The Fate of the Survivors Summary and Analysis

Chang admits she is horrified at the fate of the many persons involved in the Rape of Nanking. Chang believes the reason there has been no retribution is because as the Cold War took over following the war trials, the US saw Japan as a strategic point, and therefore neglected to push the government to pay its victims. When Chang traveled to Nanking to interview the survivors, she found many living in extreme poverty, and many who were permanently disabled as a result of their injuries at the hands of the Japanese. Many believed their own government, the PRC, or People's Republic of China, had betrayed them, since they had openly announced they forgave the Japanese for their war crimes.

In addition, Chang found during the writing of the book that many of...