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Imagine living in an environment with people so alien and with no hope of understanding it. These strange people, or “other,” are considered the enemy of everything you believe in. You want to escape and be true to yourself and your beliefs. This background is the setting of Thomas Keneally’s new historical novel Shame and the Captives, which takes place in Australia during World War II in a prisoner-of-war camp where thousands of Italian and Japanese prisoners are held. The novel is based on a 1944 prison escape in New South Wales where over one thousand Japanese POWs attempted to escape, which was the largest prison uprising in World War II. Keneally (Schindler’s List) returns to World War II, although this time on the opposite side. (Schindler’s List dealt with the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust, whereas Shame and the Captives focuses on the Axis prisoners fighting with Nazi Germany). There is a culture clash on both sides. For example, the young Australian woman Alice Herman is kind toward an Italian prisoner named Giancarlo, hoping that her benevolence will influence the treatment of her husband, who is a Nazi prisoner. The officials running the prison camp at Gawell take the same approach toward the prisoners. However, the Japanese prisoners have no place for this kindness. Aliens in Western culture, to them, being captured in battle are a disgrace to their honor. Their shame can only be purged by death. This is the background for the uprising, which has far-reaching effects on the citizens surrounding them in the nearby town. Shame and the Captives is very descriptive and does not focus much on dialogue. Nevertheless, Keneally creates believable characters. In addition to Alice Herman, there are the Japanese prisoners Tengan, a young fighter pilot, and Aoki, a battle-hardened infantry sergeant. Keneally does not condone Japanese atrocities committed during the war. It is interesting how the Allies’ efforts to be compassionate toward their Japanese prisoners triggered a cultural backlash they never expected. As a historical novel, Shame and the Captives is an excellent read with much background about the Japanese approach to war in World War II. TS |
CategoriesAuthorTom Schmidt lives in Prescott Valley, AZ. Archives
October 2018
CategoriesArchives
October 2018
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