Leah’s Weblog
Just another WordPress.com weblogHenry Park, you ARE Korean
Alright, sweet. So I just typed out my whole blog and as soon as I go to publish it, the freaking computer crashes. Go figure right. So seeing that I couldn’t scream and yell like I normally would because I’m in the library and fear that I may be considered insane, I guess I’ll have to type it again in the next five minutes seeing that I have class in three.
So Native Speaker..yeah, well Henry Park is a strange one. He doesn’t really explain much about who he is. Maybe this is why I loved reading the past two “memoirs” because it told so much about them. But that could be another reason why I’m not a fan of this book so far; it’s not a memoir! What the hell is going on? It’s so strange not having discussions on whether we think it’s real or not…so could we just pretend that it is a memoir?
On another note, why is Park so self-concious about who he is? He honestly could be serial killer and NO ONE would know, seeing that he seems to normal. But, hey, maybe he is seeing that there’s still some question as to what he does for a living. I mean really, him and his wife were married for 10 years and she never questioned him? Strange…maybe she didn’t really go to Europe, maybe he killed her!
Ok, so enough with the dramatic piece, I guess I’m just missing the rabbit sacrificing himself for someone. Anyways, back to Park. I think it’s odd that he finds himself uncomfortable with his nationality. In Takaki’s piece, the Koreans wanted to be independent: have their own country and not be considered another culture, such as “Japs”. Yet, Park wants to hide his identity as much as posssible. I’m pretty sure if there was a show like “The Swan” that would change your nationality, Henry Park would definately go on it. But seriously, coming from a culture that were so prideful I was shocked when he was so uncomfortable with Leila (and I am pronouncing it the ‘normal’ way when I type this). He even asked her if she had ever kissed an Asian before. Red flag there! Seriously, what a great first impression. But yeah, so he’s a strange one and I’m not sure what I think about this book so far. I guess I’ll have to keep reading!
You the man, Takaki!
Usually I write about the novels or memoirs or short pieces we had to read about. Yet, this for this blog, I wanted to focus on Takaki. Although this reading was somewhat sad, I found it very interesting. The Vietnamese people were victims as well as the United States soliders. These people barely had a chance when it came to survival. They were either killed in their homes or put on a boat to be attacked by pirates…what a hard choice to choose from. Seriously though, pirates! I had to laugh when I read this because who thinks there would be pirates in the 1970s. I was suprised at that one.
I thought this reading, although it was small, gave great images as to how the Vietnamese people lived, in both places. In America the women were able to gain something; a sense of freedom. They were able to get jobs and earn wages, although not as high as the men. And then at home, their husbands respected them enough to help around the house. Honestly, where can I sign up? I don’t know many men who help around the house. One man stated, “I started to help her with the dishes and chores around the house. Sometimes when I am on vaction and she is working, I try new recipes so that when she comes home the meals are ready” (p. 456). Wow, I want a man like that! Overall, this section gave women a voice. They didn’t have to be so dependent on their husbands any more and were learned to be respected. I think this was important for these women, who had to leave their homeland, to experience. Instead of getting rejected like the Chinese and Japanese were, the Vietnamese seemed to get more respect than the other Asian groups. They suffered just as bad as the American’s did; if not more.
“Immigration Blues” is making me blue
What a sad story. First off, Alipio’s wife dies and he’s left all alone and then he gets into an accident. Then these two women appear telling their sob stories about how one almost got deported and the other is about to. I guess it just seems so sad because as an American, I don’t have to worry about getting kicked out of a place. American’s aren’t aware of the problems and issues immigrants must go through to ensure they have a stable home and a place to live.
I find it humerous to read about people marrying someone just to say in a country. We often joke that my dad married my mom for two reasons: one, because they have the same birthday and he would only have to remember one date and two, so he could stay in the country. Although we all know that those aren’t the reasons why my parents got married, some people didn’t have this option. After reading this, I couldn’t help but remember the one epsiode on “Will and Grace” when Grace marries Will’s boyfriend so he doesn’t get sent back to his home place. In earlier episodes, Jack marries Rosario for the same reasons. Today, marrying to stay in a country has become a joke amongst many people. Yet, for some people, this was their only option.
I don’t have much of an opinion on those from the Philippines yet I do look foward to reading more about their history, just like we did with the Chinese and Japanese cultures and be able to see the similarities and differences between these three groups.
All I Asking for Is My Body
So I feel like I haven’t blogged in forever; so long in fact that I forgot how to access this webpage but not to fear, I figured it out!
Alright so this reading, I’m not gonna lie, I was awfully confused for most of it. I was probably thrown off because I didn’t read the whole book and only got the main parts of it; but after reading it three times, I think I understand it.
The thing that struck me as most interesting was this issue of the Japanese feeling ashamed to be this nationality. On the third page of reading, there is a passage that reads, “Here they worried you to death, made you a nervous wreck, don’t do this, don’t do that, don’t do anything that’d bring shame to the Japanese race…Even if I tried deliverately, every day of my life, I wouldn’t be able to produce one-thousandth of the masive shame of Pearl Harbor”. Wow! With that paragraph I felt bad for the Japanese. They were ashamed to be Japanese because of what their country, on the OTHER side of the world did. It was interesting because I tied it back to Takaki when he stated that the Japanese didn’t want to create a negative image for themselves, like the Chinese, so they screened those coming to America and only let the brightest and best out. Yet, 50 years later, all this screening and nonsense of sending the best was wasted. Japan shamed it’s citizens, who worked so hard to create a good name for themselves.
Nisei were told “Be proud you’re Japanese. Never bring same to the Japanese race.” And they never did until Pearl Harbor happened. After that the author states, “I feel ashamed I’m Japanese. I feel a shame I can never erase, and here I haven’t done a single bad thing”. And that’s how all the Japanese Americans felt; ashamed to be Japanese because someone, their “homeland” ruined this sense of pride for them.
Overall, I enjoyed this reading but found the theme of “shame” to be a major part of the novel. And maybe that’s how the Japanese felt during this time, shame.
“Two heads are better than one”
After reading these last chapters I became appalled with our country. What were we thinking putting citizens of our country into lock-down prisions? It’s strange how our schools teach us about the Holocaust; we have to read books and do whole units geared to this one event. Yet, somehow, they fail to even mention the cruelty that our country, the land of freedom, the United States of America, brought upon the Japanese people. I don’t remember learning about this at all in school. I’m pretty sure it was mentioned only once, as a side note. I can’t even recall our text books having information about this. What a shame that is. No wonder why every other country hates us so much.
Anyways…I was kind of shocked that Sone even wanted to consider herself an American after what her “home” did to her and her family, and her people. Sone writes about her experience in this time period and what her family went through. Fortunately, her family had somewhat of a happy ending, but how many others did not?
Throughout this reading I found, and highlighted, many quotes and points that I found to be interesting. One of them was the idea that Japan attacked Hawaii. “Japn just bombed Pearl Harbor… in Hawaii” (p. 145). Wasn’t Hawaii the one to accept the Japanese people to begin with? Why not bomb California to get revenge? Yes, I understand it had to do with that being an easy target and a good one because of who was stationed there, but seriously, Hawaii. Didn’t it just become a state not that long ago? I guess it seemed like a slap in the face for Hawaii. They accept the Japanese into their country and then they get bombed a few years later. What a great thank you gift.
On another note, I found it comforting that Sone finally realized who she was. During a discussion with her parents during the holidays her parents say, “We felt terribly bad about being your Japanese parents” (p. 236). At this point, Monica has realized who she is and states that she doesn’t, “resent my Japanese blood…I’m proud of it” (p. 236). Monica’s struggles allowed her to come to this moment when she finally figures out herself. She realizes that “twho heads are better than one” (p. 236) and that her “blended” cultures make her Monica Sone, a Nisei daughter.
Japanese or American…
What a difference this book is from Maxine Hong Kingston’s, The Woman Warrior. These chapters seemed to focus on Sone’s love for America, while Kingston’s novel was geared towards pushing her Chinese culture to the forefront.
Throught these chapters, Sone was always willing to defend the United States. Sone and her sibilings are Niseis, no Iseis, which is a huge difference for them. Iseis, such as her parents, are more willing to defend Japan and it’s cultures and traditions. Niseis are not; they are more likely to lean towards their culture, the American way.
This idea is shown vividly in many of the chapters. Sone seemed embarrassed of the fact that she was Japanese. She tells about many experiences she had in which she’d rather people see her as American and not Japanese. This happens when Sone, her mother, and Mrs. Kato go out shopping (the beginning of chapter 3). Mrs. Kato is doing all these Japanese ceremony things that upset Sone and people stare at them and are “attracted to the Japanese dialouge” (pg. 48). This experience and others make Sone feel like an outcast and want to rid of her Japanese heritage even more.
Even the Japanese traditions seem to be put out by Sone and her family. I found it strange that even her parents weren’t as strict to follow some traditions, like other Iseis. Sone talks about the New Year’s traditions and although they followed a few, most were not performed. Sone writes, “It was customary for the Japanese to eat buckwheat noodles on New Year’s eve, but every year whenever Mother wondered aloud whether she should make some, we voted it down. Father said, ‘No noodles for me either, Mama. A good hot cup of coffeeis what will please me most’” (pg. 82). Their Japanese ways were being turned into American ones, with no fight from the Iseis.
Even when the family went to Japan and was surrounded by the main culture, Sone still fought for her American culture. While being teased and fighting with other Japanese children, Sone and Henry were “tiring fast, but we knew this was no ordinary fight. The land where we were born was being put to the test” (pg. 98). Sone continued to fight for her country regardless of the fact that she would be more accepted in Japan and not America. It will be interesting to see how her perspectives of her two cultures will change once World War II hits and the Japanese are really targeted in the U.S.; the country Sone loves most.
Nisei Daughter…I & II
Wow, what a huge difference between this book and The Woman Warrior. How nice it was to just be able to read a book without having to think about what it means or if it’s true or not.
I have to say that I really enjoyed reading these first two chapters. Monica Sone really gave us great detail about her life in this first section. Unlike The Woman Warrior, we actually know the names of people and details about who they are. This is a huge improvment.
I thought it was so funny that Sone did not know that she was Japanese. “One day when I was a happy six-year-old, I made the shocking discovery that I had Japanese blood. I was a Japanese” (p. 3). I thought this was somewhat alarming but in a funny way. How do you not know what you are? I mean, didn’t she notice this when she went to school, or when she saw the other children around her? Sone seemed to be puzzled by this realization asking her mother, “Japanese blood — how is it i have that, Mama?” (p. 4). Maybe it has something to do with her only being six-years-old; but I assumed most children realized their differences by this age.
Once finding out this difference, Sone became very upset at the idea that she would have to do things that other Japanese children did, such as go to Japanese school. This meant she would have to forgo after-school play dates, which is just devestating to young children. As a reader, I thought her mind would change after attending this school with other children her nationality. But I was wrong. This schooling seemed like a total waste for Sone. She states, “As far as I was concerned, Nihon Gakko was a total loss. I could not use my Japanese on the people at the hotel. Bowing was practical only at Nihon Gakko. If I were to bow to the hotel patrons, they would have laughed in my face…I shed Nihon Gakko and returned with relief to an environment which was the only real one to me” (p. 28). I found this interesting. Not only did Sone just come to find out that she was Japanese, but that meant she realized she was different. Unlike Kingston, Sone did not really embrace her nationality. She didn’t start out her book with Japanese myths and did not relate to her culture. Instead she seemed to be embarrassed by it and not connect to it at all.
She was a “Nisei”, not an “Isei”. She didn’t see how she could be a “Yankee and Japanese at the same time. It was like being born with two heads. It sounded freakish and a lot of trouble” (p. 19). It seemed that Sone wished she could be just ONE thing, and not be Japanese at all because that was more difficult than being a “Yankee”. She couldn’t do things that she learned at Japanese school, only things she learned at her American school.
Overall, I really like this book, so far. But I am confused over one issue. When are they speaking Japanese and English? Does everyone know English and Japanese or just one of the languages? I wish this would be made clear, unlike in The Woman Warrior. It seems that these memiors always have puzzling issues to them!
Takaki Part II
Suprisingly, I really enjoyed reading the first section of the assigned reading. It had a lot to do with stories and real life events that people experienced, but also included history facts. Unlike the second section, this part didn’t include so many numbers and statistics; not my thing.
I found it interesting to see the differences between the Chinese and Japanese. The Japanese did not want people to migrate at first. Yet when people of their country did, the government made sure that the people they sent were ”healthy and literate and would creditably ’maintain Japan’s national honor’” and would not be “failures” like the Chinese were (pg. 46). I found this interesting that the government would do this. It seemed like in China that anyone could leave and not have to be screened until they reached America. Yet the Japanese took pride in who they sent over and what men (and women) would represent their country.
Another difference I saw was the way women were perceived. What a relief it was to read that women were actually seen somewhat positive in the Japanese culture. Yes, they were still taken to America as prostitues but overall they seemed more “liked” than in China. The government even believed that it was necessary that femals “should be educated…alongside boys” (pg. 48). It seemed that in most countries, female education was not valued. Yet here, in Japan, females attended up to 6 years of schooling. They also believed that women “‘should be allowed to go abroad’ and how Japan would ‘benefit by the knowledge thus acquired’” (pg. 48). I believe that this was a great stepping stone for women and the ways they would be portrayed overseas.
In Hawaii and the U.S. Japanese women did a lot more work than the Chinese women. Both places permitted the entry of Japanese women (Hawaii promoted this). Japanese women were seen as workers both in the fields and in the home, such as cooks and seamstresses. Japanese women were gaining positive attention, even as immigrants.
Practice Test Question
“Difference between men and women”
In the majority of the pieces we have read, there is evidence of differences between men and women. The one scenario that is very vivid is the in The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston. Kingston discusses the differences of boys and girls in the Chinese culture while growing up. She explains that girls were not looked upon as positive. People would say, “feeding girls is feeding cowbirds” (p. 46).
Kingston speaks about the difference of growing up a girl versus the ways her brothers grew up. People frowned upon the fact that her parents had only girls at one time. Kingston stated, “‘One girl – and another girl’ they said, and made our parents ashamed to take us out together” (p. 46). Once brothers entered her family, people stopped talking yet Maxine, along with many other girls in this situation, felt the pain of not being wanted. Certain traditions were only dedicated to boys, such as rolling an eggo on the face. Chinese-American girls felt no “love” or the feeling of being wanted. They were there to have babies and tend to the house, and nothing more.
Chinese American Culture
Reading the two sections by Takaki took me back to 9th and 10th grade global class. In one of those grades we learned all about Chinese immigration and the issues they dealt with throughout the late 1800s. I thought it was fascinating to learn more in detail about the culture and the way men and women were percieved. In high school we never really talked about Hawaii’s input and I was suprised to know that the Chinese knew about Hawaii at all.
Although I did find these two pieces repetitive I think it really emphasised the struggles that the Chinese had to go through. Then, in the second part of the reading, I learned a great deal on how these immigrants succeed and moved past their struggles by owning their own laundrymats and going on strike against their bosses (the transcontinental railroad). Yet, like with everything else, once someone has a little bit of success, there seems to be a downfall. The Chinese had just built a great thing for America, the transcontinental railroad, but of course, Bret Harte had to create this poem, “The Heathen Chinee”, that made the Chinese look bad. Although he did portray the Irishman as a cheat, he still got the last laugh when he beat Ah Sin and, without a doubt, shouts something absurd about the Chinese ruining the careers of white men because the Chinese work for less money. And although Harte claims he’s a “friend of the Chinese” he did more harm than good by writing about them.
It made me sad to read about Wan Lee and his death but then happy to hear about how See Up fooled stupid Americans at their own game. Overall, I enjoyed reading about this culture more indepth and reading about true life stories that truly portray Chinese American culture.
