Louis Zamperini

Zamperini was an incredible runner; managing to break and hold many high school level records.https://www.runnersworld.com/races-places/a20794499/louis-zamperini-subject-of-unbroken-dies-at-97/“Heroes arrive when we need them most. They define us and point us in a direction. To turn our sights at this moment toward an idea of America that is heroic does, admittedly, require an act of will” (Granger). David Granger’s essay “Boy, Do We Need a Hero” argues that there has been an absence of worthy heroes in recent times and that America needs a hero to lead it into a new age of greatness. Granger stresses the that idea that heroes are “people who met their moment and sometimes left us speechless at what a human being is capable of” (Granger). This leads to the idea that it does not take a superhero to perform heroic actions. Real life heroes have a variety of “heroic” characteristics. This is because everyone has his own definition of what these characteristics are. Heroism is exemplified in everyday people all around the world. A young man enlisting in the military during war time, a pastor who preaches in a rough part of town, and a teenager standing up for her friends all show traits of true everyday heroism. None of these people have a superpower, but their individual character traits set them apart from others and allow them to be deemed as heroic. The courage that they possess to do what they think is right regardless of what others believe, and the immense kindness they outwardly project to everyone shows their philanthropic natures. Many of these everyday heroes portray not only these characteristics but a countless number of others. An inspirational and worthy hero is a person who demonstrates incredible courage regardless of his situation, and who demonstrates kindness to others without regard for what that person has done for him.

Zamperini is standing with one of his comrades who was interned at a POW camp with him.https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/04/arts/louis-zamperini-olympian-war-survivor-unbroken-dies.htmlNo one expected the town’s troubled teen to develop into a record-breaking runner and extraordinary war veteran. Zamperini was born on January 26, 1917 in New York but shortly moved to Torrance, California. There, due to his Italian background and restricted vocabulary, he faced bullying and ridicule. Zamperini responded by resorting to petty theft and violence in order to gain attention from others. Phil, Louis’ brother, convinced Zamperini to try to siphon his energy into a sport in order to reform him. Zamperini dragged his heels initially, but soon found his love for running. He became an incredible miler, setting a host of high-school level records that would stand for many years. Zamperini ran at the University of Southern California after graduating from Torrance High and eventually went on to run the 5,000 meter race in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He unfortunately was not able to run in the next Olympic Games due to WW2. Zamperini enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces as a bombardier. He was stationed in Hawaii and was involved in many air raids on Japanese controlled islands in the Pacific. On May 27, 1943, while engaging in a search and rescue mission themselves, Zamperini’s plane went down into the ocean due to engine failure. Almost the entirety of the plane’s crew was killed on impact except for Zamperini and two of his comrades, Russell Allen “Phil” Phillips and Francis “Mac” McNamara. The survivors then floated for days surviving on birds and small fish and defending themselves from starvation, dehydration, sharks, and their own sanities. After a few weeks floating at sea McNamara passed. Forty-seven days after the crash of their plane, Zamperini and Phillips were found. Unfortunately, the Japanese found them before the Americans. While captured, Zamperini was passed around from prison camp to prison camp, tortured all the way. A specific guard, Mutsuhiro Watanabe who was commonly referred to as the Bird, made it his personal goal to torment Zamperini specifically out of jealousy or pure hatred. Zamperini, along with a large host of other POWs, was freed after the war’s conclusion following the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Zamperini went on to find a religious awakening that affected his life positively in every way possible. Zamperini unfortunately died on July 2, 2014 at the ripe old age of 97. Ultimately, Louis Zamperini embodied an inspirational hero not only because of his survival as a POW, but also due to his incredible courage throughout the war; his actions, both during and after the war, embodied otherworldly kindness that also deemed Zamperini an inspirational hero.

Zamperini is standing by the machine gun of a plane that was built to resemble the Green Hornet.https://news.usc.edu/1836/the-great-zamperini/Zamperini’s courage to defy the Japanese the satisfaction of dehumanizing him and by silently rebelling against them exemplified his title of a worthy hero. He was bedevilled by a particular guard, Mutsuhiro Watanabe, who made it his personal goal to break Zamperini’s will and sense of self-worth. Watanabe would take every possible chance to beat and dehumanize Zamperini. However, Zamperini would try his hardest to prevent the Bird from getting satisfaction from beating him: “Louie took his beatings with as much defiance as ever, provoking the Bird to ever more violent attacks. Once again in his tormentor’s clutches, Louie descended into a state of profound stress” (Hillenbrand). The Bird was said to be one of the most sadistic and brutal guards by most POWs. After the war, he was listed third on the list of wanted war criminals from Japan. His personal grudge against Zamperini caused for constant torment that made Zamperini’s life a living hell. The reason for this grudge was a mix of jealousy and hate. Watanabe was jealous of Zamperini’s success in life and hated the fact that the POW still believed in his worth as a person. Due to this, Watanabe made it his job to whittle down what little self-worth Zamperini had until it was nonexistent. Zamperini made it his personal job to prevent Watanabe from gaining satisfaction from beating him. Many times he “took his beatings with as much defiance” as he could possibly muster. This would in turn lead to more violent beatings and a larger weakening of his already brittle body. This bravery to stand up to his captors demonstrated his incredible courage. During his time as a POW, Louis and his comrades would find small ways to rebel against the Japanese. Even with the knowledge of extreme punishment they would face if caught, the POWs still rebelled: “This time I didn’t hesitate to steal food from the Japanese at every opportunity. Using an old trick learned from the Royal Scots at Omori, I sharpened one end of a short bamboo stick to form a natural funnel that, once stuck into any rough mesh bag of grain, siphoned out the contents.” (Zamperini, Rensin). Prisoners at a POW camp were forced to live and work in terrible conditions. The Japanese would regularly beat the men for simple and ridiculous infractions. Due to miniscule acts being treated as if they were incredibly large, medium sized crimes such as theft were answered with incredibly harsh consequences. However, many POWS still carried on with their thieving. They did this to silently rebel against the Japanese. It didn’t matter to the men how little they stole, and sometimes they had no need for what they were stealing. It was the action of theft which allowed the men to carry on. Thousands of POWs died during the war due to easily preventable illnesses and malnutrition due to subpar medical care and not enough food. In order to prevent this, men would steal food and supplies in order to stay alive. In order for someone to be considered courageous they must do something that he feels is necessary regardless of the consequences. Zamperini upheld and exceeded this definition of courage when he stole from the Japanese. He felt stealing was necessary because it helped to keep him alive while also boosting both his comrades and his morale. Even with the intense consequences that would be delivered to him if caught, he carried on with his theft which signified true courage. Zamperini’s bravery allowed him to fit the definition of a hero as it showed he was willing to do what he believed to be right while being acutely aware of the punishment that he’d face if caught. His courage to rebel against the Japanese, whether it be through stealing from them or defying them of dominance, exemplified his mantle of an inspirational hero.

The immense kindness shown to his fellow POWs and to his tormentors after the war permitted Zamperini to be declared as a hero. During their time as POWs men would sometimes have to rely on other POWS to help them survive due to the lack of respect and help given to them by their captors. At some of the camps there were underground black markets that traded with a currency such as stolen salt or sugar. Zamperini once helped save a sick man’s life by providing him with some stolen sugar: “One night, when he found Frank Tinker deathly ill, Louie waited for the guards to pass, snuck to the Scots’ barracks and told them that Tinker was in trouble. The Scots sent Louie back to Tinker with a load of sugar, no charge. Tinker would later say that Louie’s sugar run ‘Saved my soul.’” (Hillenbrand). Zamperini risked immense punishment attempting to help an ailing comrade and being in the possession of stolen contraband. He was willing to put his entire body on the line for a comrade who he wasn’t even close to. The royal Scots also were an incredible help for Zamperini and his “sugar run”. They provided him with the sugar that would eventually save Frank Tinker. The overwhelming kindness that Zamperini showed to his comrades during his time as a POW easily allowed him to carry the mantle of a hero. His courageous acts of kindness that would end up saving many lives, such as Frank Tinker, show how Zamperini was willing to risk his own body in order to save his brothers. Zamperini was the true definition of a hero to Frank Tinker on that fateful night. Zamperini’s actions directly saved this man’s life and are part of the reason that he would go on to survive the war. Louis Zamperini earned his title as a hero throughout his kind acts during the war. After the war ended, Zamperini had an opportunity to confront the men who had tormented and haunted him during his time as a POW. He flew to Japan and met his tormentors, along with many other former guards, who were now imprisoned in the Sugamo Prison: “Before Louie left Sugamo, the colonel who was attending him asked Louie’s former guards to come forward. In the back of the room, the prisoners stood up and shuffled into the aisle. They moved hesitantly, looking up at Louie with small faces. Louie was seized by childlike, giddy exuberance. before he realized what he was doing, he was bounding down the aisle. In bewilderment, the men who had abused him watched him come to them, his hands extended, a radiant smile on his face.” (Hillenbrand) Zamperini had an incredible and unexpected reaction to his opportunity to confront those who had made his life a living hell. Instead of confronting them with anger and hatred, he confronted them with happiness and peace. The former guards seemed regretful of their actions and were nervous of how Zamperini would react to them due to their hesitant movements and “small faces”. But all he wished to do was offer forgiveness for what they had done to him. The ready forgiveness that Zamperini offered to those that had abused him provides a compelling argument for his incredible kindness. The contrast of the former guards’ reaction to seeing him versus his reaction to seeing the guards was incredibly different. One group was ashamed of their actions and lacked the self-respect to face someone who they had tormented, while the other was glad to have the opportunity to make things right between them. This is a true example of how Zamperini’s incredible kindness made him worthy of the title of a hero. Zamperini’s kind acts to his comrades during his time as a POW and the kindness he showed to his former captors when confronting them at Sugamo Prison give Zamperini the right to bear the inspirational hero mantle.

Zamperini had the honor of carrying the Olympic Torch. http://www.gospelherald.com/articles/51811/20140703/christian-olympian-war-hero-louis-zamperini-dies-97-angelina-jolie-unbroken-release-christmas-day.htmThe pure embodiment of courage shown throughout the war to his captors along with his astonishing compassion shown towards his tormentors and his comrades as a POW deems Zamperini a worthy hero. By being extraordinarily courageous in a time of otherworldly stress, Zamperini allowed himself and many others to survive the terrible experience of being a POW. By motivating himself out of pure will, he rebelled directly against the Japanese through his resistance to the Bird and silently by stealing food for his comrades and himself. These action both kept him and his comrades’ morales up but allowed them a little more sustenance. His resistance against the Bird showed his incredible mental and physical strength that allowed him the courage to “fight back” in a time of great distress. These actions were not isolated incidents as they were repeated many times throughout his experience of being a POW. The repetition of these events shows that, even with knowledge of the intense consequences that Zamperini would face if caught stealing food or making it apparent that he was resisting the Bird, he had the courage and determination to overcome these obstacles. Zamperini also exhibited the pure embodiment of kindness through the compassion he felt towards his comrades and, surprisingly, his tormentors. Even with the knowledge of punishment for helping a sick or wounded comrade, Zamperini still aided ill Frank Tinker. He was not forced to do this by anyone, but did it out of pure compassion for his compatriot. Even more surprising, Zamperini felt a large sense of childlike glee when he was finally able to confront his former tormentors after the war. He greeted them with “childlike, giddy exuberance” (Hillenbrand) and expressed his forgiveness for their actions. This is an extraordinary act of forgiveness that allowed for Zamerini to gain closure and rid his mind of actions that haunted him for many years after the war’s conclusion. I consider Zamperini to be a worthy hero because of his incredible compassion and courage shown throughout his life. When Zamperini was young, he used running as an outlet for his limitless energy. He used running to reform himself from a petty thief to a record-holding miler. He used running to steer his life in the right direction. “By then Johnny, too, had come to the conclusion that running away from home and responsibility was pretty dumb. The world, we’d discovered, doesn’t love you like your family loves you. My parents welcomed me home with open arms and big smiles - more than I deserved - and I did not complain. I let my dad know I was ready to do any kind of work he wanted me to do. I started by painting the house. That night in bed I turned to Pete and told him, ‘You win. I’m going all out to be a runner.’ It was the first wise decision of my life” (Zamperini, Rensin). Zamperini’s use of running was incredibly inspirational as it showed the major impact that having a rewarding hobby could have. I joined the high school Cross Country and Track teams due to Zamperini inspiring me to become a runner. Running has given me an outlet to release stress and to siphon my energy into. Zamperini granted me the courage to go out of my comfort zone as an athlete and as a person. I can honestly say that joining these teams has been, like Zamperini, one of the wisest decisions of my life. When I think about Zamperini’s impact on not just me, but others, I believe that the world needs more people like him. The world needs more heroes who are willing to commit courageous actions and provide compassion and kindness to everyone without hesitation. The world today needs more Zamperinis.