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He found himself thinking of Pete, and of something that he had said as they had sat on their bed years earlier: A lifetime of glory is worth a moment of pain. Louie thought: Let go.
This quote encapsulates Louie’s mindset as he runs the last lap of the Olympic 5,000-meter final in the 1936 Games. As he nears the finish line, he sees other runners fall out of the race due to sabotage and injury, and though a medal is not attainable anymore, he decides to give it his all, which leads to a record-breaking lap time. This quote foreshadows the pain Louie will endure during the war, the ones that will fall beside him, and the glory and beauty that will come from his story of survival.
He could have ended the beatings by running away or succumbing to tears, but he refused to do either. “You could beat him to death,” said Sylvia, “and he wouldn’t say ‘ouch’ or cry.” He just put his hands in front of his face and took it.
As Louie’s sister references in this quote, Louie’s ability to endure harsh beatings as a child suggests a unique ability to push through pain, which is essential to his survival during his time as a POW. Though Sylvia is describing his early childhood run-ins with bullies, this foreshadowing carries weight beyond tiffs on the playground. This quote and its characterization of Louie contributes significantly to the book’s overarching recognition of the remarkable human capacity to persevere through extreme circumstances, even when those circumstances are gravely violent.
Though all three men faced the same hardship, their differing perceptions of it appeared to be shaping their fates. Louie and Phil's hope displaced their fear and inspired them to work toward their survival, and each success renewed their physical and emotional vigor. Mac's resignation seemed to paralyze him and the less he participated in their efforts to survive, the more he slipped.
This quote describes the struggle to survive on the raft at sea after the Green Hornet plunges into the Pacific. As Louie, Phil, and Mac are the only survivors, they are up against the same challenges but face them with divergent mindsets. This quote reveals just how essential hope is to the survival capacity of the human spirit, and how quickly it can slip away when one gives up in his mind before his body has, made clear in Mac’s death.
As Louie held out his hand, the propaganda prisoners dropped their eyes to the floor. Their faces said it all; if Louie agreed to make this broadcast, he would be forced into a life as his enemy’s propagandist. Louie was taken back to the studio and urged to do the broadcast. He refused. The smiles evaporated; the faces hardened. The producers ordered him to do it. He said no.
This quote outlines a critical moment during Louie’s life as a prisoner of war. After time in the Ofuna and Omori camps, Louie has been in dire conditions for over a year and is given the opportunity to evade it all, escaping disease, torture and starvation, if he will agree to be a propaganda puppet for the Japanese. Louie’s refusal highlights an important aspect of the capacity of the human spirit to survive: his loyalty runs deeper than his desire for safety and comfort. This remarkable moment defines the depth of Louie’s true bravery.
