Introduction
This essay provides a personal reflection of the American Religious experience and it is based on the novel: The American Born Chinese. The Novel “American Born Chinese” provides the American religious experience to a large extent by looking at scenarios of three main protagonists. Scholars describe America as a melting point because of the diverse ethnic and religious groups it has. The novel challenges me to understanding my religious and cultural identity. In fact, after reading the novel I began my search of my identity and I became wary of stereotypes present in my culture and religion. The novel has three plots and the first plot focuses on the Monkey king/Sun Wukong, who is a character in the Chinese Novel by the name Journey to the West. The second plot presents the case of Jin Wang, who has relocated from San Francisco to a town that is made of purely white population. Jing Wang strives to fit in the culture of the Americans and his school. Jin Wang's story links with the other two stories in the novel because it reflects ethnic diversities. The third story focuses on Danny, an American boy who has a Chinese cousin by the name Chin-Kee. Chin-Kee shows numerous American stereotypes in his accent, dressing, hairstyle, hobbies, appearance, academics and eating behaviors. Chin-Kee’s annual visits bother Danny. The main characters’ problems reflect religious experiences that minority groups go through once they immigrate to America. The minority groups experience a lot in a bid to find an identity with the American culture and religion. The stories of the protagonists interweave to show how the East and West interact and how tradition and modernity struggle in the American-Asian identities.
Identity
In my opinion, America is a real melting point because it has a large number of ethnicities, races and immigrants. The challenge of oppressing the minority groups has been present in US since time memorial and the Asian-American culture is seen as either a foreign culture or a counter-culture. The characters in the novel reflect the real Chinese-American experience (Yang 8-16). The novel is applicable to not only the Asian-American community but also other communities in the USA such as African-Americans, Native Americans, and Irish Americans. Similarly, the novel is relevant to all religious groups in the USA such as Catholics, Islam, Buddhists and Mormons (Yang 34-36).
According to my understanding, the protagonists of the novel, Chin-Kee, Monkey King and Jin Wang, offer the perspective of teenagers striving to gain religious and racial identity in the USA. The novel presents the theme of religious and racial stereotypes more especially the American’s stereotypes on the Asian and Chinese communities. For example, the term coolie is used to stereotype Chin-Kee because if his racial and religious affiliation (Dolan 55). Historically, name coolie was used when referring to the unskilled workers from China during the 19th Century. The term coolie was a racial and religious slur during the racism era. The predicament of the protagonists is similar to that of African-Americans who strived to change their colors due to the stereotypes associated with being black. Many African-Americans who migrated to the US during the 19th century were stigmatized because of their black color and they resorted to measures to brighten their skin. Similarly, many Africans slaves that were sold into the USA during the 18th Century gave up their traditional African Religion and adopted Christianity and other Western religions.
Jin Wang lives a second-generation life and he grapples with bullying friendships and dating issues throughout his teenage life. Jin’s parents are strongly connected to their Chinese religion and culture because they speak in Mandarin and Use Chinese medicines. In spite of the fact that Jin Wang is unlikable he manages to break the Asian-American barrier as evidenced in the graphics and comics in the novel (Yang 57). In my opinion, Jim’s experience is similar to that of Irish-American kids who moved into The USA after the WWW1 (World War One). The kids were traumatized because they were considered foreigners and not Americans, besides, the Irish American way of life was considered low-class and foreign by the Native Americans (Dolan 23).
Monkey King’s analogy explains that before the introduction of social norms and race all children are perceived to be equal. Monkey feels that he is not different from the other people irrespective of the fact that he is a monkey and after monkey is prevented from gathering with human beings because he is a monkey he adopts the measures to assimilate in the human society namely: walking in the human style, dressing the human clothes and playing Kung fu. The monkey’s size changes to the extent that he gets trapped and he escapes by reverting to his initial monkey size (Yang 100). The monkey’s story is symbolic of the religious struggles that the minority groups in the US undergo in a bid to fit in the American society. According to my reading, the minority groups do not accept themselves and their religions thus once they realize that they are different, their minds are preoccupied with thoughts of assimilating in the American society. After the assimilation, they realize that the issue of being white or black plays a crucial role in the identity of a person. Consequently, the minority groups are forced to accept and value their unique backgrounds and religious orientations (Yang 116).
Similarly, Asian-Americans are regarded as foreign despite the fact that they have USA citizenship and relatable religious experiences. The religious heritage in the US is always imported and it is distinct from the original American religion and culture. The Americans believe that their culture and religion is superior to the other religions and cultures in the universe. For example, Jin shows that there is a hierarchy in the American-Asian Culture and the American culture during his conversation with Wei-Chen. Jin scolds his friends that he acts like a Fresh off the Boat (FOB) and persuades him to adopt the culture (Dolan 77).
The novel condemns self-loathing tendencies and racism by analogizing Jin’s situation with that of the Monkey king. Monkey believes that he is a deity even after God tells him is not. Monkey represents minorities who have suffered due to the wrong presumptions of themselves until they have learned to accept their simian nature. Minorities who are contented with their religious orientation are happy and on the path to the divine ordination. The novel shows that cultural, religious, ethnic and immigrant identity is fundamental in USA. Jin learns that he will always be a Chinese and the monkey accepts that he will always be a monkey (Yang 145).
Jin Wang symbolizes kids who are mistreated by Americans students due to their religious and cultural origins. The mistreated kids often face identity crises and they are ashamed of their Chinese religions and names. The bullied kids feel lonely and undertake desperate measures to change their religious backgrounds in a bid to be accepted by their American Counterparts. The religious identity crisis occurs in a case where the immigrants fall in love with people from a different religion. For example, Jin Wang falls for an American girl. Thus, he is forced to deny his cultural background because he has no come to terms with his religious identity (Dolan 87).
Similarly, Danny represents the minority groups who are not proud of their religion and culture. He is obsessed with the American Culture to the extent that he changes schools to avoid his cousin who displays Chinese mannerisms. The novel makes me relate to the identity crisis in the contemporary USA where many minorities can do anything in bid to gain acceptance and recognition in the society even if it means denying their religion. It is difficult for new immigrants to strike balance between the crises and acting wisely and the novel shows how the protagonists aspire to get a good place in the world regardless of the price they have to pay. The novel warns that one can become anything he/she desires to be as long as he /she is ready to forfeit his/her soul. Consequently, minority groups in the USA have ended up paying high prices in a bid to gain recognition and acceptance (Dolan 120).
The novel presents the main driving force of many immigrants in USA that is religious identity. According to my opinion, the novel shows that the modern American society judges people according to their color and religious background. Consequently, the minorities feel insecure and they strive to change themselves into what they are not just to please the Americans. The stereotyping of the Novel’s characters shows that stereotypes are still present in the American Society and the actions and predicaments of the protagonists are the same as of those of the Jewish-Americans and African-Americans who come into USA at the end of the First World War.
The incidents in the novel relate to the Jewish-American experience after the end of the First World War. Many Jews immigrated into the USA and created synagogues and Hebrew learning centers throughout the USA. The Jewish communities introduced programs that could ensure that they were considered as Americans. The Jewish Immigrants aspired to be a high priority community in the USA. The Jews united during the1930s they were among the most successful people in the USA. During the 19th century, the Jews tried to strengthen Judaism and to safeguard it from other religions such as Christianity and Islam among other competing religions (Dolan 121).
Conclusion
In conclusion, this essay has provided a personal reflection on the American religious experience and the Novel” American Born Chinese” reflects the American religious experience through three stories. The three stories offer a vivid representation of the Asian-American experience in the USA. The novel offers insights on how minorities can reconcile their origin, religion, culture and identity in ways that are viable to all generations. The novel is executed in a remarkable way. Since America is melting point, the themes of American Born Chinese apply to all communities because they are all susceptible to religious and identity crises. The America-Jewish experienced identity crises because they were not regarded as part of the American Society. Consequently, they decided to strengthen and safeguard their religion and culture in a bid to gain recognition and respect from the other communities in USA. Additionally, the novel has a wide appeal to all cultural groups and religious groups.
Works Cited
Dolan, Jay P. The American Catholic Experience. Random House LLC, 2011.Print.
Yang, Gene Luen. American Born Chinese. Macmillan, 2007.Print.
