Essay On Boxer And Saints

In its most basic sense, justice is the concept of rewarding good and punishing evil. Although this concept seems simple, history has shown that it is by no means as black and white as one would think. In Boxers and Saints, a graphic novel set about the Boxer Rebellion in 1899, Gene Yang exemplifies that justice is indeed complicated. After finishing these graphic novels, readers are left with the question of whether justice is ever really achieved, and whether evil is always punished and good is always rewarded. Yang thoughtfully includes each character to show that justice is never perfect, and while justice can be achieved in some cases, in other situations it may not be. Although there are some injustices presented in Boxers and Saints,

We see this with a few characters throughout the book, such as Red Lantern, and Mei-Wen. From what Yang choose to present, Red Lantern was an amazing person. He came to the village in a time of need. He spent “the rest of [his] day tending to the villagers,” and “never complain[ed] or ask[ed] for money” (Boxers 41). He also taught the villagers kung fu, and brought “bundles of food with him when he return[ed]” (Boxers 54). In the end, Red Lantern was killed by Imperial troops. Red Lantern didn’t deserve what happened to him and justice was not found because he was a good person, and he was punished, not rewarded like he should have been. Another example of someone who did not receive justice was Mei-Wen. Mei-Wen believed that “China [is] but a people and their stories” (Boxers 312). After Bao lit the library on fire, Mei-Wen decided to try and go in the burning library and save the books. “The roof eventually caves in” (Boxers 314), and Mei-Wen dies. Mei-Wen was doing something righteous at the time of her death, and did not deserve to die. Like Red Lantern, her good was punished instead of rewarded. Both of these people didn’t deserve to die the way they did, therefore exemplifying the fact that justice is not always