The Role Of Dignity In Laura Hillenbrand's Unbroken

Many people believe there are only three basic needs of life, food, water and shelter. What most people might not realize is that humans have a very important psychological basic need - dignity. When you have nothing your dignity keeps you going. The author of “Unbroken”, Laura Hillenbrand explores the concept of dignity as a basic need. In “Unbroken” Louis Zamperini’s dignity fueled his battle to survive. When his dignity was compromised his will to live started to diminish. During his imprisonment, Louis begins to realized the role of dignity as an essential element of life. Dignity played a huge role in Louis’ prison life and after in his everyday life.

During Louis Zamperini’s imprisonment during World War II, he never gave up the fight for survival. The only time his will to survive diminished was when his dignity was compromised. When his three other basic needs were almost completely taken away from him, he had only his dignity to keep him alive. In Japanese culture honor and dignity is valued above everything else. This is most likely one of the reasons why “ Japanese soldiers... debased their
They would force prisoners to “wash the 150-foot-long barracks aisle floor... waddling duck-style” (pg 191). The guards would use any excuse to punish a prisoner. They would be punished for “folding their arms, for sitting naked to help heal sores, for cleaning teeth, for talking in their sleep” (pg 194). The guards punished prisoners in the harshest ways they could think of. Sometimes forcing them to “stand... in the Ofuna crouch, a painful and strenuous position” for hours (pg 194). By forcing prisons to do these punishments they were not only torturing them physically but also psychologically by stripping their dignity. When a prisoner could not take the punishment they were embarrassed and punished more. Dignity affects people’s will to live in everyday life not just prison