This statement tells us a lot about Sheldon's character, of his disappointment in the way society groups people based on race and/or ethnicity. Keiko makes a similar statement in "Jamaican Ginger" when, at the end of the chapter, after the Black Elks Club has been raided and she had witnessed people she knows being taken away by the FBI, she turns on Henry:
Keiko halted and looked at Henry. She looked down at his button, the one his father made him wear. "You are Chinese, aren't you, Henry?"
He nodded, not knowing how to answer.
"That's fine. Be who you are," she said, turning away, a look of disappointment in her eyes. "But I'm an American."
Write about what you believe Keiko means when she says these things to Henry. Be thorough in your explanation.
What Keiko means when she says this to Henry is it doesn't matter what race you are all that matters is that you are born in America. And thats final. I beileve Keiko said this to Henry because the Japanese people were taken out of the Black Elks Club. In Keiko's mind what I thought was going on is there are American so what about their race. They were born or lived in America for a good amount of time. And you are just going to take them away because they are Japanese. This is America!!!
ReplyDeletetsace12
I think Keiko is stating that maybe she is trying to either hide the fact that she is a Japanese American, or to emphasize the difference between the two's heritage and history.
ReplyDeleteGG The Emu 42
I think what Kieko means when she says this to Henry is, I don't like the way you are and we should not be friends anymore
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe Keiko meant to say to Henry was that he would awlays go around in public,repeatedly claiming that he was Chinese through the button that he wore on his chest, and he would make sure that whoever he came across knew that he was Chinese. But Keiko on the other hand, she certainly comes across as Japense, but she was born in america, much like Henry, except people judge her differently because of the way she looks, such as discrimination. In my opinion, I could see that Keiko had been getting slowly annoyed with the fact that Henry always wears his button and says he's Chinese, but the truth us, Henry is no different than Keiko, except fot the fact that they don't look alike, they were both born in America, therefore they are both American, although Henry has been convinced by his father differently, that he should strongly express that he is Chinese. It may seem confusing, but I can definitely see where Keiko is coming from. I think Keiko has a very good reason to be dissapointed in Henry, as would I if I was in her shoes. I definitely think it brought something very important and lesson-learning to Henry's attention, let's just hope it sinks in.
ReplyDelete~lclorezo5~
I believe that Keiko means she tied of being classifide as something else just because her grandparents are from Japen and people are treating her differently because of that and shes tried of it because shes a second generation American and doesn't even know the Japeness language.
ReplyDeleteknsplash
I think what Keiko means when she says this to Henry is that she is proud to be an American; even if she is biologically Japanese.
ReplyDelete-ampettyfer
To be honest I don't really understand what she meant by that. To make a guess I could say that she meant that it doesn't really matter what your ethnic background is it matters where you were born and where you are from. Also, I think she is upset by the way people treat other people based on their race.
ReplyDeleteLK Bertha98
I believe that what Keiko says to Henry about how she is American, that she doesn't want to be considered a Japenese because she was born an rased American. She doesn't have to pretend that she is Chinese, wearing the "I am Chinese" pin just so people will treat her right. She wants to get the point across that now she lives in America, she is considered an American.
ReplyDeletems gemini11
I think what Keiko means when she says those things to Henry is she means that although her ancestors are Japanese that does not make her Japanese. She may look like she is from Japan but she is just as American as the rest of us. The same goes for Henry but his dad makes him wear that pin that says I am Chinese.
ReplyDeleteahnighthawk
When Keiko says these things to Henry, I think she means that since she was born in America and lives in America, she is more American than she is Japanese. Keiko was born in America which means she is an American citizen. Also, she speaks English but does not know Japanese, therefore, she is American.
ReplyDeletecichocothunder25
When Keiko asked Henry if he was Chinese and he said yes I think she was dissapointed because he had been hiding behind the fact that he was Chinese his whole life, in order to be separated from the Japanese. She was upset not because it was innocent Japanese people who were getting in trouble, but because it was innocent Americans getting in trouble. Henry was happy enough to get away due to the fact that he was Chinese but Keiko wanted to help the Japanese people. I think that Keiko's point was that she didn't care about race, she lived in America and was an
ReplyDeleteAmerican citizen and all Americans should be treated the same. Henry kept hiding behing his being Chinese to avoid trouble that he didn't own up to that fact that he was really just an American and race shouldn't be an issue.
~CH.Lafanadala
When Keiko says this to Henry, I believe she means that she cannot understand why Henry would have so much loyalty to a country he's never seen. She herself is loyal to her birth country, America, and only America. Her heritage doesn't matter to her because she was born in America, and that's all that matters. For example, I'm mostly European, but I'm still an American first and foremost, and the only country I'm loyal to is America.
ReplyDeletemjaphrodite20