The Graphic Novel as a Window into Stereotype Threat - Essay Example

First Number Effects of stereotyping The of stereotype is a reality that has been existingamong members of the society. The practice is evident in most actions and speeches of most members of the society. The ability of people to conform to different practices in the society has its basis in the stereotypical thinking present in the person’s mind. People will always admire and copy certain behavior exhibited by their friends, so as either to appear equal or to gain access to a certain social class. Also, people are most likely to distance themselves from their peers due to certain activities perceived to be awkward, barbaric of representing the negative side of other cultural practices. The stereotype profiling in the mind of individuals leading to assigning labels to other people in the society results in more harm than benefits. Stereotypical labeling presents negative effects to the person receiving the comments. Various books have been written about stereotyping and its effects to the society. Therefore, this essay will present an analysis of various scenes of stereotypes presented in the book “American Born Chinese,” and highlight the writing style and techniques that help in connecting readers to the effects of stereotyping. The last part of the essay will provide a comparison between the American Born Chinese and other three novels, with a similar theme. American Born Chinese is subdivided into three storylines. Each storyline has a main character who helps in developing various themes like a stereotype. The first story in the book is centered on Monkey King (Yang, 56). The negative effects of the stereotype are witnessed in the life of the Monkey King, as he tries to fit in the society. Despite having the interest to take part in the party, he was denied access because of being a Monkey. The act of denying the Monkey entry to the party angered the Monkey. Therefore, he opts to learn Kung Fu tactics, so that he can avenge his anger on those who isolated him, for being a Monkey. He then goes on to beat everyone present in the party and forces them to wear shoes. The Monkey King does not like being viewed as a monkey. Instead, he believes that he is equal to the gods. As a result, he goes to join the gods, where he gets trapped under a rock. He was able to free himself from the rock after realizing the importance to avoid stereotyping and accept the reality of being a Monkey. Also, the second story of the book contains many instances of stereotypes. The introduction of the main character, Jin Wang, to the rest of the class displays the negative perception that the American community holds against the Chinese people and their culture (Yang, 30). The teacher introduces Jing Wang with a false name. Also, she makes an assumption that Jing Wang had joined the school from China, despite having moved from San Francisco, and will be living in the neighborhood. By identifying Jing as a student who had moved from China resulted in many students making fun of him. One student confessed that his mother had claimed that Chinese eat dogs. As a result, Jing Wang feels embarrassed and is always alone in school. Another new student, Wei-Chen Sun, is introduced to the class with similar assumptions of coming from China when he is from Taiwan. Although Jing Wang is alone in class, he does not want to associate with Wei-Chen Sun, who has a thick accent. The feeling of embarrassment within Jing Wang makes him try and change his appearance so that he can fit into the new society as well as woo Amelia. The third story of the novel presents the story of Danny. Despite being a cousin to Chin-Kee, he is feel embarrassed being in the company of Chin-Kee. Danny is not comfortable with the stereotypical appearance, behavior and the thick Chinese accent of Chin-Kee. Despite Danny feeling uncomfortable with Chin-Kee’s behavior, there is little he can do. Chin-Kee is not concerned about the stereotypical labels and uses all means to make others feel his presence. He is loud in class and follows Danny everywhere. The stereotypical hatred within Danny results in a fight with Chin-Kee while trying to control Chin-Kee from shouting in the thick Chinese accent. The author used various writing techniques to enable the reader to identify and understand the impacts of stereotype on one’s life in the society. Among the prevalent techniques include the use dialogue, third person narrator, and pictures. The use of dialogue between characters like Danny and Steve, readers are able to identify the embarrassment and frustration that Danny feels while being accompanied by Chin-Kee. He complains that Chin-Kee embarrasses him everywhere and every year. The use of pictures at the start of every chapter as well as at the end of the book make readers understand the conversation taking place between characters. For instance, the pictures at the end of the book provide a room for readers to learn from the actions of the characters, like laughter, about their final feeling on stereotypes. The use of first person narrator in the second story makes readers identify and sympathize with Jing. He exposes every detail about his life. The many instances of stereotype raised in the American Born Chinese can be compared to the evidence presented authors like Claude Steele, Ta-nehisi Coates and Rachel Dolezal. The label given to Jin Wang and Wei-Chen Sun while being introduced to the class by their teachers bear the resemblance to the assumption in Claude Steele’s Whistling Vivaldi that black males face when walking down the American streets at night, and they are likely to be seen as being violent (Steele, p.40). Also, the state of transformation displayed by both the Monkey King and Jin has a close resemblance to the state of passing described by Rachel Dolezal (Brubaker, p. 4). Just as people from the minority group would pretend to be white, so as to fit and survive in the American society, Jin decides to transform so as to woo Amelia. Also, Jin’s state of loneliness in school resembles that of black people, in the Ta-nehisi Coates’ book Between the World and Me, as they were constantly alienated by the whites (Coates, p.30). As a result, black youths lived in fear of mistreatment, due to their skin color and racial background. Works cited Brubaker, Rogers. "The Dolezal affair: race, gender, and the micropolitics of identity." Ethnic and Racial Studies (2015): 1-35. Coates, Ta-Nehisi. Between the world and me. Text Publishing, 2015. Steele, Claude. Whistling Vivaldi: And other clues to how stereotypes affect us (issues of our time). WW Norton & Company, 2011. Yang, Gene Luen. American Born Chinese. Macmillan, 2007. Read More