Japanese Internment: Mirikitani & Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son

The story of Japanese interment during WWII has been a part of America’s poor decision-making based on the ethnicity of an entire race. Over 120,000 Japanese-American citizens were imprisoned in camps that forced individuals to sell their homes, businesses and assets. Many individuals died due to poor conditions of the camps or were brutally murdered by the American military. An executive order was enforced by President Roosevelt in order to “prevent espionage and sabotage.” Despite the reparations that were received by the survivors of this injustice, many were heavily impacted mentally and physically impacted due to the stress of being interned in the camps.

The stories of Mirikitani and Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son both depict the dark stories of what the narrator and Jimmy Mirikitani encountered, but it also shapes the characteristics that are instilled in the men as well as the narrator’s children in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son. As a result of his father being held within an internment camp during WWII, the narrator in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son, has a difficult time finding his identity as a “Sansei,” which is a third generation Japanese-American. The narrator visits Hiroshima, with the hopes of forming a better connection to his father and the difficulties he has faced however the stories that are mostly created from his mind and the interment forces his father disassociates himself as Japanese ancestry and embraces the complexities associated as an American citizen in order to “fit in.”  and loses his identity in the process of doing so,  “After the war you will be free again and back in American society. But for your own sakes try and be not one, but two hundred percent American…” It’s unfortunate that although America is supposed to be a melting pot of diversity, individuals who come here in the hopes of seeking the same freedoms and opportunities as “whites” but even if they give up their culture and conform to what it is to be “American” they still are not entitled to the same prospects. In many lights whiteness, is considered to be MORE AMERICAN, or more prosperous in many cases. “.. but she is white, her beauty is self-evident. I sense somehow that she must be more beautiful than Asian women, more prestigious.” Unlike the narrator in Fictive Fragments of a Father and Son, Jimmy Mirikitani embraces the tragedy he faced through illustrating Japanese Art and being Anti-American in a sense. Because Jimmy recalls the negative encounters such as his family members dying, the mistreatment and separation of his family members forced him to have a strong dislike for Americas. Even as a homeless man, he originally didn’t want any help from the filmmaker or from SS. Mirikitani embraced his culture before, during and after his interment and even taught the filmmaker a lot of his Japanese ancestry from the samurai movies, stories of his internment, the art that is special to his culture and other cultural values of those of Japanese ancestry.

Japanese internment has shaped the survivors in many ways, some embrace their culture even stronger, some have a strong dislike for Americans and many conform to American culture and forget their own. The devastating truth is that this part of history shapes the potential of these people in many ways and ultimately are influenced with the coping mechanisms the individuals chose to deal with this injustice.

 

"Family Ties"

Jimmy Santiago Baca’s, Family Ties discusses the cultural differences and a lack of belongingness that one family has while attending a family gathering. There is a cultural disconnection between the families’. While the majority of the family is joining the barbeque, and engaging the common cultural practices of those of Mexican ancestry, with the preparing of tacos and tamales, conversations while indulging in beer and whiskey and discussing land grant issues leaves one family feeling displaced. The narrator discusses that he feels, “No love or family tie here.” Opposed to his families cultural practices the narrator rather go hiking and be in an abandoned rock cabin within the mountains. It is likely that the cultural disassociation correlates with having a more Americanized background opposed to his family that incorporates Mexican culture and values heavily into their everyday lives.

I relate to the narrator’s disassociation to my connection to my family when I travel to South Carolina to visit my host of aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins. A common practice of my Southern family is the women spending hours preparing home cooked meals (corn bread, baked macaroni & cheese, mustard greens, fried chicken; etc.) Food is a major part of African American’s culture is considered to be, “Soul Food.” Soul Food was a term used to describe recipes with the roots of slavery and civil rights within rural areas of the South. Soul food and Southern meals are completely different, according to John T. Edge the director or the Southern Foodways Alliance; “The differences between the foods of Black and White Southerners are subtle. More capsicum pepper heat, a heavier hand with salt and pepper and a great use of offal meat are comparative characteristics of Soul vs. Country Cooking.” Soul food cooking thrives from the recipes created with the lack of resources provided to African Americans. Although the South, has made tremendous strides to surpass the negative stigmas associated with the region do to the slave trade & the Civil Rights Movement the dark history of the South is a lot more blatant than anywhere else. While visiting my family in the South Carolina, another custom that is heavily practiced is the making of whiskey & scupadine wine while telling stories of encounters of racism, segregation or discrimination. In many ways I can understand why the narrator has a disassociation with his Mexican family, and like him I can relate to not understanding why certain things are important to his family. However, unlike the narrator I like to embrace my family's culture; and the recent project that I just completed for class has peaked my interest even more because I learned a lot more of harsh encounters endured by my family's members which is a lot of the reason why my connection is strong to my African American heritage.

 

 

 

 

Smoke Signals

A constant occurring theme displayed in the film, Smoking Signals is dealing with an individual’s past in order to progress in one’s future. A saying that was introduced in the beginning of the movie was “Sometimes to go forward you have to drive in reverse”. This quote sheds light upon many occurrences within the film, and it begins with the dark history of Americans conquering the land of the Native Americans. As a result of this, the contemporary Native Americans deal with the troublesome encounters with “whites” by being socially, economically and culturally shunned from what was their native homeland before the Americans came. They have chosen to cope with historical misfortune by decided to adhere to their ancestor’s cultural practices, of story-telling, living on a reservation, the making of traditional dishes and lastly the traits associated with being an Native American such as bravery, stoicism, as well as other practiced traditions opposed to conforming to traditions and cultures of White Americans.

The main characters Victor and Thomas both have encountered troubling events as children in the past that have affected them as young adults. Thomas adheres to the cultural traditions of Native Americans, however being raised by his grandmother after the death of his parents has hindered his growth as a “Native American” male. The lack of presence by Arnold Joseph in his son’s life has caused a lot of anger and resentment within his life. Both young men turned to each other for support because they had a lack of a father figure within their life. The turning point where they are able to bury their troubles and move forward with their lives is traveling to retrieve Arnold’s remains. During their journey they got into an accident and for the first time in their relationship aside, they were able to set aside their differences and overall their relationship transitioned from “frenemies” to realizing that they both had a lot more in common they originally thought and even were able to grow from the troubles they dealt with as children. In the end the two young men are able to cope with their misfortunes with the learned knowledge of their past as well as their shared cultural values.

 

 

American Smooth

Rita Dove

“American Smooth”

We were dancing—it must have

been a foxtrot or a waltz,

something romantic but

requiring restraint,

rise and fall, precise

execution as we moved

into the next song without

stopping, two chests heaving

above a seven-league

stride—such perfect agony,

one learns to smile through,

ecstatic mimicry

being the sine qua non

of American Smooth.

And because I was distracted

by the effort of

keeping my frame

(the leftward lean, head turned

just enough to gaze out

past your ear and always

smiling, smiling),

I didn’t notice

how still you’d become until

we had done it

(for two measures?

four?)—achieved flight,

that swift and serene

magnificence,

before the earth

remembered who we were

and brought us down. We were dancing—it must have

been a foxtrot or a waltz,

something romantic bustride—such perfect agony,one learns to smile through,ecstatic mimicrybeing the sine qua nonof American Smooth.And because I was distractedby the effort of keeping my frame(the leftward lean, head turnedjust enough to gaze outpast your ear and alwayssmiling, smiling),I didn’t noticehow still you’d become untilwe had done it(for two measures?four?)—achieved flight,that swift and serenemagnificence,before the earthremembered who we wereand brought us down. In Rita Dove’s, American Smooth she illustrates the narrator’s delicate rheumatic passion for ballroom dancing. Rita Dove and her husband Fred Viebahn began dancing after their house burned down after it was struck by lightning. To get their mind off of the bizarre tragedy, their neighbors invited them to a benefit dinner, where the couple saw other couples engaging in ballroom dancing. Rita and her husband always interested in learning how to dance, and signed up for introductory classes after the dinner. The couple has been ballroom dancing ever since. In an interview, Rita Dove states that “Though there's nothing like a jazzy fox-trot to combine both the Western and the African American traditions, and the quickstep is essential if you want to feel both light and swift, I prefer the Latin dances-cha-cha, rumba, mambo-but samba is my favorite. That dance has sass! And it's terrifically difficult to do well, because for all that wriggling and grinding, it demands tremendous restraint. Coiled energy, grace, and punch-just like poetry.” Along with a dancing background, Rita Dove also has experience in playing the cello which also influences the lyricism in her poetry. Dove’s poems that are inspired for her love for dance is written in the technique of the dance performed in the poetry. While writing American Smooth “The gradual lowering from tiptoe that one executes in the second half of the third beat in the waltz-only then did "American Smooth" start to shimmer into being. My scaffolding was to provide a humble description of the dance technique-what each part of the body should be doing, measured out precisely, without emotion-in the hopes of finding the poem's true desire, to achieve flight of consciousness, a lifting of the spirit as well as of the human form. The political implications of the American brand of smooth has suggested, in turn, different avenues to pursue in other poems that are not printed here.” The overall essence of American Smooth portrays the importance of in spite of any obstacles that may come to an individual it is important to keep a “good poker face”. American Smooth clearly correlates Rita Dove’s musical and dance background while also showing the audience that it is okay to decline societal conformities.