When The Emperor Was Divine Essay

533 Words2 Pages

Throughout history, regimes often label different groups the enemy due to military defeat or economic strife. However, once the accusations are looked at in context, the prospect is entirely illogical. Julie Otuka’s book “When the Emperor was Divine” follows a Japanese-American family during the Second World War living in Berkley, California. After the United States enters the war, the family is sent to an internment camp in Utah. While there, the book follows the young boy’s experience with his freedom being taken from him at a young age. At the end of the book the Father and the family are finally reunited after the war, only to find their father to be a broken man. By using verbal irony and hyperbole, Otsuka conveys that once the government reveals its …show more content…

I admit it. I lied. You are right. You are always right. It was a sham. I did it. I poisoned your reservoirs. Sprinkle your food with insecticide. I sent my peas and potatoes to a market full of arsenic. I planted sticks of dynamite alongside your railroads. I set your oil wells on fire. I scattered mine across the entrance to your harbor. I spied on your airfield. I spied on your naval yards. I spied on your neighbors. I spied on you.” (Otsuka 140) The sheer amount of accusations shows the absurd nature of the crimes attributed to Japanese-Americans. In addition to that, the huge number of crimes the father jokingly admits to is utterly ridiculous, that ridiculousness shows how foolish the United States government is to drop that amount of accusations on one group. After the Father’s initial sarcastic confession, he goes on in great detail about all the things the government thinks he does for the people of America. After his “confession,” he says, “I crept into your house while you were away and sullied your wife. Wait, wait, she said, don’t go. I touched your daughters–they smiled in their sleep. I smothered your firstborn son–he did not

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