A Japanese Robinson Crusoe / Jenichiro Oyabe.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Oyabe, Zenʼichirō.

Series:

Intersections (Honolulu, Hawaii)

Asian and Pacific American transcultural studies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Oyabe, Zenʼichirō.

Missionaries--Japan--Biography.

Missionaries.

Japan.

Japanese--United States--Biography.

Japanese.

United States.

Genre:

Biographies.

Autobiographies.

Physical Description:

v, 185 pages ; 22 cm.

Place of Publication:

Honolulu : University of Hawaìi Press ; Los Angeles : Asian American Studies Center, [2009]

Summary:

First published in 1898 and long out of print, A Japanese Robinson Crusoe by Jenichiro Oyabe (1867-1941) is a pioneering work of Asian American literature. It recounts Oyabe's early life in Japan, his journey west, and his education at two historically Black collegès, detailing in the process his gradual transformation from Meiji gentleman to self-proclaimed "Japanese Yankee." Like a Victorian novelist, Oyabe spins a tale that mixes faith and exoticism, social analysis and humor. His story fuses classic American narratives of self-creation and the self-made man (and, in some cases, the tall tale) with themes of immigrant belonging and "whiteness." Although he compares himself with the castaway Robinson Crusoe, Oyabe might best be described as a combination of Crusoe and his faithful servant Friday, the Christianized man of color who hungers to be enlightened by Western ways.

A Japanese Robinson Crusoe is flavored with insights on important questions for contemporary Americans: How does one "become" American? How is Asian American identity formed in response to the conditions of other racial groups? When and how did the Asian American "model minority" myth emerge? A new introduction provides a provocative analysis of Oyabe's story and discusses his years abroad in the context of his later career as a nationalist scholar and historian, placing the text within both American and modern Japanese history.

Contents:

Chapter I Origin - Childhood 37

Chapter II Leaving Father's House 43

Chapter III At Yezo Island 49

Chapter IV On to America 55

Chapter V Crossing Kurile Islands 61

Chapter VI On Russian Soil 66

Chapter VII Sent Back to Japan 71

Chapter VIII Wandering on the South Sea 78

Chapter IX At the Ryukyu Islands 85

Chapter X In the Chinese Empire 93

Chapter XI Voyage to America 100

Chapter XII Darkest America 108

Chapter XIII Light of America 117

Chapter XIV In American Schools 125

Chapter XV At the Capital - University Life 134

Chapter XVI Lecturer - Visiting Europe 141

Chapter XVII Studying at New Haven 150

Chapter XVIII Vision of Future Work - Ordination 158

Chapter XIX Departure from America 165

Chapter XX At the Hawaiian Islands - Return to America 173.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

9780824832476

0824832477

OCLC:

256763927