My Year of Meats: Jane vs. Akiko

Right from the start Ozeki begins to portray the differences between cultures using Jane and Akiko's lives as examples. Jane represents the white woman (even though she is partially Japanese), whereas Akiko is seen as the Asian American woman.  Parallel to their stereotypes, Jane is an independent woman who has no husband, and can marry and divorce whoever and whenever she wants.  She is able to maintain her own income with a steady job, without a man by her side.  On the other hand, Akiko closely follows the Asian American stereotype.  Before meeting her husband, John, Akiko had a steady job, however, after getting married, she was forced to quit.  The only job she has is to be the obedient, submissive, and quiet housewife, who essentially lives to please John.  She has no freedom as to where she wants to go or what she wants to do. 

My Year of Meats: Chapter 7

Quote:

I have an honest, earnest face.  It's the Asian-American Woman thing---we're reliable, loyal, smart but nonthreatening.  This is why we get to do so much newscasting in America.  It's a convenient precedent.  The average American is trained to believe what I tell him. (Ozeki 157)

Thoughts:
So often we assume that racial stereotypes are always negative characterstics about a group of individuals, but this quote tells another tale.  Here Jane is explaining the benefits of having Japanese heritage, for others view Asian-American women as "reliable, loyal, smart, but nonthreatening".

As an Asian American woman myself, I have to admit that this stereotype is quite true.  I guess the media so often portrays Asian women as quiet and submissive, with only one goal: to please our husbands.  In the Chinese culture, I was taught that men were more valued than women and that in every way women are more inferior to men.  (I know what you are thinking, but that is a totally different topic that I have too much to say.)  As a result, many Asian women grow up to be their husband's helper, by becoming reliable, loyal, smart, and nonthreatening.  Plus, you usually never see an Asian American woman robbing a bank on TV with her Asian visor on.  (OK, bad joke written on the wrong blog).  

My Year of Meats: Chapter 3

Quote:
Right from the beginning of Chapter 3, Ozeki starts out the chapter by describing her Japanese coworkers with similar imagery to that of Asian stereotypes.  She describes Suzuki as having

mere slits, as though someone had taken a razor blade and drawn bloodless incisions into the swollen skin.  You could never tell if they were open or shut, or it he was watching you.  'He has a great eye,' I liked to say to Americans and watch them glance dubiously at him and wonder, Where? (Ozeki 33)

Thoughts:
Although I have to say that most Asian Americans do have the round-face and small-eyes stereotype, the last sentence of this quote really made me upset.  The fact that others describe his small-eyes as something you cannot tell whether or not they were open or shut implies the fact that you cannot see what Asian Americans are doing, and thus they are sneaky.  Ozeki goes further by sarcastically emphasizing the fact that Asian eyes are so small that you cannot even tell that they have eyes.  Although this is not a major issue compared to other major problems, these stereotypes essentially dehumanizes Asian Americans.  The jokes about Asian eyes basically categorizes Asian Americans as less than human because we do not have the same features as most people.