In the graphic novel American Born Chinese, Gene Luen Yang brings three different stories to life. While the three stories Yang tells through words and pictures have different tones and settings, they all share a common theme: each main character struggles with their identity and self-acceptance. The monkey king, Jin Wang, and Danny all try to adapt to societal norms, pushing their culture and identity away.
In the first story, a monkey king attempts to join the gods and goddess’s social circle at a dinner party. However, he is not let in because he is not wearing shoes. After arguing he deserves to be in the party, the guard tells him “You may be a king- you may even be a deity- but you are still a monkey” (Yang 15). Yang highlights the idea of identity right away, displaying how because of who he is, society excludes him. All the monkey king’s accomplishments do not matter; the dinner party excludes him because he is a monkey. In the second story, one that resembles modern-day life more closely, Jin Wang also feels excluded from the social circles at his school. The students create assumptions about his character based on his identity. One student says, “My momma says Chinese people eat dogs,” and they find his lunches weird just because they are different (31). In the third story, Danny hates associating himself with his over-exaggerated Asian stereotype cousin Chin-kee. All three characters find themselves not fitting into society and as a result hate their identities. Each character pushes this part of them away; the monkey king makes all monkeys wear shoes, Jin Wang changes his hair and initially pushes the other Asian students away, and Danny, as we find out at the end of the novel, embodies a person who completely changes his identity figuratively and literally.
Although these characters attempt to change their identity to fit the mold of their peers, they all end up realizing that attempting to be something they aren't is more detrimental. The monkey king suffers five hundred years of imprisonment until he finally relinquishes and returns to his former identity. At the end of the novel, the monkey king even winds up being a voice of reason for Jin Wang and his second, Caucasian, identity Danny. All three stories collide with the overall theme of identity and self-acceptance at the center. Jin Wang realizes that his internal frustrations towards his identity translated through his actions and words with his friend Wei-Chen. Jin Wang calls Wei-Chen a F.O.B. (Fresh Off the Boat). Jin Wang’s acerbic words lead Wei-Chen to end his test of virtue, and it isn’t until Jin Wang accepts his true identity that he is able to bring Wei-Chen back from the brink.
Each main character has their own struggle with their identity and accepting who they are. However, once they are able to overcome this, they are better people for it. Not only is their relationship with their identity better but so is their relationships with friends and family.
I agree with you that the connecting theme between all three of these stories is the idea of identity, with the main characters struggling to accept their identity instead of changing or hiding it. One major part of this theme is the transformer toys that both Jin and Wei-Chen play with. The first time we see Jin is with his transformer toy. He tells the herbalist’s wife that he wishes to be a transformer, to which she responds, “It’s easy to become anything you wish... as you’re willing to forfeit your soul” (29). This old woman foreshadows the reveal that Jin will transform into Danny, along with telling us early version of the lesson Jin learns from the Monkey King; in order to transform into Danny, Jin must hurt his friends. As you pointed out, this is mirrored in the Monkey King’s story. After ‘transforming’ his soul, the Monkey King must spend five hundred years imprisoned. This may not have been them forfeiting their ‘souls’, but in both stories, we see that transforming into something you aren’t a harmful experience. Wei-Chen and Jin even first bond over a transformer that turns into a monkey (which foreshadows that Wei-Chen's father is the Monkey King, who transforms from a monkey to a human). Assuming we have the same edition of the book, the cover (with Jin holding the monkey transformer) is a visual way of highlighting the central theme connecting all of the stories that you've pointed out.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the analyses on this theme of identity throughout the three stories and their ultimate connection. What I find really interesting is the way that Jin Wang’s rejection of his identity impacts Wei-Chen’s so significantly. Jin calls Wei-Chen an “F.O.B.” a few times throughout the story when he is basically acting too Asian for the American customs (Yang 89). Jin’s embarrassment amplifies Wei-Chen’s, ultimately dismissing his identity as well. Wei-Chen arrives to school, and apparently to the mortal world, without knowing anybody, he seeks Jin out because he’s looking for common ground in this completely new environment (37). As Jin continuously puts Wei-Chen down when he is expressing his identity, Wei-Chen is being conditioned to adopt the American customs and reject his culture to the point that he ends his test of virtue and rebels from his culture and duty. He is only pulled back by Jin as he accepts his identity and proves that it is not a bad thing to live by your culture (230). The fact that Wei-Chen tries to find common ground with someone who understands his culture only to be influenced to ignore the culture because it is viewed as silly emphasizes the effect that being yourself has on others who also identify with similar cultures.
ReplyDelete