The most significant symbolism of the movie never came into play until the end of the story, when Jim was trying to revive his Japanese counterpart who was shot by an American. This effort to bring the boy back to life not only showed Jim’s respect for him, but his care. Furthermore, this boy was supposed to be Jim’s enemy, yet they had such reverence for each other that they were able to help and befriend one another. This Japanese boy was symbolic of the younger, happier Jim, before the war was an issue in his life. This fact is made exceedingly clear when Jim is giving his friends CPR and in his mind, he sees Jamie, the boy he used to be, in the other boy place. This moment of realization on Jim’s part shows that he wants things to be like they used to be, and that he is not only trying to bring his friend back, but also himself. In the end only one boy came back to life and that was Jamie. I say this because almost immediately after his friend passes, Jamie is riding a bike through the structures on the premises of the camp, just as he was riding his bike through his own house after he was separated from his parents. He also says to the American soldiers that he surrenders, just as he said to the Japanese soldiers. This symbolically shows that Jim is still a kid, and that he has realized that he needs someone to look after him. In this scene, the Americans show their lack of respect to the Japanese when Basie says “He was a Jap,” referring to the dead Japanese child.
Jim develops quite drastically throughout the movie. At the beginning Jim does not realize how fortunate he really is, thinking that God is just like him and his family are, playing tennis and relaxing. Slowly however, Jim starts to realize he is lucky, and how unfortunate others are. Jim’s first significant epiphany was when he was going to the party and he had to travel through the market which was symbolic of the real world. On this trip through the market Jim sees tanks, soldiers, prostitutes, many beggars, and a child his age being beaten. His parents were reluctant to look at this scene but Jim showed genuine sympathy for the people. Later on in the movie when everyone is fleeing, Jim gets separated from his parents and he sees men being shot right in front of him. For the first time Jim realizes the reality of the war, and how powerful the Japanese are. Jim also develops in his will to survive throughout the movie. When he was in the shelter and Basie was trying to get him the dead woman’s shoes, Jim would not except them, even though he needed them, yet later in the movie Jim asked Dr. Rawlins if he could have a man’s shoes when he died. This clearly shows Jim’s strong will to endure, and that he will do anything to keep going.
The principal changes Jim went through in the movie, was from a young British boy, to an American teen, and finally back to a British adolescent. In the beginning Jim speaks very fine and proper English, he has a large vocabulary, a “word of the day,” he is very polite, and he acts like a gentleman when around people of authority. Once Jim meets Basie and goes to the Japanese prison camp, he slowly starts to act more like an American, as he wants to move into the American dormitory. Jim even puts his life on the line by setting the traps, to be American. Instantly after he was accepted and treated by other Americans as being an American he showed it by being somewhat rude and asking kids if they would like a Hershey’s bar like he was asked. Jim also says “How you doin’ Frank” with an American accent. Still however Jim showed some respect to the Japanese, unlike other Americans, because he could somewhat relate to them and he was still British inside. After his Japanese friend was shot, he realized that he did not want to be an American and he said “I learnt a new word today… Atom Bomb,” showing his British side. It was at that time when we saw Jim see himself as a British child, and we saw him bring that child back to life. In this way, Jim was symbolic of a young child who was under the impressions of society, and at the end, his realization of what was going on allowed him to bring back and be the person he really was, Jamie.
Through the realization of what is occurring around him, Jim gains an undeniable respect for the Japanese soldiers and notices all the wrongs he had committed as a boy. This realization allowed Jim to change his outlook on life and how to treat people. Just as Jim was able to look past others differences, see who they were underneath, and respect them for that, Director, Steven Spielberg expects us to treat other in society that way, and comprehend that how we are acting towards our neighbours is entirely immoral.