ipl-logo

American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

1885 Words8 Pages

In the graphic novel American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, three separate perspectives are told in the same story. The first point of view is about a Monkey King who just wants to fit in with the humans. The next story is about a teenager named Jin Wang who has very few friends, however bonds with a new student named Wei Chen Sun. The final story is about two boys named Danny and Chin Kee. Danny has a love-hate relationship throughout the novel because of Chin Kee’s stereotypes that embarrass him. These parallel storylines illustrate struggles regarding acceptance and identity. Gene Luen Yang exhibits forms of symbolism, exaggerated stereotypes, and complex characters to compel readers to rethink their understanding of cultural identity and self-acceptance. …show more content…

For instance, The Monkey King has trouble with understanding who he is and tries to cover it up with a massive ego and a belief that he is superior to others. Jin feels like an outcast because of his heritage and tries to “fix himself” by changing his hair to appear less Chinese and more like the other kids in his school. Chin-Kee is constantly being avoided by his cousin, Danny, and the kids at school and mock him for his stereotypical Chinese features. One specific quote of symbolism used with a specific character is when the Monkey declares “I was born in the shadow of the mountain, beneath a blood-red moon”. I am Sun Wukong, the Monkey King! I am born from stone, enriched by Heaven and Earth -an immortal of heaven! "(Yang 50)". This quote showcases the MonKings pride and desire to prove himself within his heritage and make himself one with the higher powers. This situation mirrors Jin’s struggle with Chinese heritage mixing with American culture. Both examples symbolize the common theme of wanting to feel accepted while still embracing your true self and your culture. An additional occurrence of symbolism in American Born Chinese is the exaggerated

Show More
Related
670 Words | 3 Pages

Cooper Maschmeyer Mrs. Mercado English 1-11 12/21/22 American Born Chinese Essay No change or transformation is made on its own, it is influenced by somebody, somewhere, or something. People can be influenced in many different ways; this idea is conveyed through two characters that Gene Luen Yang creates. Wei Chen is constantly influenced by Jin, which leads to negative transformations for Wei Chen. In the graphic novel, “American Born Chinese”, Gene Luen Yang communicates the theme, people’s actions often influence change in identity and mindset, by using Wei Chen’s moral principles, identity, and attitude in the moral world.

Read More
1617 Words | 7 Pages

Faced with stereotypes in America, Lee is also tormented in China for his American nationality and lack of modern cultural awareness. Both communities view Lee and Chinese-Americans as “others”, refusing to fully accept them culturally or socially. Lee is foreign everywhere, since he is not a white American or a Chinese citizen. Only able to find solidarity in the community of “othered” Chinese-Americans, Lee feels more accepted in America than in China. However, those that only see Lee for his ethnicity and not for his inner person are racist against him because he does not fit the mold of what a “perfect” American is supposed to look and sound like.

Read More
854 Words | 4 Pages

The text says, “The little boy’s face was round and dimpled and his eyes were very bright”. This quote showcases how the child's assimilation has caused him to adopt American cultural norms, which has caused him to feel disconnected from his Chinese heritage. As a result, he is unable to connect with his parents on a familial level, which has caused instability within the

Read More
910 Words | 4 Pages

As a student who is of Chinese heritage, students at Rainier Elementary view Henry as a foreigner, even though he was born in an American hospital and speaks English. On the other hand, Chinese students who attend Chinese schools view him as an American for not attending the same school as them and speaking a language other than

Read More
1095 Words | 5 Pages

Although he draws out a story where a Chinese boy turns against his own language and culture for the sake of fitting in, the moral of the comic is that the past will always be a part of you no matter what. The two texts give the readers examples of what makes the past, so rich and how our roots are truly forever bound to us. The authors, both hope to have their audience realize that wanting to fit into one’s generation is fine, but knowing one’s roots and accepting them as your own as you are doing so, is even

Read More
880 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel “American Born Chinese” by Gene Luen Yang (2006), it talks about three different people’s stories. The author starts off with telling a story about a monkey called the Monkey King, who lives in the jungle, seeking for higher power to become considered a god in the book. The author also tells a story about an American born Chinese boy named Jin Wang, who moves from San Francisco and struggles with fitting in at a new school. The last story the author tells is about a boy named Danny who has his cousin Chin-Kee from China visit every year. Danny ends up struggling to keep his reputation in adequate shape at school after his cousin visits causing him to switch schools often.

Read More
827 Words | 4 Pages

American Born Chinese is a story about Jin, an American with Chinese roots, who struggles with his identity - self-conscious about how he looks, sounds, and acts. Jin divides into three different identities; Jin his overall identity, Danny his typical American side, and Chin-Kee his racist stereotype Chinese side. This book is split into three different stories that represent the three different identities, The Monkey King’s story, Jin’s story, and Danny and Chin-Kee’s story. In the graphic novel, American Born Chinese, Gene Luen Yang uses symbolism and literary elements to illustrate struggling with your identity can lead to a better understanding of who you are and where you came from. Jin is faced with racial discrimination, not fitting

Read More
1402 Words | 6 Pages

The narration beautifully illustrates the struggles of being pushed into a foreign world, where people look different, have other traditions, other norms, and speak an entirely different language. Based on her own childhood experiences as a migrant from Hong Kong, Jean Kwok tells the story of young and exceptionally intelligent Kimberly Chang who finds herself doing the splits between a life in Chinatown, wasting away as a sweatshop worker and living in a run-down apartment, and striving for a successful career at a fancy private school. Kimberly translates herself back and forth between a world where she can barely afford clothes and a world where, in spite of her intelligence, she 's supposed to look the part as she reaches for higher education. It is a tale of survival and beating the odds, but ultimately, it is also a fragile love story in an unforgiving environment. The narration is raw, honest, and authentic, with the Chinese culture being cleverly woven into the storyline.

Read More
2051 Words | 9 Pages

Vizzini reviewed American born Chinese and he also agrees that Identity is the heart of the book. He starts by talking about how Yang used Chin Kee to express his deepest fears of how others perceive Asian Americans. In the book 's more realistic sections, Wang 's friend Wei Chen is embarrassingly fresh off the boat ; Chin Kee is less embarrassing than monstrous. He comes to the United States for a visit with Danny, his blond, blue eyed cousin, and enters with a shout of "Harro Amellica!" Which gives a bad impression of how Asians act when they come to a new country. Chin Kee himself is the reaction of his American peers.

Read More
193 Words | 1 Pages

The story “To Kill A Mockingbird”, by Harper Lee, starts off as the narrator Jean Louse Finch (Scout), tells the tale of her brother breaking his arm. She then continues on to her family history and how down the line after Simon Finch left England to avoid religious persecution, he bought slaves in America and built Finch’s Landing, a plantation in Alabama. The property was passed from each generations’ son to the next until it reached Scout’s father, Atticus. As Scout tells the story of Simon Finch, she discreetly implements a few of the story’s themes; the evil men commit, hypocrisy, and racism.

Read More
1025 Words | 5 Pages

The Power of Identity Despite varying circumstances, both visually and contextually, the theme portraying that extreme measures are often taken when others are not accepting of an identity is developed by actions in American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. In the beginning of the book, The Monkey King is more or less serene and collected. At first the book shows some scenes on pages 10 and 11, where he is training peaceful, simple disciplines, and as stated on page 10, “The monkey king ruled with a firm but gentle hand.”

Read More
461 Words | 2 Pages

In conclusion, American Born Chinese successfully uses plot elements to have multiple effects on readers. All three stories use parallel plots because they are different perspectives and stories put together to create a bigger story. Jin-Wang’s story uses foreshadowing by having details that relate to the Monkey King. Lastly, the Monkey King’s story uses conflict and keeps the readers wanting to know how the conflict is dealt with. All three plot elements were successfully used to create emotions within the

Read More
1225 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the entire novel, the mothers and daughters face inner struggles, family conflict, and societal collision. The divergence of cultures produces tension and miscommunication, which effectively causes the collision of American morals, beliefs, and priorities with Chinese culture which

Read More
652 Words | 3 Pages

Romantic era Music Vs. Heavy Metal with Cognitive Function I believe a participant who listens to Romantic era Music while preforming a cognitive task such as reading will do it more efficiently then with out the music. Music causes one to recognizance patterns so I believe this is like a “warm up” for your brain. When someone starts to read there mind is already making connections to the material.

Read More
723 Words | 3 Pages

In American Born Chinese, Jin Wang changes immensely from the beginning to the end of the story. At the beginning of the story, Jin Wang wants to fit in and break apart from his Chinese Heritage. By the end of the story, because of various external and internal conflicts, Jin has learned to accept his Chinese heritage. He has also experienced anger, happiness, regret, and guilt that all got him to the point where he learned to accept his heritage.

Read More

More about American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

Open Document