Grave of the Fireflies

Grave of the Fireflies

The effects on families
During WWII an estimated 200,000 or more Japanese people were killed and a lot were left homeless. Due to this, as well as the firebombing of Tokyo and fathers being in the military, many families were torn apart and separated from each other. In the movie, Seita and Setsuko’s father was in the military and they were separated from their mother after she died due to the firebombings. All families were under a lot of stress. They had to look after each other and only got small, indecent rations of food to share around. Some families looked after the children of other lost family members and some just took in abandoned children who had lost both parents. Because Seita and Setsuko lost both of their parents they went to their aunt’s house so she could care for them. In WWII women and children had to help in the war effort. Children had to do various tasks around their community during this time. They manufactured things for the soldiers such as uniforms, weapons and other various goods. Children also pulled down houses to create firebreaks and rebuilt other houses inside that area. Younger children might have done small errands for the soldiers to get more food for their families. Seita and Setsuko didn’t go out to work and their aunt accused them of not earning their food. Their aunt had the rest of her family to look after as well and because they went out to work she thought it was only fair that they get more food.

The effects on the Japanese economy
The effect of the war on the Japanese economy was devastating. The food rations, for the general public, became smaller as the soldiers were receiving most of the available food. The bombings and the fires were destroying a lot of the food but really Japan was just running out of supplies. Seita and Setsuko had to search for food and eating what they could find. When Seita tried to steal food he got into trouble because the farmer needed all the food he could get to feed his own family. Money lost its purpose in a way since no one wanted to sell their food or supplies. There was also nothing to buy with money considering all shops had been destroyed or had closed down. Seita and Setsuko offered people money for food but no one would take it. Due to the shortage of housing, Seita and Setsuko lived in an old, abandoned bomb shelter. Most houses had been blown up or burnt to the ground so there was really nowhere for anyone to live. Citizens had to take shelter anywhere they could. The war had destroyed 60-70% of Japan’s manufacturing. As has been mentioned previously many people had to work making items for the soldiers as well as basic and simple things for the public.

The effects on society in general
The society of Japan was ripped apart by many things throughout the war. One of these is the thousands of deaths both military and civilians. These deaths left families torn apart and many children abandoned. Some of these children then went to stay with other family members, which just caused more stress. Violence and Crime was another factor of the society falling apart. Many people tried to break into homes and businesses to steal food and supplies for their families. Since everything was in ruins it was hard to find the simplest things and to keep healthy. A big part of the downfall of this society was depression, which urged many, many people to commit these sorts of crimes. At the beginning of the movie when the city was being firebombed, the general public still had respect for their emperor. The Japanese people looked up at Emperor Hirohito as if he was a god. Even though Japan surrendered in the end the people still loved the emperor.

After the war
Japan surrendered on the 15th August 1945 and the war ended on the 2nd September later that year. Before America dropped the two atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan was going to surrender with no conditions but after the bombings Japan surrendered themselves and their country to the Americans. The American troops entered Japan under the control of General Mac Arthur. The emperor lost all power over the Japanese military and the Government. Even though Japan was under the Americans control food shortages continued to be a problem for many, many years after the war had ended. This was due to the land being destroyed and unusable for a very long time and also being low on supplies like seeds and water. The economy was slowly rebuilt and Japan was eventually given back to the Japanese people.