ANALYSIS OF EXCERPT FROM
JOY KOGAWA’S OBASAN
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do
that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do
that. -MLK Jr.
Theme Statement

Kogawa believes that the Japanese Canadians
silent, unnoticed exodus ironically reveals to the
world their unwavering strength during WWII.
Through changes in perspective, selection of detail,
and biblical allusions, she shows her personal belief
that the JC’s are also God’s children.
Literary Elements
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Religious allusion
Metaphor
Irony
Diction
Shift in perspective
Imagery
Simile
Onomatopoeia
Uses religious allusion and metaphor to
show JC’s tolerance and helplessness
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“We are going down to the middle of the Earth…
carried along by the momentum of the expulsion
into the waiting wilderness.” (5-8)
“We are the chips and sand, the fragments of
fragments…” (11)
 JC’s
are minor casualties of the war
Religious allusion shows irony of JC’s
silent exodus
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“rendered voiceless, stripped of car, radio, camera
and every means of communication” (14-15)
“a trainload of eyes covered with mud and spittle.
We are the man in the Gospel of John, born into
the world for the sake of the light.” (15-18)
 JC
are blinded by society. Example of tolerance and
love of God’s people

“We are sent to the sending, that we may bring
sight.” (19)
 JC
bring sight to other Japanese
Final Line

“We disappear into the future undemanding as
dew.” (27-28)
Selection of Detail – Brevity and
Understatement
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Short dialogue
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Brevity of speech and communication through actions depict quietness
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“Woman in the aisle seat opposite us leans over and whispers to Obasan with a solemn
nodding of her head and a flicker of her eyes indicating the young woman.” (65-66)
“Obasan moves her head slowly and gravely in a nod as she listens. ‘Kawaiso,’ she
says under her breath.” (69-70)
“Kuniko-san clutches the baby against her breast and bows forward twice while
accepting Obasan’s gift without looking up.” (97-99)
Understated weight of Obasan’s actions
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Gift of apples and oranges is a seemingly small deed
But is an understatement for something much larger
Paradoxically emphasizes the perseverance of the Japanese-Canadians. And
the dignity that allowed them to tolerate and cope with the injustice brought
upon them.
This is why Kogawa believes they are the “man in the Gospel of John, born into
the world for the sake of the light.” (16-18)
Selection of Detail - Order
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Much like how a child would look around a train
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First notices the people
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Then moves on to describe the things she smells, sees, hears
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“The train is full of strangers…not one of us on this journey returns home again.” (45)
“The train smells of oil and soot and orange peels and lurches groggily as we rock our
way inland.” (46-47)
“Along the window ledge, the black soot leaps and settles like insects.” (47-48)
“I can barely hear [the kitten’s] high steady cry in the clackity-clack and steamy hiss of
the train.” (59)
Not one line of dialogue appears in the first two thirds of second section
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Gives impression of a silent train ride
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Emphasizes the dignity of the Japanese-Canadians and their ability to quietly tolerate
their situation.
Because of their tolerance, they are able to “bring sight”
Structure
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Split into two sections
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First
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First person plural—represents the Japanese Canadian’s as a whole
and how they are all affected by the injustice in society.
Second
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Personal account of the train ride to the internment camp
More imagery than action
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Shows Kogawa’s pride in her people’s tolerance
Obasan’s benevolence intentionally highlighted
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Describes train’s interior
Action comes at the end
 Obasan’s gift to Kuniko
Why did Kogawa choose to emphasize such a small act?
Her actions epitomize overall character of WWII Japanese Candians
Point of View

First person plural in first section
 Kogawa
speaks for Japanese-Candians as a whole
 “We
are hammers and chisels…” (9)
 “We are the chips and sand…” (11)
 “We are the man in the Gospel of John…” (17)
 “We are the Issei and the Nisei and the Sansei…” (26)
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Becomes more direct in second section
 Kogawa
 “I
begins to use “I” and “my”
have a wine-colored sweater with ivory duck buttons.”
(37)
 “I would call her ‘o-nesan’, older sister.” (63)
What does this do?
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Going from being a speaker for the whole to a
personal recollection brings the piece to a more
intimate level.
Reader better understands when Kogawa puts them in
her shoes.
Directly shows the quiet tolerance and how the
Japanese people pull together to persevere through
their relocation.
Emphasizes and brings color to the bigger picture she is
trying to paint
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It is here that she reveals her attitude toward the past
Selection of Detail
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Order
 Much
like how a child would look around a train
 First
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notices the people
“Train is full of strangers
Visual, auditory, smell
Dialogue comes at end, brief
Action-oriented
Bird-like Kuniko and red umbrella exotic bird-baby
face
Figurative Language

Simile
 “My
umbrella with its knobby clear red handle sticks out of
a box like the head of an exotic bird,” (51-53)
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This relates to how the young woman also stands out among the
people in the train.
Onomatopoeia
 “the
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clackity-clack and steamy hiss of the train,” (58-59)
Loud noises contrast with the silence of the Japanese Canadians.
Connection to world
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Faulty hostile American attitude toward Muslims
after 9/11
Japanese attitude in reaction to recent
earthquakes/tsunami