Being Asian American

By: Claire Yang

Fresh Off the Boat is an autobiography by Eddie Huang, who narrates his life from being a bullied and abused child to becoming the owner of a restaurant in New York.
Oh, and he’s Chinese-American. And so am I. Here is my experience reading this book, encapsulated as a blog post:
First off, so many of Huang’s references to hip hop and pop culture soar right over my Gen-Z head. Much of the slang he uses is also completely unfamiliar to me. In short, I more than once felt as if I was reading Shakespeare again in ninth grade, except this text was far grittier and louder.
This is to be expected. After all, there is a generational divide between the author and me, as well as a complete difference in where we have lived and our overall life experiences. I cannot fully grasp his struggles and passions, nor the pop culture ingrained into him.
But there is one thing about his story that resonates with me: his Asian American identity and how he grapples and comes to terms with it.
From the Mandarin sprinkled throughout the text to references to various Chinese dishes, Huang explores and highlights this facet of his life in his autobiography. His ethnicity behaves like a double-edged sword, building up part of his identity as an individual while also leaving him vulnerable to stereotypes that would erase his very individuality. He connects and interacts with Chinese-Taiwanese culture, even setting up his restaurant to be “a voice for Asian Americans.”
I particularly want to focus on two aspects of being Asian American that Huang mentions:

1. Stereotypes
2. Cultural identity

1) Huang discusses stereotypes throughout the text, including his attempts in both falling in line as well as rebellion. He finds that no matter what he does, he continues to be affected by racial prejudice and generalizations. His actions are less seen as that of an individual and more of an extension of his racial identity. When he fits the stereotype, he becomes a two-dimensional caricature; but when he rejects the stereotype, he is just seen as an outlier or “not truly Asian.” Maybe this entire struggle with stereotypes can be considered as inherent to the identity of “Asian-American” as cultural holidays and customs are.
2) In the book, Huang detailedly describes two separate trips to Taiwan, once as a child with his family and later as an adult attending college. In both occasions, he reconnects with and explores his Taiwanese background. On the first trip, he becomes awed and “want[s] to know more about Taiwan and what it mean[s] to be Taiwanese.” On the second trip, he “look[s] around and s[ees] [him]self everywhere he [goes].” He continues to poignantly describe: “Pieces of me scattered all over the country like I had lived, died, burned, and been spread throughout the country in a past life.”
Huang recognizes the struggle in maintaining both halves of an Asian American identity and the process of rejecting and reaching for certain aspects of each half. I know that many Asian Americans have trouble connecting with their Asian backgrounds. For me, one thing I can relate with Huang is that poignant moment where you discover you want to learn more about your own cultural background. Unfortunately, this moment comes hand-in-hand with the understanding that there might always be a disconnect between you and being “Asian.”
Could I say that being Asian American is both very interesting yet feels very typical?  I might be able to summarize my reaction towards Huang’s book in a blog post, but I’m far from finished with my thoughts on being Asian American.
about the author: Claire really enjoys getting lost in books and stories. She mainly reads fantasy and fiction novels, but she currently is reading more books/memoirs about different perspectives in America. She also enjoys drawing and listening to music.