2. Who is this????
Paul Warfield Tibbets, Jr.
(February 23, 1915 –
November 1, 2007)
a brigadier general in the
United States Air Force,
best known for being the
pilot of the Enola Gay,
the first aircraft to drop
an atomic bomb in the
history of warfare. The
bomb, code-named Little
Boy, was dropped on the
Japanese city of
Hiroshima.
3. Atomic bombings of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the Allies conducted two atomic bombings against the
cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan.
Within the first two to four months of the bombings,
- the acute effects killed 90,000–166,000 people in Hiroshima
- 60,000–80,000 in Nagasaki
- roughly half of the deaths in each city occurring on the first day.
The Hiroshima prefecture health department estimated that, of the people who
died on the day of the explosion,
-60% died from flash or flame burns,
- 30% from falling debris and
- 10% from other causes.
During the following months, large numbers died from the effect of burns, radiation sickness, and other
injuries, compounded by illness.
In a U.S. estimate of the total immediate and short term cause of death, 15–20% died from radiation
sickness, 20–30% from burns, and 50–60% from other injuries, compounded by illness.
In both cities, most of the dead were civilians, although Hiroshima had a sizeable garrison.
4. “I knew when I got the
assignment it was going
to be an emotional thing,
... We had feelings, but
we had to put them in
the background. We
knew it was going to kill
people right and left. But
my one driving interest
was to do the best job I
could so that we could
end the killing as quickly
as possible.”
If Dante had been with us on
the plane, he would have
been terrified,
"I'm not emotional. I didn't have
the first [vulgarity] thought, or I
would have told you what it was. I
did the job and I was so relieved
that it was successful, you can't
even understand it.“ 2005
"I'm proud that I was able to
start with nothing, plan it,
and have it work as perfectly
as it did .... I sleep clearly
every night.“ 1975
"If you give me the same
circumstances, I'd do it
again.“ 2005
7. In the Enola Gay
five minutes before impact
he whistles a dry tune
Later he will say
that the whole blooming sky
went up like an apricot ice.
Later he will laugh and tremble
at such a surrender, for the eye
of his belly saw Marilyn's skirts
fly over her head for ever
On the river bank,
bees drizzle over
hot white rhododendrons
Later she will walk
the dust, a scarlet girl
with her whole stripped skin
at her heel, stuck like an old
shoe sole or mermaid's tail
Later she will lie down
in the flecked black ash
where the people are become
as lizards or salamanders
and, blinded, she will complain
Mother you are late. So late
Later in dreams he will look
down shrieking and see
ladybirds
ladybirds
By Alison Fell
August 6, 1945
Link to Notes
http://www.ppu.org.uk/learn/poetry/poetry_nuclear1.html
Your Task
Read the poem
and complete
your FLIRT
analysis
