Now that you have read over half of
American Born Chinese, you should now be able to see certain themes emerging that appear in all three different story lines within the graphic novel. Your assignment is to describe one of those emerging themes and explain, using specific examples from the text, how you see each of the three story lines embodying or developing that theme. Your post should be at least six sentences long. You may choose to write your answer in paragraph form if you wish. If you are unsure on what the definition of "theme" is, consult your literary term glossary at the back of Social Justice. Your comment is due by the start of class on Wednesday.
Remember--read the post, and then click on the word "comments" just below that post. After you have written your post, add your first name, then "Nekrosius," then your period (so, Frodo Nekrosius 34). Then, select "Anonymous" for your identity and click "publish your comment."
42 comments:
Both Jin and Monkey King are trying to fit in. They also, both have a hard time accepting who they are. For example, Monkey King does not want to accept that he is just a monkey, as Tze-Yo-Tzuh said. He wants to be the The Great Sage, Equal Of Heaven. To everyone else, he is just a monkey.
Jin has a hard time fitting in because he is Asian. He want to me American so that he can fit in. For example, the first time he met Wei-Chen, He said, "You're in America. Speak English" He was trying not to look Asian. He also eats sandwiches instead of any thing with chopsticks like Wei-Chen.
Both Monkey King and Jin are trying to hard to fit in.
Grace Nekrosius 3-4
An important theme in American Born Chinese is shame. The Monkey King, Jin Wang, and Danny are all ashamed of their identity. The Monkey King is ashamed of being a monkey when he realizes the gods and goddesses look down on him. Jin is ashamed of being Chinese when the kids in his class bully him because of it. Danny is ashamed of being Chin-Kee's cousin when people think of him as being like Chin-Kee. "By the time he leaves, no one thinks of me as Danny anymore. I'm Chin-Kee's cousin." (p.127) All three characters are ashamed of their identity, and throughout the book they all try to push it away and become different people.
Maria Nekrosius 34
In the Monkey King Section of ABC, the theme is rather clearly stated, though in figurative form, on page 20, "When he entered his royal chamber, the smell of MONKEY FUR greeted him. He'd never noticed it before. [New panel, Monkey King sitting on thrown.] He stayed awake for the rest of the night thinking of ways to get rid of it." which really about marks the official beginning of the Monkey King's quest, the one in which he intends to completely transform himself, from a monkey into a deity, or if nothing else, into a human. His theme, it seems is one of hiding, and denial, of his true form, which he seems still not to realize once he's stuck under that pile of rocks. At first, the Monkey King is fine with who he is, living his little life, on Flour-Fruit Mountain, then the fateful party happens, and he realizes quite bluntly, that the rest of the world sees him simply as a monkey. Also, this whole episode is further exaggerated in his mind because he is proud of being a master of Kung Fu, and considers himself a deity as much any other deity. I think that at one point he'll realize his true form is that of a monkey, and somehow that will free him. Though, I will admit, that ABC only gives a little information, this far into the reading.
PS: Does the fact that Danny's school being named OLIPHANT High School, have any bearing. An interesting coincidence, or is it?
Julian Nekrosius 8/9
I think the theme is when Jin, The Monkey King and Danny are trying to be someone they aren't. For example, The Monkey King is trying to be a god when he is one on Flower Fruit Mountain just not in the real world.The gods say that he is not they say he is just a monkey. Jin is trying to fit in by not saying that he is Asian otherwise the kids at his school will make fun of him, he tried not to be friends with Wei-Chen because he is also Asian. Were as Danny is annoyed with Chin-Kee because Chin-Kee is just being who is just being who he is. Were as people are making fun of Danny by bringing him to his school and he is eating exotic foods. These are the reasons why they are trying to fit in.
Madeline Nekrosius 8/9
Both Jin and Danny are having a hard time fitting in.
Danny is getting teased because Chin-Kee is so called odd. Every year after Chin-Kee leaves Danny keeps getting teasing. By the end of the year he gets so teased that he has to leave the school.
Jin gets teased because he does not have the same color skin all the other kids in the school. He is so called weird because he does not have any friends. He does not know where he belongs in the world.
So both Jin and Danny have trouble fitting in in school but Danny is a little older. Danny is just like a older Jin in many ways.
Silvia Nekrosius 3-4
A general theme for Jin, The Monkey King and Danny are that the are all unsure of there identity and are just trying to fit in and all have barriers preventing them to do so. In Jin's case his barrier is in his ethnicity which is a problem in Jin's relationship towards Wei Chen because Wei Chen is more interested in being himself then fitting in. For the Monkey King his barrier is being a monkey which keeps him in a box because the gods don't allow him to become a god and are disrespectful to him. The Monkey King thinks its a good idea to become a giant monkey and then beat up the gods who told him that he could never become a god. Danny's personal barriers are his cousin Chin-Kee, who public humiliates him which has cost him a lot of grief.In the end they all just want to fit in.
Sophia Nekrosius 3-4
In the ABC Monkey King Section the theme is shame. The monkey king is shamed on pages 14-15 when he is told to leave the party because he is a monkey. Then when he arrives back to Flower-Fruit Mountain he smells monkey fur in his cave. He doesn’t notice it before because he didn’t know the other kings didn’t smell like monkey. He does before he returns beat up the other kings but he is still ashamed. And after he returns he declares that all monkeys must where shoes. The monkey king makes them do that because on page 13 the two panels and 14 first panel he is thrown out because he doesn’t have any shoes. The guard tells him to leave because of his lack of shoes even though he is the king of Flower-Fruit Mountain.
Jacob Nekrosius 8-9
Acceptance. The theme is acceptance. The Monkey King, Jin, Dan all can't accept who they are or what they have. The monkey King can't accept that he is a monkey. Jin can't accept he will be traced back to being Chinese and Dan can't accept he has a cousin like Chin-Kee.
Christopher Nekrosius 3-4
In ABC, the main theme is fitting in and hiding identity. The Monkey King wants to be a god greater than everyone else. The Monkey King will not accept the fact that he is a monkey. "Look. You may be a king- you may even be a deity- but you are still a monkey." After the dinner party, he comes back to the smell of "monkey fur". The Monkey King is having a difficult time understanding that he cannot change himself.
Jin is just trying to be a normal American boy. When Wei-Chen comes, Jin does not want to be friends with him because if Jin is friends with Wei-Chen, he will complete the Asian stereotype. On page 37, the text states, "You're in America. Speak English." This evidence shows that Jin is trying to tell Wei-Chen that he is not in Taiwan anymore. This is one example of Jin try to fit in.
Danny cannot hide his identity no matter how many different schools he attends. Danny is embarrassed by his cousin, Chin-Kee. Danny does not realize that this is a part of his identity. Danny is not only trying to escape Chin-Kee, but he is also trying to escape his identity. Just like the Monkey King and Jin, Danny does not understand that he cannot escape his own identity.
Samantha Nekrosius Periods 8 and 9
In the Monkey King, in a figurative way, on p. 20 when the monkey king is thinking of different way to get rid of the monkey fur smell you could say he is actually thinking of ways to get rid of his monkey-ness. The theme in this story is not accepting who you are and not being accepted. First, the Monkey King likes who he is and is living a happy live but when the party with the gods happens he relies that he is just a monkey according to the gods.
Maeve Nekrosius 89
The theme in this story is shame. The monkey king, Danny, and Jin are all ashamed. It clearly shows that the the monkey king is ashamed of himself " When he entered his royal chamber, the thick smell of MONKEY FUR greeted him. He'd never noticed it before" (20) he realizes he is a monkey not a human or god. Jin is ashamed that he is asian it shows this when his teacher is introducing him to the class (30-31). Danny is ashamed that he is related to Chin-Kee. Danny's shame is shown in a lot of places but it is mostly shown in the second chapter with Chin-Kee (109-130). All of these characters are dealing with similar feelings and are ashamed of themselves.
Richie Nekrosius 3-4
A crucial theme in American Born Chinese is being accepted. Unlike various other proposals, this theme is common in all sections of the story. Jin struggles with being accepted by his peers at school, as well as his personal hope, being accepted by Amelia.
Danny has a problem akin to Jin's, which is also trying to "fit in" from the various provacative insults that are the product of Chin-Kee's controversial behavior.
However, the situation of the Monkey King is different. He wants to be accepted by the gods, or humans. But he does not try to obtain this for the feeling of self-sucess that comes out of affection, but he wants to be regarded as one of them.
Willis Nekrosius 8-9
The main theme in these three story lines is shame. All three characters are trying to change their identities. The Monkey King is ashamed of being a monkey, and thinks of himself as The Great Sage, Equal Of Heaven. To everybody else, he is just a monkey, who lives with many other monkeys. The Monkey King believes he is, or at least should be a god.
Jin is ashamed of being Chinese and he gets bullied because of it. He tries to be as American as he can, just so he wont get bullied anymore. For example, on p. 89, instead of bringing lunches like Wei-Chen with chop sticks he brings a sandwich for lunch.
Every year, Danny has to change schools because of Chin-Kee. Chin-Kee is so embarrassing that by the end of the year, nobody thinks of Danny as himself. People think of him as "Chin-Kee's cousin" (p. 127).
All three characters are trying hard to fit in and be who they want to be, although who they want to be is not their true identity.
Claire Nekrosius
One of the themes American Born Chinese is trying to change to fit in. Jin and the Monkey King are both trying to change themselves. Jin and the Monkey King didn’t like who they truly were, so try to change them selves so people don’t think they are different. The monkey king wants to be a god. He doesn’t want to be a monkey. He even transforms himself into a human, but you can still tell that he is a monkey because that is his true self. He will always be a monkey.
Jin doesn’t want to be connected to anything Asian. Jin doesn’t want to eat any Asian food, he doesn’t want to look Asian, he doesn’t speak Chinese, and he doesn’t want his hair to look Asian so he curled his hair. On page 32 it shows Jin eating something with chopsticks and on page 37 it shows Jin eating a sandwich. That shows that once he figured out what everyone else did he changed so he wouldn’t stand out. Jin tries to put on an American disguise. Jin and the monkey King are both trying to change who they are because they are ashamed to be themselves but they will always be who they truly are.
Joanna Nekrosius period 3-4
The main theme in ABC is that Jin and The Monkey King are all trying hard to fit into their society. The Monkey King is clearly a monkey,but when he goes to the dinner party up in heaven. He realizes that he has to be more human to fit in( pg.14-15).Jin is trying to be an american, when his outer appearance is chinese. He tries to make "friends" (Peter), eat american. He knows that he is different from everyone else,but he tries to fit in. Danny has been to three schools(pg.32-35). Both Jin and the Monkey King are trying to fit into their societies.
Nora Nekrosius 8-9
The theme for American Born Chinese is fitting in. Jin, The Monkey King and Danny are all trying to fit in.
Jin wants to fit in,but people make fun of him because he is Chinese. He is struggling with his identity and he doesn't know who he is yet.
The Monkey King also has issues fitting in. On page 13-14 the Monkey King cannot get into the party because he doesn't have shoes. Later in the book the Monkey King try's to fit in, by calling himself The Great Sage Equal of Heaven. Also he starts wearing shoes, hoping that he can fit in.
Danny fits in at his school fine at first, but when his cousin Chin-Kee comes to visit everything changes. People start making fun of him because he is Chinese and Danny feels like he doesn't fit in anymore. He has to change schools every time Chin-Kee comes to his school because he doesn't accept who is and he's embarrassed. Danny just wants to fit in and not be made fun of.
Mingus Nekrosius 34
One theme is that the main characters are struggling with their identity and accepting who they are. Jin is trying to find out who he is. He is wrestling with being Chinese and being American. Danny is dealing with his Cousin Chin Kee. He is trying to live with someone who constantly embarrasses him,like how being Chinese embarrasses Jin. The Monkey King is dealing with the fact that he now has these super powers. He thinks he is a god but everyone just says you are just a monkey. He thinks that if he takes a larger less monkey like form, people will think he is a god. Danny thinks if he ignores Chin Kee he will go away, and Jin thinks that if he ignores the fact that he is Chinese that he'll just be American.
Reed Nerkosuis
One of the themes is that the Monkey King, Jin and Danny are all trying to fit in. The Monkey King wants to be a god. He is no longer happy with just being a monkey king. The Monkey King wants to have a higher position and to be respected by the gods, not laughed at. He wants to be known. Jin wants to be American. He does not want to be Chinese. He wants to fit in. But there are Asian people in his grade. For example, his best friend, Wei-Chen. Jin does everything he can to become American, even though he never will be fully American. He eats ‘American’ food, changes hi hair to look like another boy in his grade, he even uses abbreviation (F.O.B., Fresh Off the Boat). Danny no longer wants to have cousin Chin-Kee visit anymore. When Chin-Kee leaves, he wants to be known as Danny, not ‘Chin-Kee’s cousin.’ Danny seems to not want to have to transfer schools again.
Eve Nekrosius 8-9
One common theme that I found in all three story lines is Acceptance. This is clearly stated in the first Monkey
King chapter when he is entering flower fruit mountain after the dinner party and the narrator says "When he(the monkey King) entered the royal chamber, the thick smell of monkey fur greeted him. He'd never noticed it before. He stayed awake for the rest of the night thinking of ways to get rid of it." The author shows that he's trying to think of ways to change who he is. And that being a monkey isnt good enough for him anymore.
In Jin's story he is ashamed of his nationality and he tries to change it by acting more american and only speaking english even when his parents or Wei-Chen speak to him in chinese. And by doing this he is forcing Wei-Chen to do the same. For example When Jin first meets Wei-Chen he tells him "You're in America. Speak english." even though Wei-Chen doesn't speak english very well.
With Danny he won't accept that he is related to someone chinese because he thinks that everyone will think of him as that guy with the chinese cousin instead of just Danny. And all he wants is to fit in at his school because he has always been the new kid.
A common theme shared between the three story lines is that of shame. Monkey King is ashamed of being a monkey, and he realizes this after getting kicked out of the party for the sole reason that he is a monkey. Soon after getting thrown out of the party, Monkey King goes into hiding, possibly out of fear to face himself and that fact that he is a monkey.
In Jin's case, he is ashamed of being Chinese, and he just wants to be American, oblivious of the fact that he can be both Chinese and American, but his situation at a racist high school is preventing him from seeing this. Jin tries to act "American" by curling his hair, getting an American girlfriend, and not hanging around other Asians, but he knows this is not working out for him because he is Asian and there is nothing he can do about it.
Danny, on the other hand, is ashamed of his cousin Chin-Kee, because he wants to be thought of as Danny, and not Chin-Kee's cousin. Chin-Kee is a Chinese representative of all the asian stereotypes and he is highly embarrassing to Danny. All Danny wants is for Chin-Kee to go back to China so he can move forward with his typical American Life.
Thomasina Nekrosius 34
One emerging theme I have picked up on is the constant controversy between characters in the case of what a character's identity is. For instance, in the Monkey King's story, the guard, as well as the gods, argue with the Monkey about his importance and rights because he is a monkey. In Jin's story, Wei Chen is being challenged by Jin for being an immigrant. Also in the Chin- Kee story, Chin- Kee makes offensive remarks about her gender.
All these stories have frequent insults and tension between someone elses origin, race or even gender. This tells the reader that each of the characters creating the tension, have something to hide of their own.
Ariel Nekroius 89
In the book "American Born Chinese" the theme is shame. All three of the characters Jin, the Monkey king, and Danny are ashamed of themselves. The monkey king is ashamed of being a monkey. As he says on page 144 Wong Lai-tsao says to the monkey king "you are the monkey Tze-Yo-tzuh promised to be as a diciple." and the monkey responds, "you fool I am the great sage, equal of heaven!" Sice the monkey king was rejected by the gods he is ashamed of being a monkey and wants to be equal to heaven. Jin is ashamed of being asian. When Wei-Chen Sun first arrived at school he had the same problem Jin did. He didn't speak much English and he didn't have many friends. As it says on page 37 Wei chen walked up to jin and says "sorry to bother you but your chinese aren't you?" and jin says"you're in America speak English." and Wei Chen also asks Jin to be is friend but Jin says "i have enough friends." he is rejecting Wei chen right away without even knowing him because he just wants to be like every other american and not chinese. Lastly Danny is also ashamed of being part asian and having Chin Kee as his cousin. As it says on page 126 Danny explains that he moves schools so often because of chin kee. He says that after a little he starts to get friends and like school and then chin kee comes on one of his visits and ruins everything. Danny is ashamed of being asian and tries to avoid chin kee as much as he can.
Joey Nekrosius 3-4
I agree with Christopher, the monkey king is trying to find himself and so is Jin for example Jin wants to fit in so he doesn't bring in asian foods. The monkey king is trying to fit in but when he finds out he has to wear shoes to a party he makes all the monkeys where shoes. so there both finding ways to fit in but they just might get to do them as quickly because they might be used to what they do most of the time. They both try to changes others like JIn was telling Wei-Chen that he should be more american and not bring asian foods to lunch. The monkey king makes all of the monkeys ware shoes all the time. They are both indecisive about who they are.
Kerry Nekrosius 8-9
The common theme of the book American Born Chinese written by Gene Luen Yang is shame. The Monkey King, Jin Wang, and Danny all feel ashamed. The Monkey King and Danny both are ashamed of who they are. The Monkey King and Jin feel that their peers look down on them. The Monkey King and Jin feel uncomfortable by being thought of as lesser. On page 13, the bottom right panel, the security guard laughs and tells the Monkey King that he cannot let the Monkey King into the dinner party with the gods, goddesses, the demons, and the spirits. On page 27, Jin states that he wants to be a transformer. This statement metaphorically tells the reader that he wants to become something he is not. He may want to be more American, or he may want to become an insider, not an outsider. Danny is ashamed of Chin-Kee. In Danny’s mind, Chin-Kee is an annoying cousin, who embarrasses Danny. On page 119, the upper right panel, Chin-Kee answers all of the questions correctly and makes himself the center of attention. While this is happening, Danny burrows his head into his hands. He does this to try to distance himself from Chin-Kee. He also does this because he is ashamed that Chin-Kee is his cousin. They all try to be someone they are not to try to resolve their feeling of shame and to fit into their community. The Monkey King, Jin Wang, and Danny are ashamed because they feel like outsiders.
Nathan Nekrosius 3/4
An important theme in American Born Chinese is Identity. Danny says on page 127 "By the time he leaves, no one thinks of me as Danny anymore. I'm Chin-Kee's cousin." Danny is having a hard time relating to his identity after Chin-Kee's visit.
In Jin's chapter on page 97 just to look more like Amelia's friend Greg,[the one who sits next to her in science and that Jin thinks she likes] he curls his hair ,so Jin is not revealing his true identity in order to impress Amelia.
In the Monkey King's chapter on page 59 he transforms his appearance to a more humanoid figure, so the Monkey King is not revealing his true identity so he can earn respect and fit in.
By Jessica Nekrosius 89
One of the many themes is humiliation. In The Monkey King parable the Gods and Goddesses would not include the Monkey King because he is a monkey and didn't wear shoes, "Look. You may be a king- you may even be a deity- BUT you are still a MONKEY" (15). No matter how he tries to fit in with humans he is rejected.
In Jin's life story no one accepts him because he is asian. He tries to be american but when Wei-Chen starts coming to school he reminds everyone that Jin and Wei-Chen are asian so the people at school start making fun of them again as if it was the beginning. One of the many themes is humiliation.
Anna Nekrosius 8-9
Both the Monkey King and Jin are trying hard to be someone that they are not. The Monkey wishes to be treated like a human, so he shape-shifts to look more human and he also has shoes on his feet. The rest of society (heaven included)thinks that he is just a plain old monkey. Not the "Great Sage equal of heaven". Jin is trying to fit in with everyone else, and to act like an american. When Jin first meets Wei-Chen, Wei-Chen speaks to him in chinese but Jin says "your'e in america speak english"(37). On that page the author puts the words america and english in bold. tha tcould emphisize Jins need or want to fit in. jin eats american food, such as sandwiches, but Wei-Chen eats asian food such as noodles.Both the Monkey King and Jin are trying to fit in.
Schuler Nekrosius 34
The Monkey king, Danny, and Jin are all battling shame.
The Monkey King is pleased with ruling over his mountain and he hears a party going on in heaven, so he decides to go check it out. The guard tells The Monkey King that he may be a king but all the guard thinks of Monkey King is a monkey (and he has no shoes). The Monkey King feels outraged and when he gets home (after beating up everyone) he smells a think aroma of monkey fur. Monkey King tells the monkeys not to disturb him (and all monkeys must wear shoes).
Danny battles his shame when his "cousin" Chin-kee comes for his visit everything is wrecked, his social life and his identity. Chin-kee is very smart (a stereotype all chinese people being smart) he knows almost everything. All seven class periods (not including lunch) the author shows a clip of the teacher asking a question and Chin-kee answers it. Later at lunch, Chin-kee has fried cat gizzards in a takeout box. In the back round you can see two guys in jerseys look like they might throw up. I can see how embarrassed Danny would be.
Jin is ashamed of being Chinese. He gets verbally bullied so, he wants to be a transformer so he can be American. If Jin was American he would fit in he thinks. Every choice has flaws even if Jin was America, even if he might fit in, and have more friends he would have never made a good friend like Wei-Chen.
Anthony Nekrosius 3-4
In American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, Jin, Monkey King and Danny are all trying to fit in with their surroundings. All three of them are insecure with who they are. In Jin's case, Jin wants to be an "american" boy. Wether that means befriending the school bully, or shunning the new Taiwanese student, so be it if it means fitting in.
Monkey King was ashamed himself for being a monkey, so he decidedshape-shifts himself into a more human looking monkey. He does this because even though he fits in with the other monkeys of flower fruit mountain, but he does not fit in with the gods. This bothers the Monkey King very much. Eventually the monkey King realizes that He was made to be monkey there-fore he must be a monkey.
Danny tries to fit in at his new school, but once his cousin Chin-Kee shows up, Danny knows his social life is over. Whenever Chin-Kee is around or whenever his name is brought up, Danny's mood gets bad. On page 129, Danny walks off looking as if he is going to get in a fight with Chin-Kee.
Wade Nekrosius 8/9
A major theme in all of the stories is that the main character wants to change themselves, both physically and mentally, to try to fit in. In the Monkey King's situation he changes his appearance to make himself bigger and more human like. He also tries to make himself act more like something of a deity, and less like a monkey. In Danny's case he tries to act like he is not related to Chin-Kee, so everyone does not think of him as Chin-Kee's cousin, they think of him as Danny. In the story of JIn, Jin changes his hair to be more american (or white). JIn also tries to not be associated with anything stereotypically asian, so he eats sandwiches, speaks only English to Wei-Chen (originally), and purposely uses slang. All three of these main characters change something about them to try to fit in.
I think that the theme of “American born Chinese” is denying your identity and being embarrassed in it. The monkey king, Danny, and Jin all don’t accept their identity. They all try to change it, to become like everybody else around them, to become something they are not. The monkey king doesn’t want to be just another monkey, he is ashamed not to wear shoes, or have monkey fur smell. He wants to change, he wants to be like other deities around him, someone whom others will accept. In page 20 it’s written “the thick smell of monkey fur greeted him… he stayed awake for the rest of the night thinking of ways to get rid of it.” Jin, who knows that being Asian is a reason for all his classmates to laugh at him and bully him, doesn’t want to be Asian. He is embarrassed in being Chinese, he wants to be American just like everybody else in his class; he wants to change his identity, to forget his past (or at least his parents’past). Danny’s story is a bit different: in the beginning of the story Danny is happy with being American, having a girlfriend and hanging out with the “buddies”. However when Chin-Kee comes to visit, he brings with him the reminder of Danny’s Asian identity which Danny cannot accept. Danny becomes embarrassed and ashamed in his Chinese roots page 123 he says “I am not like him! I don’t even know how we are related!”. What connects the three stories in the book is the theme of a conflict between a character and his identity.
Yael Nekrosius
One of the main themes in American Born Chinese is shame. All of the characters are dealing with being ashamed of something. In the Monkey King section of the book the Monkey King is ashamed of being a monkey. For Example on p. 14-15 when the Monkey King come back to Flower Fruit Mountain he smells the strong scent of monkey fur that he never noticed before. He does not like the smell because he feels if he has any characteristics of a monkey (including smell) then others will not respect him with the respect that he believes he deserves.
In Jin's story Jin is ashamed of being Chinese. He is ashamed of being Chinese primarily because the other kids that go to his school make fun of him. Jin just wants to be able to fit in with his fellow piers, not be the pariah of the school.
In the Everybody Ruvs Chin-Kee Section Danny is Ashamed that he is related to Chin-Kee. He is ashamed because Chin-Kee always embarrasses him. It even gets so bad every year he needs to change schools. All three characters are ashamed of some part of their identity, a part that might not be able to be changed.
I think the theme is that you need to accept who you are and not try to push it away. Jin, Danny, and the monkey king are all trying to fit in and in doing so pushing away who they are. Jin is pushing away the fact that he is asian and tries to be american by eating sandwiches not like Wie-Chen who eats things with chopsticks. when Wei-Chen first came to the school Jin says "your in america speak English" he was trying to sound american and not asian. The monkey king is does not like being a monkey like Tze-Yo-Tzuh said. Danny does not like having Chin-Kee as a cousin because Chin-Kee makes Danny get teased so baldy that by the end of the year danny has to move schools.
Andrew Nekrosius 3-4
A major theme in all of the stories is that the main character wants to change themselves, both physically and mentally, to try to fit in. In the Monkey King's situation he changes his appearance to make himself bigger and more human like. He also tries to make himself act more like something of a deity, and less like a monkey. In Danny's case he tries to act like he is not related to Chin-Kee, so everyone does not think of him as Chin-Kee's cousin, they think of him as Danny. In the story of JIn, Jin changes his hair to be more american (or white). JIn also tries to not be associated with anything stereotypically asian, so he eats sandwiches, speaks only English to Wei-Chen (originally), and purposely uses slang. All three of these main characters change something about them to try to fit in.
David Nekrosius 3-4
In ABC Monkey King and Jin are both trying to fit in. JIn doesn't like who he is because he is Asian and he wants to be American and Monkey King does not wanted to be counted as a person he want to be counted as a "God" when he say " I shall now be called "The Great Sage of Heaven". The theme here is Accepted into Society.
Xavier Nekrosius 3/4
Danny,Monkey King, and Jin are all trying to fit in. Danny is trying to fit in at school, and is just starting to get the hang of it when Chin-Kee comes. Monkey King is trying to fit in with the gods and it isn't going so well. Monkey King changes who he is inside to try to fit in and that doesn't work. Jin is trying to fit in with the people at school. The theme is trying to fit in.
Mary Nekrosius 3-4
One theme in American Born Chinese is trying to change one’s identity. In the Monkey King line of the story, he is trying to change from a monkey to something higher because the gods laughed at him (p.15), and there for he is ashamed of his identity as a monkey. On page 20, he suddenly realizes that he smells like monkey, and that drives into him the idea that he is in fact a monkey, even though he is a king.
In the Jin line of the story, Jin is trying to change from Chinese to American because he is worried that other children in the school will tease him for being Chinese. He to is therefore ashamed of his identity.
In the Chin-Kee section, Danny wishes to change his identity by pretending he is not related to his cousin Chin-Kee. Danny is so ashamed of his identity that he switches schools every year from embarrassment, and the thought that students will never forget that he has a Chinese cousin.
Theodore Ando Nekrosius Periods 8 and 9
All of the main characters from the different stories want to be someone else. Jin wants to be American, so people like Timmy won't make fun of him. Timmy said that his mother told him Chinese people eat dogs, but Jin doesn't eat dogs. Of course Timmy might also just want to pick on Jin because he is Chinese and eats dumplings.The Monkey King wants to be a human and have power because the palace guard said that he couldn't go to the dinner party. "All monkeys, even if they have power, cannot go to dinner parties." that is what the guard said. Danny doesn't want to be related to Chin-kee because Chin-kee is sort of weird. Chin-kee eats crispy fried catguts with noodles. People make fun of Chin-kee and after Chin-kee leaves Danny is thought of as Chin-kee's cousin. Danny has had to transfer three times because Chin-kee ruined his reputation. All three of the characters are made fun of. That's what makes them want to change.
Lucy Nekrosius 3-4
One of the main themes in American Born Chinese is shame. All of the characters are dealing with being ashamed of something. In the Monkey King section of the book the Monkey King is ashamed of being a monkey. For Example on p. 14-15 when the Monkey King come back to Flower Fruit Mountain he smells the strong scent of monkey fur that he never noticed before. He does not like the smell because he feels if he has any characteristics of a monkey (including smell) then others will not respect him with the respect that he believes he deserves.
In Jin's story Jin is ashamed of being Chinese. He is ashamed of being Chinese primarily because the other kids that go to his school make fun of him. Jin just wants to be able to fit in with his fellow piers, not be the pariah of the school.
In the Everybody Ruvs Chin-Kee Section Danny is Ashamed that he is related to Chin-Kee. He is ashamed because Chin-Kee always embarrasses him. It even gets so bad every year he needs to change schools. All three characters are ashamed of some part of their identity, a part that might not be able to be changed.
Nigel Nekrosius 3/4
The theme in American Born Chinese is fitting in. In all three story lines the characters are all trying to fit in. They want to seem like the rest of the population. In the monkey king on page 20 when he enters his royal chamber, the story says he stayed awake for the rest of the night looking for a way to get rid of it. He doesn't want to be a monkey anymore.
In the Jin story he is trying to be as american as he can. That is shone on page 37 when he is eating a sandwhich. A sandwich is a typically American food. On page 32 when he is eating dumplings, and all the boys make fun of him. That is why he changes.
In Danny's story line on page 127 he says " By the time he leaves no onee thinks of me as Danny anymore. I'm Chin-Kee's cousin" he is ashamed of Chin-Kee and doesn't want people to think that they are related. In all three story lines the characters are just trying to fit in.
Ilana Nekrosius 89
The basic theme of American Born Chinese is trying to be like everyone else. For example, the Monkey King is trying to fit in with all the Gods and Goddesses, Jin is trying to be like everyone else at his school, and Danny is trying to prove to everyone at his school that he is normal. Ever since the Monkey king was rejected from the dinner party because he didn’t have shoes, he was really mad, but then he realized that he needs to be like everyone else. The Monkey King achieved this by starting to wear shoes, the main reason why he didn’t get let into that dinner party. The Monkey King is well on his way to becoming like everyone else. Jin needs to become like everyone else by trying to be more American. For example, when Wei-Chen arrived and he tried to talk to Jin in Chinese, Jin angrily said “You’re in America. Speak English.” (p. 37) By this, Jin is trying to show everyone that he is truly American. Danny was a perfectly average kid, until chin-Kee arrived. The day that Chin-Kee arrived, everything went wrong. Chin-Kee kept embarrassing Danny in front of everyone, especially with his odd Chinese accent. The way Chin-Kee dressed and the way he had his hair also embarrassed Danny. Danny tries to ignore Chin-Kee by talking with Steve, and expressing in class that he knew Chin-Kee was weird. Danny has not yet truly proved himself as being normal. All of these characters struggle with the conflict of shame.
Ellie Nekrosius 8/9
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