help you). Conduct the interview in person or on videotape.