I explained to my audience that
Stockdale had been the highest-ranking
officer captured as a POW during the
Vietnam War. I told them how a vast
number of men also captured within a
similar timeframe committed suicide
only months after their capture. Many
others lost their minds and were
subsequently killed by their captors.
But James Stockdale was different.
He was a survivor. Prisoners were
separated to prevent communication,
so in an effort to sustain morale and
retain sanity, Stockdale initiated an
ingenious method through which he
and his fellow prisoners were able
to communicate. His system used
Morse code, but the delivery methods
were subtle: banging on the building’s
internal piping system, tapping on
walls and doors, even humming and
whistling. Of course, this system had the
extra benefit of keeping the prisoners’
minds occupied. But that was not the
most important factor distinguishing
Stockdale from the others. Stockdale
had a specific image engraved on his
mind—a singular mental picture that
set him apart from all those who lost
their sanity or committed suicide.
“When they entered the camp,” I told
my audience, “most prisoners tried to
anticipate a particular date on which
they hoped their captivity would end.
I’ll be out by Christmas, the new arrival
would promise himself. Christmas
would arrive and pass, and he would
still be a prisoner of war. Every time
the specified day arrived without the
prisoner having attained his desire, it
brought him down a notch, increasing
Listen to Sophea’s story. Click to play.
8 • Solutions