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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 ...

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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 ...

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PAPER DETAILS

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

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