Examples Of Coming Of Age In American Born Chinese

2. Discuss the why American Born Chinese can be considered a coming of age novel. Provide textual support for your answer. You need to discuss at least four traits that are covered in the novel.
The first reason this book is a coming of age novel is because the protagonist, Jin Wang, contently tests his boundaries and limits. He does this when he kisses Suzy and she punches him (Yang 188). This resulted in a loss of friendship with Wei-chen and a change in Jin. This is the point in the story where Jin changes into Danny and it’s partly because of the loss in friendship (Yang 194 1A). He also tests his boundaries when he finally gets the courage to ask Amelia out and they go on a date (Yang 105 1B). His date with Amelia could also be seen as
We first see discrimination when Jin’s teacher introduces him to the class and automatically assumes because he is of Asian decent that he immigrated to the United States from China (Yang 30). We also see his class members stereotype him, like when a boy in the class stands up and says, “My momma says Chinese people eat dogs” (Yang 31 1B). This first day discrimination causes Jin to feel different and lonely which results in him changing things about himself and his lifestyle in order to feel accepted in American culture. Jin’s discrimination and stereotyping is directly comparable to Junior’s own trials in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Junior is discriminated against because he is Native American. When Junior starts his first day at Reardan High School he is approached by Roger who makes a racist joke towards Indians. Junior is flabbergasted at the harshness of the joke and says, “I felt like Roger had kicked me in the face. That was the most racist thing I’d ever heard in my life” (Alexie 64). Both Jin and Junior face discrimination at their schools and this makes them want to change themselves to fit in better. They both want to leave behind their own cultures and be