The novel When the Emperor was Divine by Julie Otsuka depicts the experience of the Japanese internment.
As the novel begins, the women remain composed and keep her calmness while preparing for her family's trip to an unknown destination. She is very purposeful in all her action she does to get ready for their journey. She works hard to get everything that they were allowed to bring and “by early afternoon her handkerchief was soaked. She was breathing hard and her nose was itching from the dust.” (pg. 9) After she accomplished all these tasks she treated herself to “ a plate of rice balls stuffed with pickled plums...The plums were dark and sour. They were just the way she liked them.” (pg. 9) She indulged in her favorite meal as she did …show more content…
He sarcastically admits to doing all of these things that he was accused of. One example is when he reveals that “(he) spied on you- you get up six, you like bacon and eggs, you love baseball, you take your coffee with cream, your favorite color is blue.” (pge 140-141) By “admitting” to all of these things he is explaining in a mocking kind of way how absurd and unlikely it is that a single man could commit all that government accuses him of doing. He describes how ridiculous it is to but the all the blame on one person. When the father asks “who am I? You know who I am. Or you think you do. I’m your florist. I’m your grocer. I’m your porter.” (pg 142) he is is referring the you to the white American public and the “I” is how they are being portrayed as the Asian stereotype. By being very specific he shows how crazy it is to generalize such a big population. Instead of staying quiet he express the fear, anger and hate he had during the internment camps. The father does apologize but only in a sarcastic way. He just tells them “I’m sorry. There. That’s it. I’ve said it. Now can I go?” (pg 144) which is what they want to hear and the only thing he can say to be set free. All of these traumatic events transform him from a loving, kind, energetic youthful father into a man stiped of his idenity. He has no real identity left and all he has to live by these “masks” of the stereotypical Asian man. In this section the father does not reveal any thing really personal or direct about who he is because he may not even know himself after all of his
As the novel begins, the women remain composed and keep her calmness while preparing for her family's trip to an unknown destination. She is very purposeful in all her action she does to get ready for their journey. She works hard to get everything that they were allowed to bring and “by early afternoon her handkerchief was soaked. She was breathing hard and her nose was itching from the dust.” (pg. 9) After she accomplished all these tasks she treated herself to “ a plate of rice balls stuffed with pickled plums...The plums were dark and sour. They were just the way she liked them.” (pg. 9) She indulged in her favorite meal as she did …show more content…
He sarcastically admits to doing all of these things that he was accused of. One example is when he reveals that “(he) spied on you- you get up six, you like bacon and eggs, you love baseball, you take your coffee with cream, your favorite color is blue.” (pge 140-141) By “admitting” to all of these things he is explaining in a mocking kind of way how absurd and unlikely it is that a single man could commit all that government accuses him of doing. He describes how ridiculous it is to but the all the blame on one person. When the father asks “who am I? You know who I am. Or you think you do. I’m your florist. I’m your grocer. I’m your porter.” (pg 142) he is is referring the you to the white American public and the “I” is how they are being portrayed as the Asian stereotype. By being very specific he shows how crazy it is to generalize such a big population. Instead of staying quiet he express the fear, anger and hate he had during the internment camps. The father does apologize but only in a sarcastic way. He just tells them “I’m sorry. There. That’s it. I’ve said it. Now can I go?” (pg 144) which is what they want to hear and the only thing he can say to be set free. All of these traumatic events transform him from a loving, kind, energetic youthful father into a man stiped of his idenity. He has no real identity left and all he has to live by these “masks” of the stereotypical Asian man. In this section the father does not reveal any thing really personal or direct about who he is because he may not even know himself after all of his