Struggle for Identity: American Born Chinese

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Asian American students today are faced with the issue of identity in the American society. They are faced with this issue because of their unfamiliar background to the American society. They want to fit-in and become accepted in school’s diverse environment. The graphic novel, American Born Chinese by Gene Yang, exemplifies the issue of Asian American students search for identity in the American society. He wanted to target teenager that are struggling to find an identity and acceptance in school.
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To target Asian American students, Yang uses the stories of three different characters: Monkey King, Danny, and Jin Wang.
Each character in the story faces the issue of finding an identity and acceptance.

Yang mostly focused on the story of Jin Wang because his Chinese background constantly plagues him. Jin tries to do everything to fit-in with the American students. He tries to conceal his Chinese background, and tries to change his appearance. In the end, he learns to accept his Chinese background; therefore, finding his identity and acceptance. Yang wanted to show that accepting yourself is the key to unlocking your identity and finding acceptance in the American society.
Yang wanted Asian American students to connect with his book by strategically converging the three stories, negative experience of characters, and negative stereotypes to show that accepting themselves will allow them to find their identity and acceptance in the American society. Yang converges the three stories to strategically show Asian American students the three different perspectives. The first story is about the Monkey King.
He struggles to find acceptance in the Heavens because he was a monkey. The second story is about Jin Wang who is constantly plagued by his Chinese background.
The last story is about Danny, in the end revealed to be Jin Wang, struggles with his embarrassing stereotypical cousin, Chin-Kee, that forces him to switch school because of the embarrassment. Towards the end of the book, Yang joins the three stories together. We find that Danny is Jin and Chin-Kee is the Monkey King. At this point, the Monkey king wanted Jin to realizes that being himself is the only way to find his true identity. He told Jin, “You know, Jin, I would have saved myself from five hundred years’ imprisonment beneath a mountain of rock had I only realized how good it is to be a monkey. (Yang 222-223)
The convergence of the three stories relate to Asian American students because they constantly face the same problems as Jin. They want to hide their identity and want to become someone that they are not. They want to fit-in by trying to be someone that they are not. Just like Jin, they would want to be someone like Danny, buy they are constantly haunted by their Asian Background to show that they don’t fit-in. Yang wanted to demonstrate this issue in his book by joining the three stories so his audience can relate to their own negative experience of finding identity and acceptance.
Jin Wang’s negative experience story is also another way Yang used to connect his audience to the book. Jin constantly struggles with his Chinese background and the American Culture. He desperately wants to fit in with the American students in the school, but he is constantly reminded about the Chinese stereotypes that are keeping him form fitting-in. “My momma says Chinese people eat dogs. “Now be nice, Timmy! ” -I’m sure Jin doesn’t do that! In fact, Jin’s family probably stopped that sort of thing as soon as they came to the United States! (Yang 30-31) Jin tries his best to fit-in with the other students, but everything he tries backfires because he is constantly criticized. He changes his hairstyle, dates an American girl, and tries to act “American. ”
With this constant struggle, Jin fails to notice his best friend, Wei-Chin’s support. Jin only criticizes Wei-Chin for being Chinese. Due to these problems, Jin fails to find his identity and acceptance, even among his friends. Yang wanted to show the negative experience of Jin to connect with Asian American students. In school, most Asian American students try to hide their unique background because it’s unknown in school.
They are also constantly stereotyped; such as, Chinese people eat dogs. This causes Asian American students to feel insecure and embarrassed when they are reminded of their background. Therefore, the American students do not socially accept them. Yang used Jin’s story to emotionally connect with Asian American students because it shows the negative impression of Asian background. This emotional connection allowed his audience to see Yang’s perspective of negative experience to finding identity and acceptance. Yang also connects his audience with negative Asian American Stereotype.
In his book, one of the most noticing stereotypes that are presented in this graphic novel is Danny’s cousin Chin-Kee. Chin-Kee is described to have a strong Asian accent, bucktooth, and have “chinky” eyes. He is also eats weird food, answers every question correctly, and knows Kung Fu. This stereotype connects with Asian American students because they are also labeled as these stereotypes. With these stereotypes it made it difficult for Asian American students to find identity and acceptance because they are constantly trying to avoid these stereotypes.
The commendation of Asian Americans as a model minority implicitly denigrates other racial groups. Thus, Asian Americans might be more susceptible to racial harassment, discrimination, and hate crime than other ethnic groups. ”(Perception of Asian American Students: Stereotypes and Effects) Yang wanted to show these stereotypes to connect to his audience because seeing these stereotypes in a book keeps the audience emotionally involved in the story because his audiences are also facing the same racial issues in school.
This keeps the audience connected and interested in this book. Yang also wanted to show his audiences that accepting these stereotypes, like Jin, will help them find their identity and acceptance in the American society. Gene Yang wanted to show his audience that accepting yourself is the only way to find identity and acceptance. He used many examples from his text, American Born Chinese that exemplifies the struggle to find identity and acceptance. He strategically converges three different stories that show Jin’s realization of accepting his Chinese background and culture.
Yang also uses Jin’s negative experience in American schools. He goes through constant negative Chinese stereotypes from his classmates and feels socially unaccepted. Yang uses these parts of his book to emotionally connect with Asian American students because they are also constantly facing the same issues in school. He wanted to make this emotional connection with his audience to show that accepting yourself is the only way to find true identity and acceptance.

Cathy Hubbard

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