Louis Zamperini Unbroken

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In the novel, Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand, Louis Zamperini is a U.S. prisoner of war survivor during World War II. We learn a lot about his early life in the beginning of the novel. These attributes from his life were connected to his actions and decisions in the future. Growing up, Louis was a rebellious delinquent that stole things and was misunderstood. He was still discovering who he was as a person and, made a lot of mistakes along the way. Louis started to find new interest that benefited his life, with the help of his family. Distance running became his new found passion and kept him out of trouble. Eventually, he qualified to participate in the 1941 Berlin Olympics. Later on, he was commissioned into the United States Army Air Forces. …show more content…
His parents and siblings always supported him and were very close. He grew up in an italian immigrant family and was always getting into trouble. His choices led to punishment but, Louis wanted the attention. Bullying and fights were a common norm to his everyday routine. When he went to school, most of the kids picked on him because they were drawn by his oddity. The bullies would punch, kick, and pummel him with rocks but, he wouldn’t run away. Sylvia, one of Louis’s younger sisters, said; “You could beat him to death and he wouldn’t say ‘ouch’ or cry,” (9; ch. 1). He continued to take the beatings the kids at school would burden him with until, his father taught him how to defend himself. Louis fought back the next time a bully tried to punch him and broke him tooth. This sudden power Louis had adhered made him go out of control. He started to use violence towards anyone who got in his way and his parents didn’t know what to do. Continuously, Louis got in trouble with teachers and the police. Louis’s rebellious attitude he held when he was a child was returning. Anyone who got on Louis’s bad side ended up getting punched in the lip. His parents tried to help him become a better person but, nothing ever worked until, his brother, Pete got him onto a track. He saw Louis’s incredible speed and knew that running was his talent. Pete wanted Louis to see a different side of life and, recognize that attention …show more content…
When he was a child, his actions were made spontaneously, without any hesitation. He would do things that he knew weren’t good but, did them anyway because he felt like it. This affected his brave attitude during the war and made him stronger. He didn’t hesitate to make action and never stopped to think twice. When the plane Louis was on crashed over the pacific ocean, he realized how much his crew meant to him. Out of the eleven men, only Louis and two other men survived. They had to survive on a raft for forty-seven days. Louis never gave up hope when they were stranded among the water. His athletic attributes made him stronger throughout his experience in the army. His body was in good shape and, this kept him alive after all of the starving and beatings that took place in the POW camps. The bullies that constantly beat Louis when he was a kid were sort of preparation for the beatings he would take the POW camps. Of course, the bullies did not beat Louis up to the same extent but, it was close emotionally. In both situations, Louis felt ashamed and helpless. When he fought back to the bullies it was just like when he had hope and survived the POW camps. Pete, Louis’s brother, was also an influential piece to his story. Louis was a unruly teenager who was violent towards anyone that got in his way. If his brother never pushed him to become a runner, he would have never had a sense of
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