Truth can be defined as something that is in accordance with reality. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, written by Jamie Ford, is an accurate depiction of the 1940s, as a Japanese-Internment camp is a very prominent setting in the book. The bombing of Pearl Harbor changed racial relations in America, shifting hatred for Chinese-Americans into camaraderie, and made Japanese-Americans an enemy of the people. On February 19th, 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which allowed the evacuation of persons deemed a threat to national security. Though this Executive Order 9066 didn’t specifically list a target ethnic group, it only affected Japanese-Americans. Just twenty days later, Japanese-Americans began
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Japanese-Americans weren’t allowed to join the US Military, being classified as “unsuitable for service because of race or ancestry” (National Park Service). Keiko is denied service when she and Henry venture outside Nihonmachi (a term to describe a Japanese community, meaning “Japan Town” when translated) to buy something, going to a department store in a white neighborhood. When Keiko tries to pay, she is ignored and denied service by a cashier solely for her race, “‘Is this counter open?’ Keiko asked. The clerk just looked around for another customer. ‘Excuse me, ma’am, I’d like to buy this record, please.’ Henry was becoming more annoyed than the clerk looked- her hip cocked, her jaw set. She leaned down and whispered to them, ‘Then why don’t you go back to your own neighborhood and buy it?’. Henry had been given dirty looks before, but he’d never experienced something like this [...] the clerk stood there, her fist dug into her hip. ‘We don’t serve people like you- besides, my husband is off fighting’” (114). Segregation based on race became more of a problem than it already was during the …show more content…
‘It’s a Jap!’ one of the boys yelled. ‘Get him!’ ‘No, it’s a chink,’ Will said, stopping the boy for a moment as they all stalked in Henry’s direction” (169). Usefulness can be defined as when something is entertaining. In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, I will explore how the book is useful for the purposes of entertaining. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is, as the name suggests, a bittersweet novel that contains heavy themes of discrimination and coming of age, as well as young love. The book will be useful to anyone seeking to gain an understanding of the time period and what it was like for Asian-Americans. To look for insight as to what tensions were like between Chinese-Americans and Japanese-Americans during the 1940s, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet gives many poignant examples of the racism happening during that time. One of the most shocking examples in my opinion was when Henry finally confesses to his close friendship with a Japanese girl, evoking a strong and hateful reaction from his father, “‘I send you to school. I negotiate your way into a special school. I do this for you [...] You’re making eyes with this
Japanese-Americans weren’t allowed to join the US Military, being classified as “unsuitable for service because of race or ancestry” (National Park Service). Keiko is denied service when she and Henry venture outside Nihonmachi (a term to describe a Japanese community, meaning “Japan Town” when translated) to buy something, going to a department store in a white neighborhood. When Keiko tries to pay, she is ignored and denied service by a cashier solely for her race, “‘Is this counter open?’ Keiko asked. The clerk just looked around for another customer. ‘Excuse me, ma’am, I’d like to buy this record, please.’ Henry was becoming more annoyed than the clerk looked- her hip cocked, her jaw set. She leaned down and whispered to them, ‘Then why don’t you go back to your own neighborhood and buy it?’. Henry had been given dirty looks before, but he’d never experienced something like this [...] the clerk stood there, her fist dug into her hip. ‘We don’t serve people like you- besides, my husband is off fighting’” (114). Segregation based on race became more of a problem than it already was during the …show more content…
‘It’s a Jap!’ one of the boys yelled. ‘Get him!’ ‘No, it’s a chink,’ Will said, stopping the boy for a moment as they all stalked in Henry’s direction” (169). Usefulness can be defined as when something is entertaining. In Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, I will explore how the book is useful for the purposes of entertaining. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is, as the name suggests, a bittersweet novel that contains heavy themes of discrimination and coming of age, as well as young love. The book will be useful to anyone seeking to gain an understanding of the time period and what it was like for Asian-Americans. To look for insight as to what tensions were like between Chinese-Americans and Japanese-Americans during the 1940s, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet gives many poignant examples of the racism happening during that time. One of the most shocking examples in my opinion was when Henry finally confesses to his close friendship with a Japanese girl, evoking a strong and hateful reaction from his father, “‘I send you to school. I negotiate your way into a special school. I do this for you [...] You’re making eyes with this