Table Of ContentAsian American War Stories
Asian American War Stories examines contemporary Asian American
literature that considers both the short-term and the long-term effects of
war, trauma, and displacement on civilians, as well as the ways that indi-
viduals seek healing in the face of suffering. Through the works of con-
temporary writers like Chang-rae Lee, Ocean Vuong, Nora Okja Keller,
Julie Otsuka, Lan Cao, and Lawson Inada, this book explores the ways
that recent Asian American literature refects the enduring consequences
of America’s wars in Asia at the individual and collective levels. The
book also considers the journeys that individuals take as they pursue
healing of their traumatic wounds.
Dr. Jeffrey T. Gibbons is an Assistant Professor in the Department of
English and Philosophy at the United States Military Academy at West
Point. His primary areas of scholarship are Asian American Studies and
Critical Race Studies. At West Point he teaches a variety of electives
in contemporary Asian American literature, African American liter-
ature, and Critical Race studies; he also serves as the director of the
Introduction to Literature course that all frst-year students must take.v
Routledge Research in American Literature and Culture
Memory Lost
Cristina Garrigós
Pragmatism and Poetic Agency
The Persistence of Humanism
Ulf Schulenberg
Toni Morrison and the Writing of Place
Alice Sundman
Marginalisation and Utopia in Paul Auster, Jim Jarmusch,
and Tom Waits
The Other America
Adriano A. Tedde
Lynd Ward’s Wordless Novels, 1929–1937
Visual Narrative, Cultural Politics, Homoeroticism
Grant F. Scott
Authoritarianism and Class in American Political Fiction
Elite Pluralism and Political Bosses in Three Post-War Novels
David Smit
Death, Time and Mortality in the Later Novels of Don DeLillo
Philipp Wolf
Asian American War Stories
Trauma and Healing in Contemporary Asian American Literature
Jeffrey T. Gibbons
For more information about this series, please visit: https://www. routledge.
com/Routledge-Research-in-American-Literature-and-Culture/
book-series/RRAL
Asian American War Stories
Trauma and Healing in Contemporary
Asian American Literature
First edition
Jeffrey T. Gibbons
First published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Jeffrey T. Gibbons
The right of Jeffrey T. Gibbons to be identifed as author of this
work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78
of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identifcation and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this title has been requested
ISBN: 9781032130330 (hbk)
ISBN: 9781032369983 (pbk)
ISBN: 9781032130347 (ebk)
ISBN: [Enter 13 digit eBook+ ISBN here if applicable] (eBook+)
DOI: 10.4324/9781032130347
Typeset in Sabon
by codeMantra
To my best friend, Soung-a.
Contents
Acknowledgements ix
Introduction: Trauma and Healing in Contemporary
Asian American Literature 1
1 Discovering Beauty through Illness and Failure in
Chang-rae Lee’s The Surrendered 19
2 Open Wounds and Half Lives: Post-Traumatic
Illness and the Struggle to Heal in Lan Cao’s
The Lotus and the Storm 50
3 Testimony in Asian American War Literature 87
4 Intergenerational Trauma in Ocean Vuong’s
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous 119
5 The Trauma of Citizenship: Collective Healing in
Lawson Inada’s Internment Poetry 144
Index 175
Acknowledgements
Often in acknowledgements we leave our families until the end—I want
to do the opposite. Thank you to my parents who offer me powerful
examples of resiliency and kindness that allow me to navigate this world
a better human being. Thank you to my brother and his family for pro-
viding me with an example of the family I hope to emulate. And the
words “thank you” do not do justice to the gratitude I hold for my wife,
Soung. I know with 100 percent certainty that I could not have com-
pleted this project without you and your patience and support. I am
grateful to have you as my best friend; your strength and independence
and resilience inspire me.
In a similar vein, I must thank the authors whose texts I examine in
this project—Lan Cao, Lawson Inada, Nora Okja Keller, C hang-rae Lee,
Julie Otsuka, and Ocean Vuong. I embraced your narratives because I
found them both compelling and inspirational. Through your examina-
tions of the enduring consequences of war you force your readers to
consider more carefully the ways that we understand and treat people
traumatized and displaced by war; furthermore, I believe your work
challenges your audience to refect more carefully and critically on the
United States’ military pursuits abroad—at least that is my hope.
I also want to express my gratitude and love for my friends who have
changed my life in so many ways—Greg Giessler, Andy Hamilton, Joe
Fitts, Manny Perotin, Zack Miller, and Jim McGuinness. Even though
we have spent our lives traversing the world, often thousands of miles
from each other at times, I cannot imagine how different my life would
be without your friendship. Your encouragement throughout this pro-
cess kept me going—and your sarcastic negative reinforcement always
kept me grounded. And speaking of sarcastic reinforcement, thank you
Steve Pinkerton and Matt Jenkins for keeping me grounded in my schol-
arly pursuits since our classes together decades ago in Boulder. I also
need to thank several individuals—my “battle buddies”—with whom I
served overseas and who helped me survive multiple deployments. I am
forever indebted to Micheal Swinson, Dave Lawhorn, Tim Curran, and
Justin Smith for your bravery and friendship.
