In the excerpts from “Response to executive order9066” by Dwight Okita and “Mericans” by Sandra Cisneros, I have determined that there is a common theme amongst the two. A common theme is a main idea or an underlying meaning of a literary work that may be stated directly or indirectly that corresponds with each other. Now in “Response to Executive Order 9066” by Dwight Okita she is responding to the executive order. The Executive Order 9066 was a United States presidential executive order signed and issued during World War II by the United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942, authorizing the Secretary of War to prescribe certain areas as military zones, clearing the way for the deportation of Japanese Americans to internment …show more content…
She sat in front of me all through grade school because of our names: O'Connor, Ozawa. I know the back of Denise's head very well. I tell her she's going bald. She tells me I copy on tests.” That Lets you know what kind of friendship they had. When the situation happened her so called best friend wasn’t sitting with her no more because of what was going on. Now “mericans” by Sandra Cisneros is a short story about a young girl who is narrating the story, it is about a time in her life, when she is caught between the old world (Mexico) and the new world (America). It starts out with the girl telling about her grandmother, nicknamed the awful grandmother, praying in church. She tells of all the different prayers that need to be made, and of all the traditions that the grandmother is practicing. The girl and her brothers are stuck outside the church, waiting for their grandmother, they aren’t allowed to walk to the plaza, where there are balloons, comic books, and other fun things. But they are also not allowed to come inside the church. One of her brothers is running around playing, while her other brother is just leaning against the
Written prompt of Citizen 13660 by Mine Okubo Summary Citizen 13660 is an illustrated picture book representing the internment of people who were of Japanese descent. More than 110,000 Japanese people were evacuated simply because of their racial background. This has been no reasonable justification as to why the order of 9066 was even made. Fear swept over the United States after the attack on Pearl Harbor. This caused a mass spread of propaganda which degraded anyone of Japanese ancestry.
Michael Smith Professor Amy Decker English 102 19 May 2015 Critical Evaluation of “Petition to the President” Szilard makes a valid argument in his “Petition to the President” essay by using a good balance of logos, pathos, and ethos as well as by being sure to restate his point to assure that the reader makes the necessary connections. He used ethos very well when stating his reason for what makes him a reliable source to be talking on behalf of the topic. Logos were used well when Szilard was explaining how the use of atomic bombs would simply open a door to more destruction and turn them into an “easy fix” for any future problems with other countries that the U.S. may face. Although he did use logos and ethos as well as pathos, it appeared
Literary Analysis: Exploring American Identity Introduction This essay compares “In response to executive order 9066” (poem) by Dwight Okita to “Mericans” (short story) by Sandra Cisneros. Specifically, the essay explores the central theme of American identity in the two literary works. The “Mericans” is about a little girl who has a story about the new world and the old world. In this case, the new world is America.
The short story seems to be about differences between the speaker and her grandmother. The narrator doesn't seem to like her grandmother very much and its obvious because she calls her awful twice. The narrator seems to dislike or maybe is irritated by her grandmother's religious
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Americans were fearful of further Japanese attacks on the West Coast and also of Japanese Americans. In response to this fear, President Roosevelt passed an executive order relocating all people of Japanese descent from the West Coast inland. Similar to the fear of the American people, the witch hunts in the novel The Crucible by Arthur Miller led people to believe that girls in the town were being bewitched. Mass hysteria caused multiple arrests for accusations and even death for the so called “witches”. The theme of fear in both the Crucible and the Japanese Internment Camps of WWII caused people to be easily persuaded with the use of pathos and logos.
During July of 1941, millions of jobs were being created, primarily in densely-populated areas, as the United States prepared to enter World War II. These densely-populated areas had large numbers of migration, specifically from African Americans, who sought to work in defense industries, but were often met with rejection and discrimination within the workplace. A. Philip Randolph, a civil rights activist and president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, and other black leaders, met with Eleanor Roosevelt and members of the President’s cabinet. They demanded action from Franklin Delano Roosevelt to be taken towards eliminating racial bias in the workplace; they threatened to commence a March on Washington if an executive order was not
Assimilation: the process of taking in and fully understanding information or ideas. This is a common topic throughout both "Response to Executive Order 9066" and "Mericans", two stories about other cultures blending into American culture. Both stories focus on the toxicity of American culture and the racial divide between people. Even though the main characters in both texts have completely assimilated into American culture, they are still treated like outsiders and considered foreign, whether they grew up in the US or not. Although the stories diverge in terms of circumstances, tone, and mood, both generally reflect on the negative impact of American culture and how it has affected the lives of immigrants.
In Sandra Cisneros “Mericans” she creates a young character named Michelle who faces cultural differences and nonunderstanding, gender roles and culture stereotyping which can be exhibited in the real world. The author introduces Michelle as a foreigner with in her own culture, with this being said throughout the story Michelle seemed to be uninterested in her Grandmothers ideals and the principles of the Mexican heritage. The evidence behind this statement is; throughout the passage Michelle refers to her grandmother as being “awful” (Cisneros 93). I think a big reason for this is the fact that the grandmother has the children wait outside the church doors as she goes and say her daily prayers.
In the texts, "In Response to Executive Order 9066" by Dwight Okita and "Mericans" by Sandra Cisneros, a topic of American identity and perception of identity is shared. Both texts take a brief look at the lives, characteristics, and feelings of young girls living a bicultural life. In Cisnero's story, the girl seems caught between her two different cultures, and she struggles to connect with her Mexican heritage. In Okita's poem, the girl has a clear sense of her identity and place as an American. Culture is experienced and interpreted differently by each individual and each group of people.
Mericans written by Sandra Cisneros is a short story in which the internal struggles of being bilingual and bicultural are discussed and analyzed. Through the use imagery, point of view, symbolism, characterization, and character transformation the reader gleans the theme of the story. Furthermore, Sandra Cisneros addresses border identity, crossing the border, and knowing or not knowing that one’s home lies in two countries. The story uses narrative first person point of view and is told through the eyes of the protagonist Micaela. The successful execution of the entire story allows the reader to see the attitude changes from the main character throughout the story from beginning to end.
Situated near the U.S.-Mexico border during the early twentieth century is the fictional setting of Fort Jones, the outskirts of which is where Americo Paredes’ short story “Macaria’s Daughter” takes place. Emblematic of the disappropriation of Mexican land, as well as the increased marginalization of the Mexican people, the overbearing presence of Fort Jones reveals the struggle for preservation that characterizes the Mexican-American community of the story. “Macaria’s Daughter” is the tragic account of what happens in a small community when the upholding of Mexican values and institutions, and opposition to Anglo-American culture, become more important than a young woman’s life. In this essay, I will argue that “Macaria’s Daughter” is a text
Written works about American Identity are a very common theme amongst writers, including poet Dwight Okita and short-story writer Sandra Cisneros. Dwight Okita is famous for her poem “In Response to Order 9066: All Americans of Japanese Descent Must Report to Relocation Centers,” in which the theme of American identity is portrayed through a 14-year-old girl. In a similar way, Sandra Cisneros’s short story is told by a young girl of Mexican heritage who prefers American culture—in sharp contrast to her deep-rooted Mexican grandmother. Although the overall theme of the two texts is “American Identity,” both Okita's poem and Cisneros's short story delve deeper and portray that cultural heritage and physical appearances do not determine what it
Both Dwight Okita and Sandra Cisneros developed the theme of American identity in their writing. Dwight Okita expresses the individual theme in his poem of physical appearance does not define one 's American identity. In Sandra Cisneros short story she develops her individual theme of cultural heritage does not define your American identity. Together these two writers develop a common theme of cultural heritage and physical appearance does not define one 's American identity.
The character of Denise is used to depict the fear of Japanese Americans present amongst the general population. Denise presumably learned about her recently discovered fear from a family member and applied it to her own life. She mistreats the narrator and says “You’re trying to start a war…giving secrets away to the Enemy. Why can’t you keep your big mouth shut?” (18-19).
Discrimination has plagued the world since the beginning of time and continues to happen today. People can be discriminated against simply for looking different or following different customs. It has been implemented by governments throughout history, but it has also been practiced individually. “In Response to Executive Order 9066” and “Legal alien” are two poems that discuss the topic of discrimination. “In Response to Executive Order 9066,” by Dwight Okita is a poem that describes the possible interment of a Japanese-American during World War 2.