Relationship Between Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet

Abby Jo Caron

Mrs.Kraus

Intro to College Literature

24 January 2023

Henry’s Growth Throughout the Novel How can relationships in literature impact the character’s actions and decisions? In the novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, the main character Henry develops many different relationships in his lifetime. These relationships influence how he perceives life and how he forms his views on conflicts that are occuring in society. During the time periods in this novel Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, as a result the President issued a statement allowing the Secretary of Defense to take necessary action as they saw fit. This just so happens to include sending away all of the Japanese Americans:

Camp Harmony was always intended

She was a Japanese American and was forced into an internment camp with her family. The two of them met at school, where they had class and often served lunch together. They grew closer and created a bond with each other that was inseparable. However, once the secretary of defense ordered the relocation of all citizens with Japanese origins, Keiko and her family had to leave their belongings and memories behind to move to an internment camp. Ford states, “Henry lingered at the edge of the boarding area, waving good-bye as they pulled away from the station, disappearing from sight. He wiped warm tears from his cheeks, his sadness diluted by the sea of families waiting for the next train”(135). It is very clear and evident that Henry was losing his best friend and was heartbroken that she was forced to leave. Keiko made an extreme impact on Henry’s life back in 1942, she meant so much to Henry that they ended up meeting again in 1982. Even after twenty years they still seemed to have the same joy and compassion for each other as the day that Keiko left. The only way that they were able to reconnect twenty years later was thanks to Henry’s son, Marty. He was able to find Keiko and arranged the meeting between them. Throughout the story, Ford demonstrated how Henry and Keiko’s relationship developed, made them the people that they became, and gave readers the light at the end of the tunnel to look forward

Ford shares the differences in parenting styles between how Henry parents his son and the way that Henry was parented by his father. The novel juxtaposed the parenting skills of both Henry and his father in the sense of how much they allowed the child to marry. Henry was told that he had to marry a Chinese girl and Henry does not mind whether or not Marty marries one or not. This is why when Marty brought home Samantha he was not sure how his father would act. When Henry was very accepting and was glad that Marty was happy it took Marty a moment to understand. Ford also demonstrates a friendly but also romantic relationship between Henry and Keiko. He states how many of these relationships affect Henry as a person and how he formed his own opinions. The novel shares the hardships that the Japanese Americans had to endure during the 1940’s. It allows people to see the different perspectives of people during that time period. When the story shifts to the 1980’s Henry is still able to recall what occurred during that time and think about how things have changed since. Ford uses that as a key point in the novel and bases the story off of Henry remembering his long lost love and their strong connection to each