ipl-logo

Theme Of Reading Images In American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

1923 Words8 Pages

American Born Chinese, a graphic novel by cartoonist Gene Luen Yang, follows three characters as they struggle with their cultural identity. Once the narratives of Jin Wang, the Monkey King, and Chin-Kee are revealed to be intertwined, an overall theme of acceptance emerges. Yang reflects on his experiences as a Chinese American and a practicing Roman Catholic within the graphic novel, which professors Schieble and Pinti explore. Melissa Schieble, an English professor, asserts the importance of understanding visual cues in “Reading Images in American Born Chinese through Critical Visual Literacy,” as it encourages the development of critical thinking skills that allow students to function in a democracy. Professor Pinti, a part-time Episcopalian …show more content…

235). Considering Yang's Catholic upbringing, Pinti examines the influence of Catholicism on Yang’s novel in his criticism, “Theology and Identity in Gene Luen Yang's American Born Chinese.” He explores how “theological images and language function in Yang’s graphic novel and argues that the theological discourses woven into the novel are, no less than ethnicity, constitutive of its characters’ experiences, understandings, and discovery of identity” (p. 234). Pinti asserts that faith plays an equally important role in shaping identity as culture does. This is seen as true as “people who grow up between cultures… cannot find a home in either culture, so [they] find a home in the divine will” (p. 236). Those who belong to two cultures may feel as if they are too different to belong in either one, thus, many look to faith as it accepts everyone. Pinti links Yang’s Catholicism to many of the characters and the theme of the novel since Yang “expects his perspective as a person of faith to manifest itself in his work” (p. 236). For example, Tze-Yo-Tzuh’s emissaries “are themselves figures adopted from heavenly beings giving glory to God in the Book of Revelation” (p. 239). They represent Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, who are prominent figures in the Bible. Similarly, “Tze-Yo-Tzuh, who is Asian as well as distinctly biblical in appearance… [carries] a shepherd’s crook” (p. 239). Tze-Yo-Tzuh is God in this universe, and the shepherd’s crook alludes to Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Tze-Yo-Tzuh guides all of his creation, and when the Monkey King begins to reject his heritage, Tze-Yo-Tzuh steps in. He traps the Monkey King under a pile of rocks, referencing his birth from a rock. Pinti points out that “[the Monkey King] is positioned for what might be understood as a spiritual

Show More
Related

Gene Luen Yang's Boxers Chapter Summary

600 Words | 3 Pages

Gene Luen Yang offers a humanistic perspective on western imperialism in China during the late nineteenth century to early twentieth century in his graphic novel Boxers, a tragic narrative about Chinese grassroots resistance against foreign occupation in which an armed revolution ultimately fails. The novel focuses on religious identity, and cultural connections in the face of invasion. Boxers highlights the negative effects of imperialism through clashes between different religions, ideologies and power structures. Therefore, the criticism of western imperialism presented in Boxers could support a world systems theory approach to international relations because it shows to exploitation through westernization and the squandering of cultural

Read More

Transformation Of Wei Chen In American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

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

The Monkey King's Loss Of Power: American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

709 Words | 3 Pages

In turn, setting the tone for the entire storyline, single-handedly one of the most important plot points in the book. The nadir of the Monkey King’s storyline in American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang represents the rise and fall of power, which is portrayed through the use of visual rhetorical devices such as image scale and border and fill effects. This portrayal of the Monkey King’s downfall highlights the inevitability of life’s ups and downs and how it relates to the human experience. The first step

Read More

The Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet Quotes

575 Words | 3 Pages

"The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" by Jamie Ford is a captivating coming-of-age story that follows the life of Henry Lee, a Chinese-American boy growing up in Seattle during World War II. Throughout the novel, Henry experiences profound personal growth and self-discovery as he navigates the complexities of racial tensions, family expectations, and first love. This essay will explore how four quotes from the book exemplify the transformative journey of Henry's coming of age. Paragraph 1: In the early stages of the novel, a young Henry grapples with his dual identity as an American-born Chinese.

Read More

American Born Chinese Jin Jing Quotes

725 Words | 3 Pages

Everyone struggles at some point with how they want to be seen in the world. In the novel American Born Chinese written by Gene Leun Yang develops a fictional story with Jin Wang as the main Character. Jin struggles with his identity after moving from Chinatown to the suburbs. As a result of the American and Chinese cultures colliding, Jin Wang undergoes both physical and internal changes because he wants to fit in with everyone else. One type of change Jin Wang made after colliding with American culture is internal changes.

Read More

Plot Elements In American Born Chinese

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

Character Analysis Of Jin Wang In 'American Born Chinese'

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

Examples Of Assimilation In Fahrenheit 451

1028 Words | 5 Pages

Living as a Chinese-American, the narrator had to take on American attributes in order to be accepted -- for example, while normal Chinese women spoke with strong and assertive voices, the narrator adopted a whisper in order to appear “American-feminine. ”(1) As a result, however, her shy demeanor caused her to be an unpopular outcast. She saw herself in another Chinese-American girl at her school, as they had certain, negative similarities. “I hated the younger sister, the quiet one.

Read More

American Born Chinese Thesis

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

The Three Different Identities In American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

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

American Born Chinese Identity

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

The Monkey King Identity Essay

1025 Words | 5 Pages

This continues to be the case as the book goes on without much havoc. The problem arises when The Monkey King questions his own identity. This occurs when he attempts to enter a party full of gods and goddesses. Most of the

Read More

The Importance Of Communication In The Joy Luck Club

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

Chinese Culture Personal Statement

1031 Words | 5 Pages

Personal Statement I would like to confirm that it is my motivating of Chinese culture that ignited my passion for cultural and creative industry. As a Tourism Management major student, I was able to explore the Chinese diversified cultures and landscapes, which offered me an insightful understanding of the Chinese cultural development. Under the guidance of commercialization, some cultural heritages have developed into huge tourism souvenir markets full of counterfeit and shoddy products. The over-commercialization reveals the fact that the Chinese culture is facing a severe situation. The country calls for a better cultural development strategy, which cultural and creative industry can offer.

Read More

Essay On Chinese Culture

1243 Words | 5 Pages

The traditional Chinese cultures have a development process for thousand years, now we are creating another kind of traditional culture especially under the wave of globalization. Although the form of expressing or performing the culture experienced some changes but the basic idea and belief behind rarely changed. To promote Chinese culture we would refer to the essence of Chinese wisdom so the following is actual practicing of different dimensions of Chinese traditions which show the beauty of China. The family concept is the essence of Chinese culture.

Read More

More about Theme Of Reading Images In American Born Chinese By Gene Luen Yang

Related Topics

Open Document