Desert Exile Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Desert Exile - Essay Example She describes the hard life of the Japanese Americans during the Depression and after they were forced to live in the internment camp The author’s father came to the United States in 1906, and her mother came later to marry him. Belonging to a fairly well-off family, Uchida did not experience the hardships her friends did during the Depression .She describes her angst during her childhood and her mother’s sensitivity and her father’s kindness and hospitality. The book throws light on some of the customs and ways of life of the first generation Japanese Americans. Although the book is well written and is full of insights, Yoshiko Uchida who belongs to the community of Japanese Americans herself, does not seem to give a balanced view of the experiences of her community .According to a critic, Uchida â€Å"is too close to her subjects and does not have enough critical distance to give a balanced and accurate account of the internment and experience of Japanese Amer icans in the years before the internment.† Writing about the deluge of Japanese visitors they had when she was a child, Uchida writes, â€Å"I felt as though our house was the unofficial alumni headquarters of Doshisha, and I one of its most reluctant members.†(Uchida p. 11) As the author was but a young child at the time, the number of visitors must have seemed enormous to her. In chapter 2, the author speaks about her insecurities which continued into her adult life. According to her, the insecurity was probably caused by the feeling of being different. â€Å"Perhaps it was the constant sense of not being as good as the hakujin(white people)† (Uchida 27) She concedes that although they spoke Japanese at home and observed Japanese customs, her family was more liberal than many of the other Japanese families. â€Å"As a result, our upbringing was less strict than that of some of my Nesei