The Land of the Rising Sun

Topics to know about Japan: Bunraku Theatre—deals with manipulating puppets that are three feet tall. Three people to a puppet: one for the feet, one for the left hand, and one for the right hand and head. It takes ten years to master the puppet. Kabuki Theatre—closest to Shakespearian performances, this type of theatre includes story, song, dance, costume, make-up, theatre design, and actor-audience relationship Noh Theatre—oldest form of theatre which uses slow dancing, chanting, and elaborate masks to tell a story All Soul’s Day—the ancestors return to the living and celebrate life when the Japanese light a candle to their memory

HIROSHIMA

“What have we done?” In 1940, Japan occupied French Indonesia and joined the Axis powers of Germany and Italy, bringing them into conflict with the U.S. and England On Dec. 7, 1941, Japan attacked the U.S. and in the following six months, gained control, expanding to India and New Guinea. The Battle of Midway in June of 1942 was the turning point in the war against the Japanese. By 1944, we began air raids over Japan, deciding not to invade the mainland since we knew they would fight to the last man and hundreds of thousands would die.

“What have we done?” On August 6, 1945, at 8:15 am, the U.S. dropped the first atomic bomb named “Little Boy” on Hiroshima. The atomic bomb exploded about 2,000 ft above the building today called the “A-Bomb Dome.” A 1995 issue of Newsweek writes: “A bright light filled the plane,” wrote Lt. Col. Paul Tibbets, the pilot of the Enola Gay…”We turned back to look at Hiroshima. The city was hidden by that awful cloud…boiling up, mushrooming.” For a moment, no one spoke. Then everyone was talking. “Look at that! Look at that! Look at that!” exclaimed the co-pilot, Robert Lewis, pounding on Tibbets’ shoulder. Lewis said he could taste atomic fission; it tasted like lead. Then he turned away to write in his journal, “My God,” he asked himself,”what have we done?”

“What have we done?” The bomb released an enormous amount of energy, equal to 15,000-20,000 tons of dynamite. In the hypocenter, the temperature rose to 7,000 degrees Farenheit. The wind velocity was 980 miles per hour, five times stronger than the strongest hurricane. Because the city was surrounded by mountains, when the blast force reached the mountains, it rebounded back into the city with even more force. Within 1/16 mile radius from the hypocenter, most people died within a few hours. Within ½ mile radius, most people died within 30 days The people who entered the area in the first 100 hours were also affected by the radiation. More than 140,000 people died by the end of the year and over 200,000 in all

“What have we done?” Three days after the Hiroshima bomb was dropped, the U.S. dropped another atomic bomb on Nagasaki…a bomb called “Fat Man.” The name of the B-29 was “Bockscar” The original target was Kokura, but cloud cover over the city meant that they had to divert to the secondary target of Nagasaki. The U.S. did not wait for three days between bombings because they were waiting for the Japanese to surrender, but because they were waiting for more plutonium. Even though this bomb was more powerful, the terrain prevented it from having a worse effect than Hiroshima. 70,000 people died in Nagasaki by the end of the year.

Sadako’s story

“This our cry…peace in the world” Sadako Sasaki was born in 1943 and was two years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. While she survived the blast, at the age of 11 in 1955, Sadako became dizzy and fell to the ground while practicing for a race. She was diagnosed with Leukemia, the radiation sickness disease. Sadako’s best friend reminded her of the legend that if she can fold 1,000 paper cranes, she would get well, so she began her mission, hanging the flock of cranes above her hospital bed. She finished the first 1,000 and started in on the second, but only got to 1,500 before she was buried in December of 1955 with the cranes.

“This our cry…peace in the world” Sadako’s classmates were so inspired by her story that they set a goal to create a monument for her. Three years later, they raised enough money to have the current statue built in Hiroshima’s Peace Park. The children also inscribed a wish on the bottom of the statue: “This our cry. This our prayer. Peace in the world.” Today, students from all over the world fold cranes and bring them to Hiroshima to register them at the monument.

“To live for a thousand years…” Cranes are the oldest living bird species and can grow to be almost five feet tall. Their mating dance is supposed to be elegant. Cranes mate for life, and Japanese legend says that they live for a thousand years. Because of Sadako’s story, the cranes now also represent peace.

“We’ll carry on…” Senba zuru, senba zuru tsubasa wo hirogete Maiagaru, maiagaru Sadako no yumenose Heiwa no knae naraso minna de naraso Thousand paper cranes, thousand paper cranes Spread your wings way up high Dancing through the sky, dancing through the sky With Sadako’s dream we fly Bells are ringing, children singing Peace is rising in the world Sadako we’ll carry on, carry on Sadako we’ll carry on, you are the symbol of peace

“We’ll carry on…” Senba zuru, senba zuru tsubasa wo hirogete Thousand paper cranes, thousand paper cranes Spread your wings way up high Heiwa no kane naraso. Peace is rising in the world Sadako we’ll carry on, carry on Sadako we’ll carry on, you are the symbol of peace Sadako we’ll carry on, carry on Sadako we’ll carry on, heiwa no shinboru Sadako we’ll carry on, carry on Sadako we’ll carry on, you are the symbol of peace Senba zuru, senba zuru tsubasa wo hirogete Maiagaru, maiagaru Sadako no yumenose Senba zuru, senba zuru tsubasa wo hirogete Maiagaru, maiagaru Sadako no yumenose