The Land of Conjurors

In Gish Jen’s   The Love Wife , Bailey, who is the biological child from Blondie and Carnegie, refracts Blondie and Carnegie’s racial senses of identification. Both Carnegie and Blondie gain their sense of identification as they see the appearance of their son Bailey. Though Bailey is a half-breed child, he does not look like “soup du jour” (156), suggesting the multiethnic heritage. Since Bailey, who resembles his mother as embodied with blue eyes and blond hair, is much more like the white, Blondie not only sees her son whose appearance is similar to her but also takes him as a sense of belonging which she can wholeheartedly devote herself to Bailey. As Blondie mentions that the more she looks at Bailey, she sees more bits of the image of her white family (156), which Bailey becomes their inheritance henceforth. Although Blondie considers that Bailey has “Carnegie’s tilt eyes, and bridgeless nose, and perfect ears” (156), she constantly claims her dominance by saying that Bailey is

In Part One of Gish Jen’s   The Love Wife , the difference between Lan and Blondie is quite subtle. Blondie, who is the white as well as the Carnegie’s wife, is earnestly about getting involved in the Chinese family. Blondie knows some of Chinese. Besides, as Blondie mentions the two types of visitors, forks and chopsticks, she used to be a fork but now attempts to prove that she will finally and truly be the chopsticks (Jen 112). Blondie considers that she had undergone the process from the Western culture to the Chinese culture after getting married in the Wong’s family by bravely making a great effort to try such as eating snake, eel or rabbit’s ears that the eating habit mostly seen in Chinese culture. When Mama Wong is needed to be looked after in the nursing home, Blondie constantly ripples as to Mama Wong’s capricious temper with her Alzheimer’s disease. As Mama Wong nods for having some wontons, Blondie feels surprisingly elated (Jen 170). But, as Mama Wong is kept reminding C

In “Reclaiming the Southwest,” the term southwest is more than what we imagine. The southwest is not merely confined to the concept of space since the significance of the term southwest can break away from the linear time of Japanese American Interment narrative as it reconfigures the Southwest as a traumatic place. For instance, the sign is a way to broach the metaphorical meaning as a fixed concept. When we think of a sign, the idea of signifier is often to direct us a certain metaphorical significance or symbol derived from the cultural context or historical background. Accordingly, the term Southwest may conventionally signifies an isolated space from other traumatic events for some ethnic groups. Or the Southwest is limitedly viewed through the gazes from the tourists as well as under the gaze of hegemonic power. However, the article mentions that “arrowhead,” the ancient object remained by the Indian warrior, can be a portal of the association with the Indian groups. In Yoshiko

In the tenth chapter of John Okada’s No-No Boy , Ichiro seems to need a gaze from Christians, who make him feel that he is really moving on for his own mind at the end of his forgiving thought should be clearly examined. As Tommy and Ichiro initially come to the church, they are not welcomed by the public in the church. Subsequently, Tommy and Ichiro join a smaller church. Compared with the former one, they appear to be much delighted for the friendliness from the church members while they are quite accepted by the congregation there. Ichiro unexpectedly finds that there is white-haired Negro comes who stands in the back of them. Nevertheless, no one would like to converse with the Negro even though  everyone seems to know of this colored man’s presence. The Negro  in their back is not only  the one who is alienated but also is like an “intruder” ( Okada  231) as he enters into the small church. The Negro, who appears to reflect Tommy and Ichiro’s predicament of not being involved

In John Okada’s No-No Boy , the protagonist Ichiro questions the position of how to be the American. In the novel, to be the American can be well-defined when most characters all serve in the army of America to fight for the country. While most characters take the notion of serving in the army to be the American, they desire to be visible by eagerly proving that they are the Americans despite their efforts to the process of being recognized by the public. For instance, to show that one is an American, Taro has his attempts to join the army despite his young age. Kenji also can be regarded as an American for he contributes his life to  the American army while injured with his wounded leg. Taro and Kenji’s cases instead become visible as if they stood at the position of the “inside” as being an American is called, which Ichiro calls “the inside” ( Okada 160) of the America in Chapter Seven.

In John Okada’s  No-No Boy , Ichiro Yamada, the protagonist, constantly encounters the suffering from the Japanese-Americans who view him as a traitor. In Okada’s  No-No Boy , as Ichiro struggles with other characters who are eager to participate in the American army, to serve in the army of America becomes the kernel spirit as most people show their loyalty to their country. When Ichiro confronts with his brother Taro, he easily scorns Taro by making a contrast with him and alienating himself from him who is so frighteningly to “get into uniform to prove that [he] is not a part of [Ichiro’s]” (Okada 81). Besides, when Ichiro meets Kenji, who is more America than most American with his injured leg as serving in the military for America, he feels “a strange exhilaration” (Okada 63) as to Kenji’s life. Because Kenji is a veteran of the army of America, he always has right to laugh and love and hope in spite of his injured leg that is consuming him in a few years. Nevertheless, Ichiro se

He was about to come in. As he looked around in the room, he thought the way of living in another world. Nothing dazzling, but it was as if being caught in a standstill. That he wished to move forward as much as he could, to be pushed forward, or to be motivated by something was the current plight by which he profoundly reckoned; nonetheless no one seemed to hear his voice afar. The shadows were pining away through his quirky angle, away from others with a certain image in which he once behaved. That was when he shrugged, truly be set aside as assuming that there were some gems within. Not knowing the way he became callous about, he could have saved his energy and then been sent out. How all occasions did against him of everything that gradually loosened made him finally know, as if he had always known that the feeling would have happened in such a way. A thought, twenty percent duty, thirty percent volatility and fifty percent anxiety, he took it for sure in crystals. Looking back a

Today I rode my motorcycle on the road of Gushan District and suddenly found that I seemed to pause more than proceed on my ride. I sprawled my eyesight and then discovered the major cause. It was the traffic lights which kept detaining me whenever I was proceeding and then had to make a stop for a while... no, in fact it was more than a while... The traffic lights are set in some of the blocks for the safety of the circulation of the cars as well as the pedestrians. Nevertheless, there are too many traffic lights in Gushan be set among the blocks and small lanes which intersect the major road, causing the increase of emissions from the gases and petrol because the drivers and the riders have to stop continuously when the stop light is on. Furthermore, the air pollution can be sensed somehow since many factories are also sited in Gushan. Some of the intersection of the road are definitely in need of the traffic light, especially in schools or some other places that are usually packed w

Sometimes most of the doctors treat the patients as the persons who know nothing of their illness. Today I went to the clinic and saw a grandma who had visited the clinic several times but still deserved the treatment that was the same. She told the doctor that she seemed not to be cured as having taken the medicine prescribed by the doctor. She seemingly looked older than others; nonetheless, the doctor still responded nothing for the treatment. The doctor just swiftly made a statement of the grandma's physical condition and showed his contempt for the grandma's questions. This situation also happened on the child who was the next one to be diagnosed. The child appeared to be pretty afraid of the medical equipment because the doctor began to conduct with medical tools on his hand. The nurse merely praised the child for the cooperation and finally gave him a candy as a compliment. And the child's mother was quite satisfied with what nurse had done to her child. Yet the doct

I traced the direction of the light, and thought about how I was being a part of the nature as a gorgeous painting. As I trod into the shadows from the lushes, something excruciating seems to be frozen...gradually is flowing away. I was melted by the time I seemed to be an empty container filled with the hills and abundant trees. I thought of nothing to fight with anything at all, by which the light tells me nothing but merely shines on me in a slight angle that dangles a somewhat of a quirky oblique line. The colour of green pervades. Thick as well as heavy it seemed, matcha-like of the green algae exuberantly crawling on the surface of the lake and grey stones own its inward power of greenish gush. The egrets standing smoothly and steadily at the coconut palms were taking naps, interfered continuously by the lures of the foods given by the humans. Also, the ducks are especially adept in water, quacking sometimes as they were at war with other ducks for the sake of the foods, and yet

Today I went to the Pier-2 Art Centre and found that some decorations and facilities chiefly catered for tourists in the spot. For me, the ground of Art Centre in which is located near the place I live used to be a raw place choked by wilderness. Also, the old trains lays on the ground marks the transport in good old days. Subsequently the city government made its ground a neat place, which is very cozy for the mass. There were not many people as having expected this weekend; however, the ground of grass unexpectedly was changed into a sort of yard, a field of filed bright red flowers scattered. The ground is supposed to serve the public for doing exercises like jogging, relaxation and dog-walking. But I don't see why a nice place has to, or must, generate some kind of delicate atmosphere for mainly developing a form of tourist spot, which eagerly attracts the tourists who unavoidably and usually come and go. In addition to the decorations, some of the facilities emerge for those w

Most of the parents, as I have encountered, treat their children as a sort of the ones who are the crown of everything. The parents help their children to deserve better education than any others as I can see the ways they do to the tutors. The tutors, nonetheless, are being turned down often when attempting to request a slight teaching opportunity. The problem actually seems not to be the children but the parents who wish to find the best tutor for them. It is natural for parents to do so, but some of the parents are considerably satisfied with the numbers of the tutor who comes for the teaching demonstration, and the tutors left are being turned down afterwards. Sometimes the parents may consider that the numbers of the tutor immensely prove somewhat of the honour for their children because they tend to do little on tutors, which usually loosens a chance for at least leaving other tutors' phone numbers. For parents, perhaps their children are everything within the sight since the

Recently perceived something of how a clothing shop's sales figures boost if the timing works well with the customers. This is generally how it works in some of the clothing shops or boutiques. The shop keeper searches your tastes when you are browsing through in a variety of clothes. If there is no determined mind which aims to look for your needs, the shop keeper comes over with a dressing on their hand and then ask you to try to put it on. Then you might say, if not your true wish, "no thanks, just coming over and see if there's something particular fits me or not..." Anyway, your slight indetermination suggests somewhat of an instant opportunity for the money-making even though you are not meant to try on the clothes if it really fits you. Nonetheless, you still try the recommended clothes for not ruining the current pleasantness because trying does not mean you have to purchase them. Having tried them though, you find that the clothes fit you perfectly and seemly