Has anybody read Candide? If you haven't you should. It's a really short, hilarious book that is full of horrible things happening over and over again while one character keeps saying "it is the best of all possible worlds". I was really reminded of Candide with the scene of Goto Dengo in the water after they all had to abandon ship. Here he is, people are bleeding all around him and he has to avoid getting shot even though the oil on his body is making him float, and then he survives the shooting somehow. Then, he starts to swim, with a a bunch of other guys, combating dehydration, sickness, waves, and a crazy shark feeding frenzy which he lives through only by floating motionless. Then he and two others (one of which who they have to teach to swim), make their way to New Guinea. They swim onto dry land, one jumps up to rejoice, pulls a snake off his arm, and falls down dead. Goto swims into the water, avoiding snakes, only to find out that his other friend is being speared by cannibals, who promptly stew him and eat him. Can things get any worse? This was Candide, but worse, because it was frightening and realistic. This scene practically gave me nightmares.