Girl who rose from the ruins of Manzanar Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston wrote the book namely Farewell to Manzanar is an autobiographical memoir of writer’s confinement at the place Manzanar that happened to be a Japanese-American internment camp. The book is based on the happenings during the time of America and Japan dispute and what happened to the Japanese families’ resident in the United States of America. It is written by Houston to recollect as well as represent at the same time what happened to the well-settled Japanese families in the doubt of disloyalty. In this book, Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston argues by remembering all the major and minor effects of war on her family consisting of her parents, granny, four brothers and five sisters. Houston has written this book as a memoir of her wartime incarceration along with her family starting with a forward and a timeline as well.
Takaki’s book shows the differences and similarities minority groups experienced during the war. This is not a typical history book, as it is a book that contains different stories and experiences of the war both abroad
Walker does not just take the reader on a tour of the decision-making process of President Truman and shows what made him to order the use of Atomic bombs on Japan, but he also provide an exploration of the historical situation that prompted the decision. He also examines the viewpoint of the Japanese, not only regarding the impact of the bombings on their ultimate decision to surrender, but also how their Allies called for an unconditional surrender. This call could possibly have led to the Japanese Emperor, Hirohito, being tried on counts of war crimes, which may have possibly made the Japanese to be reluctant on surrendering even in light of a crushing defeat (Huczko). Samuel Walker also provides useful insights into contribution made by the decision to use Atomic weapons on Japanese decision to surrender.
Many relatives view Suyuan Woo as a terrible mother with a narcissist personality, as she leaves her daughters behind and rub for safety. During World War II, the Japanese army marched into China taking control of acres of land as Chinese citizens fled for safety. Suyuan left her hometown, Kweilin, with her twins hoping to find her husband, a chinese soldier. In addition to her twins, Suyuan was also carrying food, clothes, jewelry and money. After hours of walking, her palms filled with blisters as she began to lighten the carrying weight by dropping bags on the ground, losing them forever.
When the Emperor was divine is a very interesting book. It explains the story of the WW1 internment camps from the point of view of the Japanese people and what they went through. It also includes many forms of symbolism that can completely change the story’s meaning. It also tries to imply how “American” the Japanese-American internees really were.
“I had nearly outgrown the shame and the guilt and the sense of unworthiness. This visit, this pilgrimage, made comprehensible, finally, the traces that remained and would always remain, like a needle.” The text Farewell To Manzanar, written by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston, embellishes Jeanne’s experience while being placed in an internment camp. Jeanne’s family faced with various obstacles through the process of being evacuated from their home to living in an internment camp. Throughout the text, Jeanne also explains how her life was full of hardships compared to how she perceived the lives of Caucasians.. Though the American Government was afraid that Japanese-Americans were potential saboteurs, there’s no justified for interning them because it was not equitable to blame a whole society on a small portion action’s, the families were not equipped with the proper care and attention, and the Japanese-American children were faced with racism that they could not withstand.
Like many children her age, the girl in Julie Otsuka’s novel When the Emperor was Divine had the opportunity to attend a “summer camp.” However, the camps that the girl and her family endured were not like traditional summer getaways but instead state-sponsored prisons designed to keep the populace “safe.” Instead of enjoying the water slides and rope swings that other children her age got to experience, the girl struggled with establishing an identity that fit with the rest of her society. With her use of neutral tone and language, Julie Otsuka explores the creation of the cultural identity that is established by the Japanese-American people as they are confined in Concentration camps designed to keep the nation safe. Pulled from their homes,
“My Son the Marine” by Frank Schaeffer and John Schaeffer gives us a look into the life of a mother and father; and their feelings toward their son enlisting into the Marine corp. John had aspirations of joining the military to serve his country. He had spoken to recruiters from the Army, Air force, and the Navy but had yet spoken to the Marine Corp. John was taken by the appearance of the two Marines that visited his home. After he spoke with the Marines he decided that if he was going to join the military he would definitely join the Marine Corps.
In defiance of his mother’s warning, the boy sometimes walks past the guard towers, pulls his hat down over his head, and whisper the Emperor’s name. The woman knows that if the guards hear the boy say the Emperor’s name, they will be suspicious that the boy and his family are allied with Japan and the divine Emperor. As a small act of resistance, then, the boy repeats the Emperor’s name as a way of holding onto his heritage and cultural identity even as the government tries to demonize it or strip it
Julie Otsuka’s When the Emperor was divine is a novel that takes place right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. In the beginning of the novel, the Japanese American family consists of a mother with her two children. They are in a turning point of their lives. There are posters and signs indicating that anyone with japanese ancestry must evacuate. Immediately the family starts feeling the rejection of their neighbors and people around them.
In the The Things They Carried, the emotions are more than just a mental problem, they become life changing conflicts. The author of this book is Tim O’Brien. Tim O’Brien is the main character throughout the whole book. In the beginning of the book, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien goes in depth describing what each of the men carried with them. He started with actual things having to deal with war, then talking about the emotional burdens the men carried.
“Her actions remind me that, even under unbearable circumstances, one can still believe in justice,” in David Henry Hwang’s foreword, in Ji-Li Jiang’s memoir Red Scarf Girl, commemorated even during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution anyone can overcome adversity (9). Ji-Li Jiang was a young teenager at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, and living through a very political time in China’s history made Ji-Li into the person she is today. Ji-Li’s intelligence, her choices, and family devotion made her into the headstrong and successful person she is today. Even when Ji-li thought she was unintelligent, others saw she was wise. There were many moments when Ji-Li was reminded she was very smart.
They realized that in a time of need they could work together to accomplish their goals and defeat. Just as the war began to unite the two countries, it quickly
“Mary Tsukamoto once said ‘I knew it would leave a scar that would stay with me forever. At that moment my precious freedom was taken from me’” (Martin 54). The Betrayal. The attack on Pearl Harbor.
It came to dominate my understanding of the discussion on the social and historical scene and to restrict my ability to participate in that discussion.(444) If we go back and use the reference again of the electronic tool we can see the struggle of being at home and communicating with her family and having an influence of capitalistic viewpoints and living the life of a capitalist, then immediately having to communicate in a different language at school and being surrounded by socialistic views and living the life of a socialist. Her thoughts were constantly flip-flopping and this became very frustrating for her. If we bring all these struggles into one main purpose, Min-Zhan Lu’s mother falls into silence two months before her death and Min-Zhan Lu attempts to “fill up that silence with words that I have since come to by reflecting on my earlier experience as a student in China.(437) The struggles that she faced growing up in China as a student and her past experiences have really helped her overcome life obstacles and develop her as a better reader and writer.
