Summary Of Ichiro Dilemmas

College was Liu’s final frontier of assimilating. He did not want to make himself look more Asian than he already was. This involved him taking several steps. He never

In the essay, “ Blaxicans and other Reinvented Americans.” Richard Rodriguez's suggest that an individual's identity is based on the cultural beliefs of oneself rather than based upon the individual’s race. Richard Rodriguez's states, “ I am Chinese and that is because I live in a Chinese city and because I want to be Chinese” (lines 163-165). Richard Rodriguez interprets his identity as Chinese in a manner of freedom and choice. Richard Rodriguez states that he is Chinese because he has the power to claim his own identity.

THESIS - When evaluating Arnold “Junior” Spirit from Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and Jin Wang from Gene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese, similarities radiate in both characters as their disparity in race deem the two of them as outcasts in the entirety of society. In addition to their lack of social interactions, their uniformity in their impulsive decisions cost them each a dear friend. Although Junior and Jin are quite similar, they share differences in the way Junior tries bettering himself by fitting into both his Indian and Reardan culture whereas Jin changes himself in every possible way to become Americanized.

The third section of the essay uses narration but also analysis, as Liu examines the effects of his assimilation. As Liu narrates his experiences in college, he analyzes their importance as related to his own acceptance into white American culture. Liu examines the cause and effect of his acts in college, like how he chose not to be pigeonholed by the race-specific clubs. He considers whether it was a good idea to distance himself from his Chinese culture in order to achieve success and respect in America. The third section deals with Liu’s college experience and how it played a part in his

Maxine Kingston's Making of More Americans like Amy Tan's Mother Tongue has been a controversial addition to Asian American literature. The writer has tried to answer the critical question of Chinese American identity and hence been criticized for adopting an orientalist framework to win approval of the west. Similarly Rendezvous by Frank Chin and Mother Tongue by Amy Tan also speak of a culture that neatly fits the description of the "Other" in the orientalist framework. It appears alien, remote and immensely degrading to women who were treated like non-human beings by Chinese chauvinistic society. However things changed for the generation of Chinese that grew up in the US or at least that is what authors wants us to believe.

and had little to none affection for Japan. To Ichiro, the U.S. was his homeland, and he should be loyal to the U.S. by joining the military. This generational gap between two different immigrant generations, Ichiro and his paranoid and controlling mother, already had the potential to create conflicts; yet the war between Japan and the U.S. intensified the tension. To Ichiro, being a No-No Boy caused by his mother’s powerful influence was destructive to him. His decision was against his will; and this decision not only destroyed his future by sending him to jail for two years, but also made him no longer a true American citizen which he used to identify himself to, because he betrayed his country. However, Ichiro was not a true Japanese either, since Japan was foreign to him in the first place. Thus, Ichiro was neither a true American nor a true Japanese; both side rejected him. Failed to gain back his bright future and seek for belonging and acceptance, Ichiro was constantly in confusion and rage. And this could be seen throughout Ichiro’s character development as he never felt peaceful or relieved, and he kept regretting about his decisions, kept questioning his self-identity and self-worth, kept punishing himself by rejecting any possible opportunities which might provide him a better future… not until his mother passed away. The quote from Ichiro’s mother revealed one of the major sources that caused Ichiro’s

Michael Walzer’s essay on “What Does It Mean to Be an American?” raises many points about the American citizen. Specifically, he discusses “American” as an adjective (Walzer). “American” is often associated with American citizens; while this is true, the term can also be applied to Canadians and Mexicans (Walzer). American is such an ambiguous adjective that it is applicable to all countries and individuals that are part of the North American continent. Like Mr. Walzer states, American is not a truly defined term and America is not a country (Walzer). Walzer goes on to introduce a Horace Kallen’s opinion on American’s as anonymous and their “unique” pluralism (Walzer). There are exceptions to all things; the positive to being an American is the fact that Americans can be whatever they choose to be. I feel to be an American one must believe in the American ideals, they must believe in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. American 's in general may be anonymous, however, upon further reflection they have left the definition of “American” open for each American to define the adjective for themselves.

The differences in Ichiro’s family contributed to his self-hatred and seemingly lost identity. To him, he was the “emptiness between the one and the other and could see flashes of the truth that was true for his parents and the truth that was true for his brother” (Okada, 19). He did not want to be Japanese because he did not know the language and was consumed with anger and hatred towards his parents because even they weren’t any less Japanese even after living in America for thirty-five years, thus utterly rejecting America (Okada, 19). In addition, his mother’s defiance of the reality of Japan’s loss in the war and their inability to go back to Japan as she hoped for, as well as his father’s lack of control and courage only increases his desire to not be Japanese. However, Ichiro’s

     Do you prefer a bases loaded double that clears the bases and involves an exciting play at home plate? Or a boring three-run homerun where the base runners trot around the bases, while the defense stands around with dazed looks on their faces? Do you prefer stolen bases, squeeze plays, and trying to move the base runners to make something happen; as opposed to a team waiting for someone to hit a homerun? If you answered “yes” then consider yourself a fan of “small ball.” The characteristic of a Designated Hitter is the major difference between Major League Baseball’s two leagues: The American League and the National League.

Chang-Rae Lee’s Native Speaker expresses prominent themes of language and racial identity. Chang-Rae Lee focuses on the struggles that Asian Americans have to face and endure in American society. He illustrates and shows readers throughout the novel of what it really means to be native of America; that true nativity of a person does not simply entail the fact that they are from a certain place, but rather, the fluency of a language verifies one’s defense of where they are native. What is meant by possessing nativity of America would be one’s citizenship and legality of the country. Native Speaker suggests that if one looks different or has the slightest indication that one should have an accent, they will be viewed not as a native of

The Japanese and their rabid ethnocentrism have their effect on the narrator’s family. The family is generally happy and well structured. The narrator lives with his mother, father, little sister and grandfather. As mentioned before, the narrator’s family pressures him to be better than the Japanese students. Upon returning home after being beaten, the men of the house invite him to eat with them and drink wine. This is a strong scene that is filled with the proudness of a parent for their son. Simply standing up to a

The tale “American Born Chinese” by Gene Luch Wang depicts the story of three characters, Monkey, Jin, and Danny. They all have the problem of fitting into their new environments. Jin Wang has to deal with Asian stereotypes. Danny has to deal with embarrassment of his cousin. Lastly, Monkey has to deal with the fact that there is no position for him in the heavenly ranks. However, over time, these characters have to come together to fit in. Yet the question remains: what exactly about fitting in is the problem? Although Jin Wang takes the form of Danny to reject his Chinese roots, the embarrassment of Chin-Knee shows he cannot hide behind a false American identity, thereby delineating that race is the source of his problem.

However, Ling also notes that finding alternative paths to one’s identity in America is difficult, as Ichiro’s fate remains ambiguous by the novel’s

For instance, as Changez arrives at Manila with Underwood Samson, he states: “Perhaps it was for this reason that I did something in Manila I had never done before: I attempted to act and speak, as much as my dignity would permit, more like an American.” Even though Changez is a US immigrant, it is suggested that he still acted in a Pakistani behavior, as he states how he had never specifically acted in the stereotypical “American” way. Additionally, the fact that Changez “attempts” to act like an American demonstrates how his identity isn’t just American, but also Pakistani as well. This defines the theme of identity, as Changez feels troubled and confused about where he really is from, and where his loyalties lie. Furthermore, Changez states how at Manila, he “learned to answer, when asked where [he] was from, that [he] was from New York.” (65). Changez stating how he was specifically from “New York” shows how he identifies the place as home, similar to his real home in Pakistan. It is shown through previous chapters that New York contains many parts of Pakistani culture, explaining why Changez relates to New York in such a cheerful and excited tone. Even so, while many relate the US and New York as identical, Changez separates the two places, stating how America represents the egotistical, condescending behavior that it expresses on others. Changez resorting

In “The Struggle to Be an All American Girl” by Elizabeth Wong, she shares with her readers the difficulty of being Chinese on the outside but American on the inside. She illustrates the dislikes of her culture in vivid details. In the passage is states that she “hated the smell” of an auditorium. She explained how the smell reminded her of “Chinese medicine, an important faraway mustiness.” Since she was young she disowned her culture. For example, when she was ten years old, she felt that she “had better things to learn than ideographs copied painstakingly…. Even though, her family was so happy that she knew English and embraced another culture she put her nose up at them and felt as they were “pedestrian.” Her word description about