Warning: Use of undefined constant referer - assumed 'referer' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 102

Warning: Use of undefined constant host - assumed 'host' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 105

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 106

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 109
I Am . . . ? - Online Essay

I Am . . . ?

But it is not enough to be American only in the eyes of the law and it is not enough to be only half an American and know that it is an empty half. I am not your son and I am not Japanese and I am not American . . . . I wish with all my heart that I were Japanese or that I was American. (Okada 16)
Life is a never-ending struggle. It is a personal struggle. A struggle to find a purpose. A meaning. All humans seem to be searching for that simple, yet elusive trait that makes them individuals. It is called “identity.” The main character in John Okada’s novel No-No Boy, Ichiro Yamada, faced this dilemma. Being Japanese-American following W.W.II made his struggle just a little bit ...

Want to read the rest of this paper?
Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay
and over 50,000 other term papers

were forced to make a choice at this time: Fight and possibly die for a country that would show them no respect anyway, or choose not to fight and be hated and despised, as well as unrespected. This choice given to the Japanese-American’s was in essence a “catch 22.” Although Ichiro was an American by blood, to him, “it [was] not enough to be American only in the eyes of the law” (Okada 16). In other words, being considered American simply because he was born there was not enough to satisfy Ichiro’s search for his identity. It was merely words on paper with no solid meaning. Ichiro chose not to fight for either side and to just resign himself to the continuing search for his individuality.
It never occurred to Ichiro that he might feel like more of an American by going to war until after he had made the decision not to fight. “I . . . have made a mistake and . . . have served time . . ., and I have been granted a full pardon. Why is it then that I am unable to convince ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays.
Write better papers. Get better grades.

Already a member? Login

CITE THIS PAGE:

APA
MLA
Chicago
Turabian

I Am . . . ?. (2004, May 7). Retrieved January 22, 2025, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/I-Am/7461

"I Am . . . ?." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 7 May. 2004. Web. 22 Jan. 2025. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/I-Am/7461>

"I Am . . . ?." Essayworld.com. May 7, 2004. Accessed January 22, 2025. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/I-Am/7461.

JOIN NOW

Join today and get instant access to this and 50,000+ other essays

PAPER DETAILS

Added: 5/7/2004 11:35:59 PM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 1100
Pages: 4

Save |

Report

SHARE THIS PAPER

SAVED ESSAYS

Save and find your favorite essays easier