A moment in the story that I felt as significant was "August, a few days after Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A holiday had been declared, men sweep women up in their arms in the middle of streets and kiss them, and the women, abanodoned for a moment respond; firecrackers, streamers, confetti, and all the trappings of a carnival". This scene for me was so important, there is a reason not only the celebration of the war was described so postively YET the first words in the line "August, a few days after Hiroshima and Nagasaki", made me feel disgusted; the inhumane use of nuclear warfare on innocent Japanese people is not something to be celebrated. I like how the author put that in there, to show how one nations celebration is anothers destruction. In relation to the story, I feel as if his father celebrating with Americans proving his 200% american attitude shows his further distance form being Japanese. I would think he would be upset, maybe he didn't have family there but not to feel bad for your own people it is surprising.
I was very disgusted at the treatment of the Japanese during this time, being put in camps; restrained and confined at the same time. Like the Kafka story, it was if all the Asian Americans had someone knock at their door and they are imprisoned for no reason. I felt very upset because the father was so nonchalant of what was happening, they played baseball, ate burgers and malts and watched movies. And the audacity for after his release to be told for his own sakes he should try and be 200% American; so willingly being imprisoned for the sake of the whites who are quaking in their privileged racist boots thinking every person from Japan and Asia had to be in cahoots with the "Nazi regime" doesn't prove their support. Even though support wasn't needed this is something that shouldn't have been done in anyway. Yet I relate with the father this is what he has to do to survive in America, ignorance is bliss, that's why when he repeats his mantra over and over until he believes it I realize the strength the father had to do so.
The whole Playboy scene was very fascinating because it revealed the inner realities of a little boy of color dealing with his sexuality in America. The way he discovered his sexuality in a mainstream form that is far from diverse just shows how a lot of boys find out this is what is beauty this is what is sexy. Which just instills how western beauty standards are destructive, and why women of different races and body types are deemed not beautiful. The internalized racism that is shown in the son of K. is brought to the surface the way he says that white women are much beautiful than Asian women, or the way he doesn't realize the womens race because she is white; the invisibility of power, how that is the default if it wasn't and the women was black or brown then he would have noticed. Even the way that white women are the only thing men want but for men of color the only thing they can't have, they are told from awhile they are not to be with them; this gives them a forbidden quality.
"My father is an empty vessel, waiting to be filled" which is impossible in a physical sense, we are never born empty. Yet in a poetic way it was more of a sense of belonging is what he lacked and longed for. Having a place to belong is what he needed to feel whole, that is why he tries so hard to fill the void; to be more American. To fill himself with religion, not just any religion but Christianity, yet he didn't feel that he belonged in Church which I was confused about. He is wanting to belong to something he doesn't belong too which is tragic. Even the quote, "to think a white man must be God", shows how his father is so brainwashed to be white and to belong he obviously must be to think this being that is the most powerful and good has to be white. I can't blame him, personally a lot of poc have all of this white washing and worshiping being instilled since birth due to things like media. I was like that, I always though white with blue eyes were beauty when it wasn't necessarily; it took me a long time to realize that so I don't necessarily resent the father but I can see why his son does. Another way he filled himself is with power, as much power as he could have which wasn't the most, he got lots of money as a "vice president", but not as much as a probably white president counterpart. Which I feel as if so sad, he tries so hard to be filled to be white, to belong in America and maybe he does, maybe he believes this but I feel as if they isn't enough.
The resentment of the narrators father by his son is apparent; the way the son is almost making this story up because his father doesn't really tell him much. Silence is violence but at the same time the expectations is the way his father is so violent to him. The whole scene where the son talks about how his father was always finding a problem in what he did. Even the beginning quotation on how the father said he got everything by hard work which is something the son didn't. Yet I believe the son did work hard towards making his father proud, but he just couldn't do it. It wasn't enough as if his son had to be 400% and not 200% like him. Even the feelings his father has in that excerpt, "disgusted, muttering at my lack of concentration. screaming, and shouting". And this relates to the end, what is the job of the son of K., to forgive his crimes? but does he even have a right if K. doesn't feel as if he committed any crime?
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