Jin Wang Character Analysis

“I would have saved myself five hundred years of imprisonment beneath mountain of rock had I only realized how good it is to be a monkey” (American Born Chinese, pg. 223). Identity is an affinity that everyone searches for throughout life. The identity that is discovered first is usually not true, but is instead an identity that was created or shaped to match an idealistic person we want. The graphic novel American Born Chinese questions and delves into what identity means for the main character, Jin Wang. The reoccurring theme identity is constantly referenced as readers find themselves asking what identity means. Self-identity is not something that can be changed once it is found, but it is important to discover and know. Throughout this paper I will discuss what the occurring self-identity theme means in this book and the importance of finding self-identity. …show more content…
In the book we constantly witness the struggle of each character trying to fit in with a group or identity. All ending with the characters trying to transform their own identities and becoming a person, they were not meant to be. This graphic novel opened with a great introduction, on page 29 we are met with Jin Wang and an herbalist’s wife who are talking about Jin’s transforming toy. The herbalist’s wife explains to Jin that he can transform into anything he wants, “so long as you’re willing to forfeit your soul” (American Born Chinese, pg. 29). This gives way to the rest of the book and how identities are formed. Identity is the reoccurring theme throughout each tale such as the monkey king, Jin Wang, and Danny, but they all realize that to find their identity they need to be their self and not use