Summary Of The Ugly American

The Ugly American is a novel by William J. Lederer and Eugene Burdick about a fictional country located in Southeast Asia named Sarkhan. Sarkhan is a rather young country and is in the midst of political turmoil. From the north, Sarkhan is receiving Communist influence from China and Russia, while the United States is providing Democratic influences from the south. The novel introduces many characters, none of which have a main role as the story’s lead protagonist. All the characters in the story play important roles in how their actions have a positive or negative impact on the people of Sarkhan. Many of the characters had a positive impact while a few had a more negative impact. The actions of one person did not make a huge impact on the …show more content…
Col. Hillandale is an example of someone who understands his operational environment. In the Philippines, the people called him "The Ragtime Kid” because of his ability to interact with the local populace and sing and play the harmonica. In the northern Philippines, his outgoing personality gave him the ability to halt the rumors about the riches of the American people and allowed further influence by the Philippine government. After Amb. MacWhite’s meeting with Ramon Magsaysay; Col. Hillandale travelled to Sarkhan on temporary …show more content…
Hillandale immediately set out to learn about the people of Sarkhan. He walked the streets and spoke to the people and gathered as many facts as he could about the culture and area. While walking the streets, he realized that the Sarkhanese people believe in palm and astrology reading, which he earned a degree from the Chungking School of Occult Sciences. Don Phillippe, the Ambassador to the Philippines, invited him to a dinner party where the Sarkhanese Prime Minister would be attending. He took the time before the dinner party to study every guest on the dinner menus portfolio. He received the opportunity to read the palms of the guest because the head chef was running late with the dinner. He proved his skills as a palm reader and had a private palm reading with the Sarkhanese Prime Minister whom he had a great effect on. The prime minister revered Col. Hillandale so much that he invited Col. him to read the kings palm. Col. Hillandale understood the operational environment and recognized the greater effects of his actions when dealing with the Sarkhanese Heads of State.
Amb. MacWhite also invited Maj. Wolchek to Sarkhan to teach the Sarkhanese recruits guerilla tactics. He provided for Father Finian who eventually set up a school giving the Sarkhanese students a four year education. He also brought back John Colvin, who imported cattle from a different part of the world that changed the eating habits of some sections of the country and provided