Embracing One's Identity

The stories in American Born Chinese follow the perspectives of the Monkey King and Jin Wang. The Monkey King’s tale starts when he tries to enter a party where all the gods and goddesses are invited only to find out that he isn’t on the list. The bouncer turns him away because he’s a monkey and he’s not wearing shoes. This prompts the Monkey King to order all monkeys to wear shoes in an attempt to be like the gods and goddesses. He also believes that his natural smell as a monkey is disgusting, “When he entered his royal chamber, the thick smell of monkey fur greeted him. He’d never noticed it before. He stayed awake for the rest of the night thinking of ways to get rid of it” (Yang 79).

His humiliation has manifested in an oppression against his own kind, to emulate the species that he wants to be like most. The Monkey King then spends 80 days training to be stronger and appear more human. He uses his new powers to intimidate and hurt others. The creator, Tze-Yo-Tzuh, attempts to convince The Monkey King to embrace his monkey identity but his words of wisdom will not reach his brain until 500 years later. The Monkey King betrays himself by trying to be someone else.

Jin’s tale starts when he moves to the suburbs where he can’t find any other Chinese Americans other than Suzy Nakamura, a girl that he doesn’t want to associate with. The kids bully him based on stereotypes like eating dogs and being called a chink, a racist Chinese term. Even Jin’s teachers don’t stop the racism, ““My momma says Chinese people eat dogs.’ ‘Now be nice, Timmy! I’m sure Jin doesn’t do that! In fact, Jin’s family probably stopped that sort of thing as soon as they came to the United States!’” (Yang 31) 

The truth is that Jin didn’t have anyone to fall back on: he was completely isolated from the community. Because of this, he started to internalize their taunts and wanted to be white because white people were accepted and Chinese Americans were tormented. This thought process is what pushed him to want to be Danny, a blonde and white guy. In the end, Jin realizes that it is unfulfilling to be anyone other than himself. In each of these sections, Yang explores the power of self-acceptance and the ability to cherish one’s heritage.