| Researcher | Author: Title | |
| Andy Mullins | Clancy, Tom: Debt of Honor | |
| Assignment 1: Bibliographic Description | ||
| 1. First Edition Publication Information | Tom Clancy. Debt of Honor. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1994. Jack Ryan Limited Partnership holds the copyright. Published simultaneously in Canada. | |
| 2. First Edition in Cloth, Paper, or Both? | The book was first published in cloth format in both the United States and Canada. | |
| 4. Pagination | 384 leaves, pp. [13] 14-24 [25] 26-41 [42] 43-57 [58] 59-70 [71] 72-85 [86] 87-99 [100] 101-117 [118] 119-135 [136] 137-148 [149] 150-162 [163] 164-177 [178] 179-190 [191] 192-204 [205] 206-218 [219] 220-235 [236] 237-249 [250] 251-263 [264] 265-276 [277] 278-292 [293] 294-312 [313] 314-333 [334] 335-347 [348] 349-363 [364] 365-377 [378] 379-393 [394] 395-407 [408] 409-419 [420] 421-433 [434] 435-448 [449] 450-465 [466] 467-481 [482] 483-495 [496] 497-507 [508] 509-519 [520] 521-534 [535] 536-552 [553] 554-572 [573] 574-585 [586] 587-599 [600] 601-612 [613] 614-625 [626] 627-639 [640] 641-658 [659] 660-673 [674] 675-693 [694] 695-709 [710] 711-734 [735] 736-766 [2] | |
| 5. Edited and/or Introduced? | This book is not edited or introduced. | |
| 6. Illustrated? | There are no illustrations in this edition. | |
| 8. General Appearance | The pages are approximately 5 1/2 inches wide and 8 1/2 inches tall. The text size is 84R. The text itself is very attractive and easy to read. This edition is not very old and therefore contains very few smudge marks. The cover is in very good shape. The dust cover helps keep it that way. The spine is navy blue cloth with the title and author printed in gold. The name of the publisher is also on the spine along the bottom in gold. The navy color reaches to the front and back covers where it becomes a tan color. On the bottom of the front cover is the signature of the author, Thomas L. Clancy Jr., printed in gold as well. | |
| 10. Description of Paper | The paper is good quality and still in very good shape since the edition is only 5 years old. It is smooth and somewhat thick. The color is an off-white. The color has yellowed very very slightly, almost unnoticeably. | |
| 11. Description of Binding | The binding of the book is cloth. The shade is a little lighter than navy blue. Along the spine the title and author's name are printed in gold. At the bottom of the spine, also in gold, is the name of the publisher, Putnam. This, however, is perpendicular to the author and title. The front and back cover are a tan shade. On the front cover parallel to the bottom edge is the signature of the author, printed in gold. There are no illustrations on the covers or binding of the book. There are endpapers inside each cover. Both endpapers are the same tan shade as the front and back covers. | |
| 12. Title Page Transcription | Title Page Recto: DEBT OF|HONOR|Tom Clancy|G.P. PUTNAM'S SONS|NEW YORK
Title Page Verso: G.P. Putnam's Sons|[Publishers Since 1838]|200 Madison Avenue|New York, NY 10016|[This is a work of fiction. The events described here are imaginary: the settings and|characters are fictitious and not intended to represent specific places or living persons.]|Copyright 1994 by Jack Ryan Limited Partnership|All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof,|may not be reproduced in any form whithout permission.|Published simultaneously in Canada|Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data|Clancy, Tom, date.|Debt of honor/by Tom Clancy.|p. cm.|ISBN 0-399-13954-0 (alk. paper) ISBN 0-399-13960-5 (limited edition)|1. Ryan, Jack (Fictitious character)--Fiction. 2. Intelligence|service--United States--Fiction. 1. Title.|PS3553.L245D43 1994|813'.54--dc20|Printed in the United States of America|1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10|This book is printed on acid-free paper. | |
| 14. Manuscript Holdings | As far as I could find out, Tom Clancy's manuscripts are held in the Library of Congress Manuscript Division. | |
| 15. Other | The first edition has a dust jacket. Actually the dust jacket itself has a plastic covering over it. The jacket is navy blue with the the authors name and book title on the front cover. Tom Clancy|Debt of|Honor. The author's name is a dark red bordered in gold and the title is gold, bordered in the dark red. In the second "O" of Honor there is a plane flying into a sunset. The "O" forms the sun. On the spine of the dust jacket the name of the author and the title appear again with the name of the the publisher purpendicular to them along the bottom. These are in white. The back cover has a photo of the author in a red jacket and hat wearing sunglasses and holding some binoculars leaning on a railing. The inside flaps of the dust jacket give a summary of the book and tell about the author. Several of the unnumbered pages at the beginning have something on them. Page 5 has a dedication [For Mom and Dad]. Page 7 has an inscription: A man's character is his fate|--[Heraclitus]. Page 9 gives acknowledgements. | |
| Assignment 2: Publication History | ||
| 1. Other Editions: | According to Bibliofind, there was more than one first edition.
Book Club Edition Modern First Editions Technothriller Fiction First Editions First American Edition | |
| 4. First Edition printings or impressions? | According to the July 25, 1994 issue of Publisher's Weekly, there were 2 million printings of the first edition. | |
| 5. Editions from other publishers? | 1995. Berkley Books. (1st Paperback Edition)
1994. Thorndike Press. 1994. Macmillan Library Reference. (Large Type Edition) 1994. Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. (Limited Edition) 1994. Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. (Regular Edition) 1997. Berkley Publishing Group. (Mass Market Paperboxed Set, Slipcased, and/or Casebound) 1997. Berkley Publishing Group. 1994. HarperCollins. (London) | |
| 6. Last date in print? | Still being printed (1999). | |
| 7. Total copies sold? | As of 1996, 3 million copies had been sold. | |
| 8. Sales by year? | Searched Publisher's Weekly and Bowker Annual and could not find sales figures by year. | |
| 9. Advertising copy: | As far as I could find out there was no advertising copy. Publisher's Weekly printed a review in the July 25, 1994 issue but that was all that I could find. | |
| 11. Other promotion? | None could be found. | |
| 12. Performances in other media? | Books on tape.
Clancy, Tom. Debt of Honor. Newport Beach, CA. Books on Tape. 1994. Clancy, Tom. Debt of Honor. New York, NY. Random House. 1994. | |
| 13. Translations? | Clancy, Tom. Debito d'onore. Milano, Italy. Biblioteca Universale Rizzoli. 1996.
Clancy, Tom. Datorie de onoare. Bucuresti. RAO. 1997. Clancy, Tom. Dette d'honneur: roman. Paris, France. Albin Michel. 1995,1999. Clancy, Tom. Nichibei kaisen. Tokyo, Japan. Shincho bunko. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Dolg chesti: v dvukh knigakh. Moskva. Mir. 1997. Clancy, Tom. Chok kwa tongji. [Soul-si]. Koryowon. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Deuda de honor. Barcelona, Spain. Planeta. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Cestny dluh. Plzen. Mustang. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Deuda de honor. Buenos Aires. Editorial Sudamericana. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Deuda de honor. Barcelona. Planeta. 1995. Clancy, Tom. Hov shel kavod. Or Yehuda. Sifriyat Ma'ariv. 1995. | |
| 14. Serialization? | N/A | |
| 15. Sequels or Prequels? | Tom Clancy uses the character of Jack Ryan in most of his fiction works. Without Remorse and his most recent work, Rainbow Six, were the only Clancy novels not to star Jack Ryan. A CIA buddy of Ryan's, John Clark, is the main character in those. Executive Orders was the first actual sequel that Clancy has ever written. It was the sequel to Debt of Honor, however, many of the contacts that Ryan has made throughout his other novels are once again used in Executive Orders so it connects all of the Clancy novels. | |
| Assignment 3: Brief Biography | ||
| For a biographical overview, please see the entries for Patriot Games, Red Storm Rising, and Without Remorse.
Around the publication of Debt of Honor, Tom Clancy had many things going on in his life. Previously he had been having trouble with Hollywood over some of the movie adaptations of his books, especially with Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger. However, in December of 1994, after Debt of Honor had been released, Viacom executives and the Paramount movie chief travelled to New York to clear things up with Clancy and talk about new possibilities. "They shook hands with the author over an agreement to make his 1988 novel Cardinal of the Kremlin the next Jack Ryan movie thriller and laid the groundwork for two more Ryan films: adaptations of his current book, Debt of Honor, and the next Ryan tome [Executive Orders], which he plans to begin writing this fall" (Cerone). In February, 1995 Clancy's first television project aired. It was a four hour miniseries called "Op-Center." The project led to the release of a paperback novel of the same name preceding the air of the series. Clancy and Steve Pieczenik are only the creators of Op-Center, they have done none of the writing, and will not release the name of the author. Also during this time, screenwriter Christine Roum was working on a script for Without Remorse. In terms of his personal life, Clancy went through several major changes. In early March of 1995, his father died. The two had been very close and Clancy wrote an article in the New York Times talking about his father and also the relationship they shared through baseball. This was reportedly the time during which he was having the affair that would eventually end his marriage. Ironically though, in an interview with Peter Carlson of The Washington Post Clancy stated, "I can't admire anyone who plays around on his wife." Clancy has since divorced his wife and is living with the new woman. This was also the time that he made his bid to buy the New England Patriots football team that eventually fell through. Very little of this influenced his writing of Debt of Honor, but he was certainly busy around the time of its publication. Works Cited Cerone, Daniel Howard. "He writes, Now they listen; With his First TV Project, Tom Clancy is finally getting the studio's ear." Los Angeles Times 21 February 1995: F1. Clancy, Tom. "Dads and Sons Are Cheated." The New York Times 21 March 1995: A21. Carlson, Peter. "What Ticks Tom Clancy Off? Liberals, Critics, Clinton, Hollywood, Oliver Goldsmith, Anti-War Wimps and Just About Everything Else." The Washington Post 13 August 1995: W12. "Big Entertainment, Tom Clancy Team Up." Miami Herald 21 November 1995: C1. Hitchens, Christopher. "Something for the Boys" Rev. of Executive Orders by Tom Clancy. The New York Review of Books 14 November 1996: 34-38. Doppler's Tom Clancy Page. www.qis.net/~doppler/tc/indexf.html Ander's Tom Clancy. hem2.gassagen.se/clancy | ||
| Assignment 4 | ||
| Contemporary Reception: | ||
| Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor was received to mixed reviews upon its release in 1994. Audiences everywhere praised the book as another Clancy "masterpiece." However, critics were a little less excited about the novel. Some critics including John Calvin Batchelor of the Los Angeles Times Book Review and John Lehman of The Wall Street Journal had nothing but praise for the book, while Christopher Buckley of the New York Times Book Review and Ken Mochizuki of Northwest Nikkei were not quite as taken by the book. The most prominent critique of Clancy's work was that it seems he uses a racist tone against the Japanese. Mochizuki is quite clear in his agreement with this seniment, "as soon as Debt of Honor came out, media watchers around the country sounded the alarm that Clancy's new novel could be another pop culture and media forum for Japan-bashing, ala last year's Rising Sun." Buckley is of quite the same opinion, "this book is as subtle as a World War II anti-Japanese poster showing a mustachioed Tojo bayoneting Caucasion babies."
Other critics felt a little less strongly about the portrayal of the Japanese and instead praised Clancy for his intricate and quite realistic plot. Batchelor writes, "Real war with Japan. Real Japanese sneak attack against America's Pacific fleet, real paralyzing nuclear gamesmanship with rebuilt Soviet missiles, real state terrorism, real American territory taken by foreign troops, real dead Americans in the thousands, and all this in the immediate future." Critics are torn in what to make of Debt of Honor. All praise the author's ability to write an interesting novel, but cannot stop talking about the alleged Japan-bashing. Readers are more inclined to look past the negative critical analyses, especially if they are Clancy fans. Another complaint is that his books, especially this one, are too long. Although, even with the length, he still has critics praising him. "For readers new to Mr. Clancy, Debt of Honor is certainly a good starter. It has dueling submarines, terrorist hits, venal politicians, smarmy lobbyists and a familiar hero, Jack Ryan, recently embodied by Harrison Ford on the big screen. It also has way too many pages," writes John Lehman. Despite critical reaction to the novel, readers loved it and that is what got it to the bestseller list. Sources: Batchelor, John Calvin. "Tom Clancy's Damn-the-Literary-Torpedoes Style Dances at the Edge of the Daily News." Rev. of Debt of Honor, by Tom Clancy. Los Angeles Times Book Review 21 August 1994: 1-9. Buckley, Christopher. "Megabashing Japan." Rev. of Debt of Honor, by Tom Clancy. New York Times Book Review 2 October 1994: 28-9. Clancy, Tom. Debt of Honor. New York: Berkley Books, 1995. (Paperback) Lehman, John. "Jack Ryan's New Gizmos Save Another Day." The Wall Street Journal 2 September 1994: A7. Mochizuki, Ken. "Tom Clancy starts WWII all over again: It's war again with Japan, according to best selling novelist Tom Clancy." Northwest Nikkei 31 October 1994: 6. Zatkowski, Alicia. "To Japan, With Love: Jack Ryan, as the Spy Who Simply Got Too Old." Irish Voice 11 October 1994: 30. http://ticc.hypermart.net/ticcmall/stores/118/clancy_tom/debt_of_honor/debt_of_honor__tom_clancy.htm | ||
| Subsequent Reception: | ||
| Debt of Honor was published in 1994 and therefore has not received any subsequent reception. | ||
| Assignment 5 | ||
| Critical Essay: | ||
| Tom Clancy's Debt of Honor was a staple on the bestseller list from its release in August of 1994. It debuted on Publisher's Weekly's bestseller list the month after it hit the shelves. As of 1996, three million copies had been sold. Popularity among readers was immense; however, critical reception to the book was somewhat mixed. Most critics agree that Clancy can write an interesting and worthwhile story, but they complain of the length and, in this installment of Jack Ryan, the content as well. Critics have accused Clancy of Japan-bashing in this novel. Ken Mochizuki of Northwest Nikkei writes, "However, as soon as Debt of Honor came out, media watchers around the country sounded the alarm that Clancy's new novel could be another pop culture and media forum for Japan-bashing, ala last year's Rising Sun" (Northwest Nikkei). Another critic from the New York Times Book Review writes, "…but this book is as subtle as a World War II anti-Japanese poster showing a mustachioed Tojo bayoneting Caucasian babies" (New York Times Book Review). The problem with these criticisms is that they don't fit into the bigger picture. Clancy uses the anti-Japanese writing, not because he is bashing them, but simply because they are the enemy in the novel and he needs to get the audience against them.
The plot against the Japanese begins when an everyday car accident that leads to the fiery deaths of a Tennessee family caused by a faulty gas tank made by, who else, the Japanese. The United States then places a trade embargo on the Japanese. From there Clancy goes on to make them seem like cruel and power hungry people. The Prime Minister of Japan has a white mistress that he abuses on a regular basis and forces to have sex with him. As Mochizuki is quick to point out, "Through the eyes of American characters, the Japanese are often described with the adjective 'little,' as in 'little professor,' 'this little bastard' or the 'small, jolly man.'" Clancy is completely describing the Japanese as an inferior race and blaming them for all the problems that occur in the novel. The blame, however, is supposed to lie with the Japanese in this novel. Clancy needs to get the audience against the Japanese or the novel is pointless. As in many novels, the antagonist in Debt of Honor is made out to be the enemy. Without bashing the Japanese, Clancy cannot make them out to be the enemy. "[T]he Japanese characters (all men) are never seen with families (or women) like their American counterparts, except for the prime minister's lust for a Caucasian. And the Americans liberally use the word 'Jap,' especially the servicemen and women," writes Mochizuki. The need for the Japanese to be disliked by the reader is what Mochizuki does not understand. The reader would not care who won in the end if both sides were described as valiant and good and praiseworthy. The negative portrayal of the Japanese is necessary for the plot to be advanced and so that the audience is not surprised by their actions and disappointed when they are beaten. Clancy, despite his negative portrayal of them, gives the Japanese the upper hand almost until the very end. They gain that upper hand through militaristic and economic means. They take out two United States supercarriers, the USS Enterprise and the USS John Stennis with torpedoes, disabling the Seventh Fleet in the Pacific and erase an entire day's trading on the New York Stock Exchange with the push of a button. They also take over the Mariana Islands, which have been in the control of the United States since the end of World War II. Clancy's web of war is spun with the Japanese in complete control. The description that he gives is only meant to further the audience's dislike of his antagonist, Japan. He is not taking a cheap shot on the Japanese. That dislike is necessary in order for his readers to be on his side at the end of the novel. The Americans win in the end and that would not be a popular resolution if the Japanese were not made out the way they are in Debt of Honor. Clancy is also very politically correct in the novel. As Christopher Buckley states in his review in the New York Times Book Review, "Practically everyone is either black, Hispanic, a woman or, at a minimum, ethnic" (New York Times Book Review). This also can be seen by the fact that Clancy has a woman serving as deputy director of operations at the CIA and a Comdr. Roberta Peach of the Navy. One of the CIA agents doing undercover work in the novel is Latino. Clancy would not make such an effort to be so politically correct if he were truly out to simply bash the Japanese. In the early parts of the novel as well, he depicts the Japanese in a positive light as a very ambitious and hardworking people. "In a few minutes his staff would start arriving, and his presence in the office earlier than any of the team-in a country where showing up two hours early was the norm-would set the proper tone" (Clancy, DoH, p. 13). This ambition and determination are what allow the Japanese to surprise the United States with their attacks. Mochizuki even gives Clancy credit for not completely turning the Japanese into stupid neanderthals, "To Clancy's credit, the Japanese characters are not entirely mechanical and unemotionally methodical as often seen in most mainstream portrayals. They worry, question, and all do not fanatically follow their leaders. There's even a Yonsei (fourth generation Japanese American) CIA agent working undercover in Japan who plays a key role in helping the U.S. fight Japan" (Northwest Nikkei). Current events at the time of the novel's release also help to explain why the bashing is necessary. The military that President Reagan had built in the 1980s was no longer the powerhouse it had once been. According to John Lehman of The Wall Street Journal in a review he wrote on Debt of Honor, "America's Navy is half of what it was 10 years before" (The Wall Street Journal). John Calvin Batchelor of the Los Angeles Times Book Review says that war with Japan would be "war with the wrong foe. For the United States of America is not at present in a position either to defend itself from nor to counterattack a Japanese military strike" (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Readers need the reassurance that if anything should happen, their world would not come tumbling down. For them the description of the Japanese as little and weak is a safety blanket. Economic headlines constantly mentioned the economic differences between the United States and Japan. "In one tight scene Tom Clancy has done the work of all the king's horses and men-he has put before you…the possibility of a battle that is implicit in every economic headline this summer about the U.S. trade gap with Japan, the yen versus the dollar, and the fragility of the U.S. government bond market and the Nikkei stock market," writes Batchelor. The fear of a Japanese take over of American business is all around. Clancy simply uses that sentiment to help calm the public by demonstrating exactly how we would combat any attempt at take over that the Japanese would make. Mochizuki complains that "the Japanese military loses so easily in Debt of Honor" and claims that this is a form of Japan bashing. What he fails to recall, however, is how quickly and easily the Japanese gained the upper hand. They had to be destroyed in order for the book to be a success. No one in America wants to read about how we are going to lose a war to the Japanese. The bashing and the quick work made of the Japanese at the end of Debt of Honor are what the American audience is looking for in a novel. It makes them feel safe. Even though by the end of the novel almost the entire government has been destroyed and Ryan is now the President, the final lines keep the American public from worrying, "I'm not really sure what I'm going to do right now, except to make sure my wife and children are really safe first, but now I have this job, and I just promised God that I'd do it the best way I can. For now, I ask you all for your prayers and your help. I'll talk to you again when I know a little more" (DoH, p. 990). Despite the bashing the Japanese receive, they end up with the last laugh. Sources: Batchelor, John Calvin. "Tom Clancy's Damn-the-Literary-Torpedoes Style Dances at the Edge of the Daily News." Rev. of Debt of Honor, by Tom Clancy. Los Angeles Times Book Review 21 August 1994: 1-9. Buckley, Christopher. "Megabashing Japan." Rev. of Debt of Honor, by Tom Clancy. New York Times Book Review 2 October 1994: 28-9. Clancy, Tom. Debt of Honor. New York: Berkley Books, 1994. Lehman, John. "Jack Ryan's New Gizmos Save Another Day." The Wall Street Journal 2 September 1994: A7. Mochizuki, Ken. "Tom Clancy starts WWII all over again: It's war again with Japan, according to best-selling novelist Tom Clancy." Northwest Nikkei 31 October 1994: 6. Zatkowski, Alicia. "To Japan, With Love: Jack Ryan, as the Spy Who Simply Got Too Old." Irish Voice 11 October 1994: 30. | ||
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