When first gazing at the graphic novel American Born Chinese, one‟s first instinct might be to classify it as a graphic novel made for young adults to read. Although this predictable reaction can be supported by the graphic novel‟s content and structure, a closer evaluation of the book allows the reader to see many mature and complex ideas emerging from under the surface.
One of the most obvious of the ideas is racism. Jin Wang, the protagonist who tells the story, has to cope with life in America as an ethnic minority. Due to the fact that Jin is a Chinese American, he witnesses bigotry firsthand on many occasions. This racial intolerance ultimately leads Jin to sacrifice a sizeable part of who he is as a person in order to please others in
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Despite her good intentions, the teacher, Mrs. Greeder makes an error in stating Jin‟s name to the class. Instead of calling him Jin Wang, she refers to him as: “Jing Jang.” (American Born Chinese 30.1) She follows this mistake by stating that Jin
Wang and his family moved all the way from China, when in fact they moved from San
Francisco, California. Although the teacher exhibits benevolent tendencies toward Jin, her consistent mistakes and assumptions about Chinese culture seem to suggest deep ignorance about
Jin and his culture. The situation becomes more uncomfortable for Jin when a classmate, a young
Caucasian sporting dog tags, named Timmy raises his hand. Timmy states his momma said that,
“…Chinese people eat dogs.” Mrs. Greeder responds to this statement by saying, “Now be nice,
Timmy! I‟m sure Jin doesn‟t do that! In fact, Jin‟s family probably stopped that sort of thing as soon as they came to the United States!” (American Born Chinese 31.3)
Not only does her statement scream xenophobia towards the Chinese way of life, her declaration also suggests ethnocentrism. By saying that Jin‟s family probably “stopped that
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(American Born Chinese 32.4)
In spite of the fact that Jin eventually becomes best friends with Wei-Chen Sun, a student from Taiwan, the first interaction that the two characters share seems to suggest a lot about Jin‟s desire to assimilate to American culture. On page 37, Wei-Chen attempts to communicate with
Jin in Chinese. Jin responds to this by saying, “You‟re in America. Speak English.” (American
Born Chinese 37.3) Here, we see the first signs of Jin‟s desire to conform to please other people.
It is important to note that Jin is eating a sandwich, a traditional American food—he is not eating dumplings with chopsticks as her previously did. On the following page, Wei-Chen asks Jin if they can be friends. Jin responds by this by saying, “I have enough friends.” (American Born
Chinese 38.2) He then proceeds to point to a crowd of kids playing football; in this crowd of people is Timmy, the kid who previously made racially-charged comments directly to Jin.
(American Born Chinese 38.4) This passage is incredibly significant because it demonstrates that Jin desires to be liked by his American peers. As a result of this, Jin attempts to change himself to be
In the beginning paragraphs of Mrs. Spring Fragrance, Sui Sin Far introduces readers to the Chin Yeuns and their beautiful 18-year-old daughter, Mai Fwi Fan, who goes by her American name, Laura. Sui Sin Far describes the Chin Yeuns as living “in a house furnished in American style, and wore American clothes, yet they religiously observed many Chinese customs, and their ideals of life were the ideals of their Chinese forefathers” (865). Abiding by Chinese tradition, Laura’s parents have “betrothed their daughter” (865) to the son of the Chinese Government school-teacher. Laura confesses to Mrs. Spring Fragrance that she is actually in love with Kai Tzu. Mrs. Spring Fragrance is the only person who knows about the relationship between Laura and Kai Tzu. Unfortunately, for Laura, her betrothal is quickly approaching. Mrs. Spring Fragrance, trying to cheer up her young friend, quotes the famous l...
One day an old man comes to join the family for supper-- he new Poh-Poh from Old China... the man is odd looking and Liang thinks him to be "the Monkey Man" from the ghost stories her grams is always telling. Regardless Liang and this man she comes to call Wong-Suk become great friends. They go to the movies together and get jeered at (I'm not sure if this is beacause 'Beauty and the Beast' or because they are Chinese); he tells her stories; and she dances for him.
In Fish Cheeks a girl named Amy had a crush on an american boy named Robert, she was afraid that if Robert found out about her chinese culture then he would not like her back. When she found out that he was invited over for dinner Amy was devastated “When I found out that my parents had invited
with her husband, who had served in the army during World War II, part of the wave of Chinese who were finally considered more American because of their patriotism. They had also come to Detroit for job opportunities, and lived and worked in a basement laundry operation. Chin’s mother distinctly recalls being harassed by neighborhood kids and people at a baseball game; she and her husband were also physically assaulted because their Chineseness marked them as perpetual foreigners. She could not have children so they adopted a boy from China, Vincent. He had integrated pretty well, establishing himself as an engineer who was popular, made friends easily, and was always laughing and
In the graphic novel American Born Chinese, written by Gene Luen Yang, there are many significant signs that symbolize meanings that challenge the reader to understand exactly what he or she may be reading. One of these signs that constantly appears is self-acceptance for one of the main characters, “Jin”. Jin is a young boy who has just moved and enrolled in Mayflower Elementary and has no idea what to expect. Jin soon realizes that he is not just going to have to get used to his new school, but he also has to learn to accept that he is going to differ from most of his classmates. This is important in many ways. Since Jin is not only culturally different as well as physically different he has many tough obstacles to overcome. Throughout the novel Jin’s self-acceptance is constantly tested. Why is Jin an outcast? How does he deal with this problem? And what is the result? Lastly, how does Jin’s situation relate to our society today?
In the story, "Fish Cheeks" it talks about how Amy Tan's Chinese family invites an American boy's family over for dinner. Amy Tan wants to impress him and thinks that he wont like the food her mother made even though it is her favorite food. She can tell that he doesn't like the food and she is embarased. So, Amy wants to fit in.
June-May fulfills her mother’s name and life goal, her long-cherished wish. She finally meets her twin sisters and in an essence fulfills and reunites her mother with her daughter through her. For when they are all together they are one; they are their mother. It is here that June-May fulfills the family portion of her Chinese culture of family. In addition, she fully embraces herself as Chinese. She realizes that family is made out of love and that family is the key to being Chinese. “And now I also see what part of me is Chinese. It is so obvious. It is my family. It is in our blood.” (Tan 159). Finally, her mother’s life burden is lifted and June-May’s doubts of being Chinese are set aside or as she says “After all these years, it can finally be let go,” (Tan 159).
Being Chinese-American neither makes an individual strictly Chinese, nor strictly American; their cultural identification began to form in their very different upbringings. Chin experienced a more traditional Chinese childhood that reinforced prescribed male and female roles in the family unit; he was exposed to racial prejudices and widespread poverty. Kingston grew up in Stockton, California. Stockton proved to be more progressive and welcoming, although not without difficulty, Kinston’s all American childhood did produce some prejudice. Kingston’s childhood did not lend itself to the ethnocentrism that a strictly Chinatown childhood would. This upbringing is where their dislike for each other’s narrative has its roots.
As the daughter mature, they begin to feel that their identities are incomplete and become interested in their Chinese heritage. One of Jing-mei’s greatest fears about her trip to China is not that others will recognize her as American, but that she herself will fail to recognize any Chinese elements within herself. Waverly speaks wishfully about blending in too well in China now that it’s in fashion, Waverly likes to think that being Chinese is part of her identity, and doesn’t appreciate it when her mom points out how American Waverly.
In the beginning of the story, the author describes the Chin Yuen's as American in appearance yet Chinese in customs. Throughout the story she continues to describe the deterioration of the Chinese customs by American ideal. This is pinpointed when Mr. Chin Yuen decides to let his daughter marry the boy that she loves. The conversation that Mr. Spring Fragrance has with Young Carman explains that only in American culture is it customary to find love before marriage; in the Chinese tradition, all marriages are arranged. This clearly exemplifies the manner in which the Chinese characters are more and more disregarding their Chinese culture and taking on this new American standard of living. Ironically, Sui Sin Far conveys the notion that the American tradition is not necessarily better than the Chinese tradition. More so she demonstrates the struggle of identity between two worlds that both make sense. Though Laura and Kai Tzu have found their happiness in the American tradition of marriage, the reader discovers that Mr. and Mrs. Spring Fragrance are equally as happy even through the Chinese tradition of marriage.
She sees the opportunities that America has to offer, and does not want to see her daughter throw those opportunities away. She wants the best for her daughter, and does not want Jing-Mei to ever let go of something she wants because it is too hard to achieve. "America is where all my mother's hopes lay. . .There were so many ways for ... ...
see Jing-mei struggles with her identity for over 30 years, but it finally is resolved once
Yang, Gene Luen, and Lark Pien. American Born Chinese. New York: First Second, 2006. Print.
Jin Wang, the main character in American Born Chinese transforms in order to deal with stereotypes and prejudice. After moving from Chinatown San Francisco to a new school, Jin realizes he is the only Asian other than Suzy Nakamura (31). Jin immediately faces racial stereotypes and slurs, such as “Chinese people eat dogs”, and arranged marriages (31). Even the teachers have preconceived ideas about Jin’s heritage. His third grade teacher Mrs. Greeder has little understanding of the pronunciation of Jin’s name and from where he moved, thinking he came “all the way from China” (30). In order to integrate in his new environment, he assimilates himself into American culture, transformed into a “regular” American. After stereotyped for eating dog, Jin is seen eating without chopsticks, part of his Asian tradition, and begins to eat “normal” American cuisine, such as sandwiches (37). When Wei Chen arrives, Jin tells him “(he’s) in America” and to “speak English” (37). Even though Jin is fully capable of communicating with Wei-Chen, he decides to abandon his previous culture. Jin chooses to fully transform into an American. He tries to completely dispose of his Asian identity and develop a new one. In order to do this he develops the n...
Their accidental meeting, when Joo Won mistakes Ra Im for actress Park Chae Rin, marks the beginning of a tense, bickering relationship, through which Joo Won tries to hide a growing attraction to Ra Im that both confuses and disturbs him. To complicate matters further, a strange sequence of events results in them swapping