No-No Boy
Question 1: In the first sentence of chapter 1, it is immediately mentioned how Ichiro had been gone for four years, two in camp and two in prison. He is locked away in camp because, by being of Japanese ancestry during the time of WWII, the government locked away anyone who had any ancestry of Japanese. Then, he is thrown in prison because he told a judge that he refused to go into the army. How do you think, after being imprisoned for events that aren’t truly his fault, has shaped Ichiro as a person? Has it affected him negatively? Positively? Or has it not affected his mental state of mind whatsoever?
Question 2: As Ichiro is walking along the street, his old friend Eto calls out to him with an old childhood nickname. Immediately, Ichiro becomes nervous and anxious to see his friend who served in the war, something he refused to do. Eto is very friendly towards his friend, attempting to catch up as Ichiro stutters, not sure what to say. Soon, Eto realizes that his friend never served in the war because he had outright refused. He turns on his friend, calling him rude names and looking down upon him. Why do you think Eto acts so rudely towards Ichiro when finding out he refused to play a part in the war? Do you think he believes Ichiro could be a supporter of Japan because of his ancestry, hence why he acted so harshly towards him?
Question 3: Ichiro eventually makes it home, it is a grocery store his parents purchased. Ichiro was never born in Japan, he was born in America, yet his parents were born in Japan and mainly speak more Japanese than English. Yet, Ichiro speaks more English than he does Japanese. Why do you believe Ichiro is so angry when coming home to his parents? He seems so angry, yet, his parents appear quite loving towards him. They appear to be the complete opposite of him; positive thinking while he is more negative thinking.