The apocalyptic wartime setting and the climactic moment when Jim sees the distant white flash of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki gave Spielberg powerful visual metaphors "to draw a parallel story between the death of this boy's innocence and the death of the innocence of the entire world".
William Hickling Prescott (May 4, 1796 – January 28, 1859) was an American historian and Hispanist, who is widely recognized by historiographers to have been the first American scientific historian. Despite having serious visual impairment, which at times prevented him from reading or writing for himself, Prescott became one of the most eminent historians of 19th century America. He is also noted for his eidetic memory...
The Conquest of Mexico has endured more than any other of Prescott's work: it is regarded as his greatest literary accomplishment...
The City of Prescott in Arizona was named in his honor, as was the William H. Prescott House (Headquarters House), which was designated a National Historic Landmark for its association with him. Colegio Anglo Americano Prescott, a school in Arequipa, Peru, also bears his name. Prescott Street, two blocks from Harvard Yard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is named after him.