A proverb says: “War does not determine who is right, just who is left”. Left, that is
naturally the veterans who managed not to get killed in battle and thus survived their
mission. But left, that is also the ones who refused fighting in a war for their country,
for whatever the reason. War and its aftermaths clearly do not take a decision on which
of the two behaviors is right. It just leaves the involved people opposing each other contrarily
– like left and right.
In John Okada’s novel No-No Boy, almost all of its characters are immediately
confronted with the previously mentioned discord. Set in the Seattle of 1945, No-No
Boy deals with the outer and inner conflicts of a young Japanese American, named
Ichiro, who refused the draft by a government, which in his eyes deprived him of his
identity as an American. The narration starts with its central character, Ichiro, who had
just arrived at a bus station in Seattle and now sees himself confronted with a drastically
changed and diverse Japanese American community. By telling the story from Ichiro’s
perspective, Okada thereby convinces his audience with an authentic depiction of “a
quest for self-identity under extreme circumstances” (Huang, 2006: 152) in this fragmented
and torn segment of society.
Like his protagonist, Okada himself was an American-born son of Japanese immigrants,
a so-called Nisei, and therefore also got evacuated from his hometown Seattle
during the war years. When the Second World War broke out in 1939, Okada was in his
mid-twenties and, unlike Ichiro in the novel, volunteered in the US Air Force, only to
get discharged again directly after the war, in 1946 (see Huang, 2006: 152). Okada
therefore can be rated a prime source for rendering a Japanese-American community in
Seattle which on the one hand “struggles with and seeks to recover from the disruptive
effects of the internment” (Cheung & Peterson 195), and on the other hand has to deal
with the repercussions of a more or less forced recruitment. Moreover, during the progress
of his book, Okada confronts the topic of racism and segregation in the United
States with his “painful, powerful, and nuanced messages” (Huang, 2009: 768) – some
of which the United States of the 1950s were not yet ready for. [...]
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Historical Background of the Novel
3. The Selected Nisei Characters
3.1 Minor Characters
3.1.1 The Realist: Gary
3.1.2 The Traitor: Taro Yamada
3.1.3 The Impostor: Eto Minato
3.1.4 The Loudmouth: Bull
3.1.5 The Daredevil: Freddie
3.2 Major Characters
3.2.1 The Son of America: Kenji Kanno
3.2.2 The Contemplator: Ichiro Yamada
4. Conclusion
5. Bibliography
Research Objectives and Themes
This academic paper aims to explore the concept of failure as represented by various Nisei characters in John Okada's novel No-No Boy, analyzing how their specific life choices and reactions to post-internment conditions lead to their ultimate inability to achieve their dreams.
- The impact of World War II internment on Japanese American identity.
- The psychological and social struggles of Nisei men who refused the draft ("no-no boys").
- Character analysis focusing on specific behavior patterns and their susceptibility to failure.
- The interplay between intergenerational conflict (Issei vs. Nisei) and American racial politics.
- The evolution of the protagonist, Ichiro Yamada, from self-destructive isolation toward potential self-acceptance.
Excerpt from the Book
3.2.2 The Contemplator: Ichiro Yamada
The novel starts in medias res, “literally meaning 'in the midst of things’” (Harmon & Holman 270), with picturing its protagonist’s arrival at a bus station in Seattle. What the title, No-No Boy, lets already assume becomes clear immediately after a few lines in the novel: the “no-no boy” from the title is also the protagonist of the story. His name is Ichiro and he “had been gone four years, two in camp and two in prison” (Okada 1). As the reader quickly finds out, “Ichiro seems to be a pathological loser. What he does is wrong and what he doesn’t do” (Chan, et al. 219) is also wrong. Ironically, this quality of his is one which decidedly marks Ichiro as being an American individual of his time. Thereby he serves an image which before the 1980s “was regular in American culture--the beautiful loser, the shimmering failure, the mess who for all his stumbles in the slush still strove for something honorable and was honored by the greater world in which he gloriously flopped” (Rosenblatt 64). From a contemporary point of view, this romantic picture of the “beautiful loser” is almost an inconceivable one. Yet, before this process of rethinking had set in at the end of the 1970s, there clearly was a connotation attached to losing as “a sign of high and admirable ambitions” (Rosenblatt 64). This perception perfectly applies to No-No Boy and its ever failing protagonist: in the course of the novel Ichiro rejects “all offers of life, the love of a woman, a job by an understanding Mr. Carrick” (Chan, et al. 219) simply for the reason that he feels unworthy of it. Sure enough, Ichiro is a character who does not take things lightly. It is his contemplative demeanor which makes Ichiro an object for sympathy and understanding, yet, at the same time it is also the root of his failures.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the central conflict of the novel and the character Ichiro, while situating the work within the context of Japanese American literature and the post-war internment experience.
2. Historical Background of the Novel: Examines the historical realities of the internment of Japanese Americans, the loyalty questionnaire, and the resulting social and psychological trauma on the community.
3. The Selected Nisei Characters: Analyzes the novel’s figures as representatives of various reactions to their social standing and political circumstances.
3.1 Minor Characters: Examines snapshots of static characters—Gary, Taro, Eto, Bull, and Freddie—to illuminate their specific struggles and failure patterns.
3.1.1 The Realist: Gary: Describes Gary's resigned acceptance of his status as an outcast and his struggle as an artist within a rehabilitation center.
3.1.2 The Traitor: Taro Yamada: Focuses on Ichiro's younger brother, who attempts to assimilate into the American mainstream through military service, ultimately betraying his familial bonds.
3.1.3 The Impostor: Eto Minato: Analyzes Eto’s hypocritical pride as a veteran and his eventual exposure as a liar, highlighting his deep-seated insecurities.
3.1.4 The Loudmouth: Bull: Explores Bull’s aggressive desire for status and his pathetic attempts to align with "white" American society through performative masculinity.
3.1.5 The Daredevil: Freddie: Investigates Freddie’s hedonistic, self-destructive behavior as a compensation for his imprisonment and his role as Ichiro’s alter ego.
3.2 Major Characters: Transitions to the more complex, pivotal figures whose interactions drive the central development of the protagonist.
3.2.1 The Son of America: Kenji Kanno: Contrasts Kenji's altruistic sacrifice and ultimate death with Ichiro’s struggles, viewing Kenji as a tragic, yet noble, foil.
3.2.2 The Contemplator: Ichiro Yamada: Profiles the protagonist’s internal struggle, his "learned helplessness," and his complex journey toward potential reconciliation and future hope.
4. Conclusion: Summarizes the diverse forms of failure depicted in the novel and posits that these individual failures are reflective of systemic societal and historical injustices.
5. Bibliography: Lists the academic resources and literary analyses used to support the paper's arguments.
Keywords
John Okada, No-No Boy, Nisei, Japanese American literature, internment, post-war Seattle, draft resistance, identity, failure, Ichiro Yamada, racial politics, assimilation, trauma, social outcasts, ethnic identity.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this analysis?
This work analyzes John Okada’s novel No-No Boy, specifically focusing on how the Nisei characters navigate their identities in the post-WWII era and why their attempts at defining their futures are ultimately interpreted as failures.
What are the central themes explored?
The core themes include the psychological impact of the Japanese American internment, the struggle between maintaining Japanese heritage and pursuing American assimilation, and the "no-no boy" status as a source of social alienation.
What is the primary research goal?
The objective is to examine eight specific characters within the novel and identify the particular character traits or attitudes that lead to their failure, while assessing the protagonist Ichiro's path to potential recovery.
Which methodology is applied?
The author uses a literary analysis approach, drawing on historical facts about the 1940s internment period and incorporating secondary literary criticism to interpret the characters' motivations and outcomes.
What is covered in the main body of the work?
The main body provides a detailed historical overview, followed by individual character studies categorized into minor and major figures, concluding with an in-depth analysis of the protagonist Ichiro and his foil, Kenji.
Which keywords define this work?
The analysis is best characterized by terms such as No-No Boy, Nisei, internment, identity, post-war social structure, racial politics, and personal failure.
Why does the author classify the characters as "failures"?
The author argues that no character in the novel fully achieves their goals or dreams, as they are all caught in the destructive repercussions of racial prejudice and the societal "sorting" of individuals into opposing categories.
How does the death of Kenji influence the narrative?
Kenji’s death serves as a contrast to Ichiro’s survival; while Kenji’s sacrifice for his country is seen as noble, his ultimate end underscores the tragedy and inherent failure of the era's racial expectations.
Does the novel offer an optimistic conclusion?
While the tone is largely pessimistic, the ending suggests a "glimmer of hope" for Ichiro, as he begins to move beyond his self-destructive past and attempts to re-engage with the world through his relationship with Emi.
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- Michael Burger (Autor:in), 2009, The Concept of Failure Represented by the Nisei Characters in John Okada’s 'No-No Boy', München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/142139
