Gene Yang’s Chin-Kee character
serves an interesting purpose in this book. His crude, offensive existence
brings to light the horrible stereotypes America imposes on Asian Americans, albeit
in an exaggerated way. The medium of the graphic novel gives a face to the
character, accentuating his large front teeth, his slit eyes, and yellow skin. His
speech bubbles include a crass “Chinese” accent. Chin-Kee is, in every respect,
a caricature of Asian Americans as perceived by white media, meant to shock and
offend. I believe this is a very effective tool for Gene Yang to address these stereotypes.
There are several scenes in which
Chin-Kee embarrasses those around him, especially Danny. From pages 117-120,
Chin-Kee follows Danny through the lunchroom to various classes, peeing in his
friend’s Coke (after which he exclaims, “Me Chinese, me play joke, me go
pee-pee in his coke!”) and answering questions loudly and correctly in class,
followed by mirthless laughter from other students. Danny is seen hiding his
head in his hands in shame.
After Danny’s detention on page 22,
he finds Melanie in the hall and apologizes for Chin-Kee’s behavior the night
before. Though Melanie says she forgives him, she quickly turns down Danny’s
invitation for another date. Danny gets defensive, saying, “I’m not like him,
Melanie” (123). Melanie insists his connection to Chin-Kee has nothing to do
with their breakup before pointing out that she has noticed his teeth look a
little bucked (just like Chin-Kee’s). Danny immediately covers his mouth, doing
anything to stop a comparison between himself and his annoying cousin.
This caricature does not only
isolate Chin-Kee himself; it isolates anyone with whom he is associated. No one
wants to be like the “other.” This storyline highlights the way white America
is so afraid of its own creation, of things it perceives “different” than the
All-American, traditional way of existing. By creating a character so
exaggerated, Yang points out the way white America concocted its own idea of Asian
Americans, thus establishing its own “other.” I agree with Yang: the best way
to tear down a stereotype is to force people to look at the horrible thing they
themselves create and fear. Chin-Kee is a masterful rendering of this.
I completely agree that Yang’s choice to exaggerate Chin-Kee’s character is an extremely effective way to confront the stereotypes projected onto Asian-Americans so frivolously in American popular culture. What was most interesting to me in reading about Yang’s decision to offend using Chin-Kee was that he used exact quotations from previous media sources to do so. Chin-Kee offers Danny “crispy fried cat gizzards with noodles” for lunch and the reader immediately cringes, reflecting on why Yang has chosen to portray Chin-Kee so offensively (Yang 114). In reality, these words come directly from Pat Oliphant, a renowned cartoonist. When found in pop culture, such as in the case of Oliphant’s cartoon, these disgusting stereotypes were not thought about twice. Rather, the American audience brushed the offensive words off as a light-hearted joke. Many portrayals similar to Chin-Kee have been made relatively recently in popular movies and shows such as Sixteen Candles and American Idol (Yang). Each time, the severity of these portrayals and their implications on real people with very real struggles have gone unnoticed. The discomfort felt when reading about Chin-Kee, especially if voiced in response to people laughing at “jokes” by cartoonists and comedians, could help confront issues we see with institutional discrimination surrounding so many races and cultures today.
ReplyDeleteYang, Gene. “Gene Yang on Sterotypes.” First Second Books, 1 May 2007, firstsecondbooks.com/uncategorized/gene_yang_on_st/.
While I agree that Chin-kee’s purpose in the novel includes being a nasty exemplification of American stereotypes towards Chinese people, I also believe that Chin-Kee serves as an image of what Jin (who in these segments is actually Danny) is trying to run away from. Danny wants no affiliation with his “cousin” (who represents his true background) and blames Chin-kee for many disappointments in his life. As seen on page 123, Danny believes Chin-kee (and the fact Danny is related to a Chinese person) is responsible for Melanie breaking up with him. Danny elaborates further on why he despises Chin-kee when he reveals to his friend Steve, “He comes for a week… talking his stupid talk and eating his stupid food. Embarrassing the crap out of me. By the time he leaves, no one thinks of me as Danny anymore. I’m Chin-kee’s cousin. It gets so bad by the end of the school year that I have to switch schools” (Yang 127).
ReplyDeleteThe major twist of the novel further stresses Chin-kee’s role. Between pages 212-214, Chin-kee reveals himself to be the monkey king and Danny reveals himself as Jin. The monkey king explains to Jin, “I came to serve as your conscience-as a signpost to your soul” (Yang 221). Jin realizes he should not be ashamed of his identity or be worried about how others portray him. Jin understands “selling your soul” to be something else does not grant a happy life or escape from one’s origins thanks to Chin-kee.