Connecting Things…

Martha Nussbaum’s Democratic Citizenship and the Narrative Imagination and Willie van Peer’s Literature, Imagination and Human Rights invite us to explore the idea of literature and its effects on our outlook on the world. According to both writers, literature develops our imagination, and through imagination, we can picture the perspectives of others. Allowing our imaginations to run free and change perspectives  change our thoughts and actions in the world. In short, literature yields imagination, imagination yields empathy, and empathy yields change in our world.

This chain of effect really stood out, as it made perfect sense to me.

Although I have not read much past the sixth chapter of Joy Kogawa’s Obasan, I can already tell how much this novel supports the ideas of both Nussbaum and van Peer. The historical fiction truly changes perspectives and views on the world.

The novel is based on the evacuation of Japanese-Canadians in Vancouver during WWII. The War Measures Act allowed to government to brand everyone of Japanese descent as an “enemy aliens.” These innocent citizens were then thrown into interment camps where life was extremely harsh and cruel.

Through this small introduction of the novel’s background information, I could immediately tell this was the perfect example of literature that affects people’s perspectives. Reading and living through the memories of Naomi Nakane allows one to imagine the suffering and hardships she must have gone through, and empathize for her.

What if I were in her position? – Being unfairly removed from her home and be labelled an enemy of the country you were born in. I myself would be devastated if such an event happened to me. What if I, who was born in Vancouver, was suddenly told I was an enemy of Canada and was forced out of my home…? I have lived in Vancouver all my life, and my knowledge of China and Taiwan, and my fluency in the Chinese language are very limited.

In the past, not many felt sympathy for the Japanese-Canadians, as many died and lost everything they owned. Canada wished to only

However, through reading this novel, many find that what Canada had done in the past was horrific. As such, in 1988, Brian Mulroney, the Prime Minister of Canada at the time, made a formal public apology to the Japanese-Canadian families that were harmed. I was further surprised when he read from Obasan during his apology!

I was also extremely moved by the video at the end of our most recent class, where Japanese-Canadian university students that were evacuated in the past, were given honorary diplomas very recently.

The two works and the novel made me realize just how fortunate I am to live with rights and freedom. I love how multicultural and diverse my home is and how limited the existence of racism and discrimination is. I could never imagine that Vancouver experienced such a dark history. The city I have lived in all my life is beautiful and peaceful. I guess this proves just how far humanity and human rights has advanced since the beginning of Canada’s history.

 


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