A Daughter of the Samurai · Chapter
First Impressions explained
Etsu reflects on her first year in America, describing the cultural adjustments and misunderstandings she faces as a Japanese bride in a new country.
What happens
Etsu reflects on her first year in America, describing the cultural adjustments and misunderstandings she faces as a Japanese bride in a new country. She discusses her love for the outdoor spaces of her new home, her attempts to learn English through newspapers, and her surprise at American customs such as divorce and marriage proposals. She shares anecdotes about wifely duty, cherry pie, and gift-giving, and contrasts the relationships with servants in Japan versus America. The chapter culminates in her realization that her Japanese treasures look out of place in her American home, leading her to embrace natural, wild decorations instead.
Themes in this chapter
Cultural Transition and Identity
Etsu grapples with her dual identity as a Japanese woman living in America, trying to reconcile her upbringing with new customs.
Gender Roles and Women's Strength
The chapter explores differing expectations of wives in Japan and America, including Etsu's struggle with wifely duty and her surprise at American divorce statistics.
Tradition vs. Modernity
Etsu contrasts traditional Japanese practices (like gift-wrapping money) with American norms, and ultimately chooses to adapt her aesthetic to her new environment.
Characters to notice
- Etsu Inagaki Sugimoto
Reflects on her first year in America, navigating cultural differences and learning American customs.
- Mother
Etsu's American mother-in-law, who teaches her about American ways and shares conversations about marriage customs.
- Matsuo
Etsu's husband, who is unfamiliar with many Japanese customs and often misunderstands her struggles.
- Clara
The American maid who makes a cherry pie for Etsu and performs tasks that surprise Etsu with their familiarity.
- Toshi
Mentioned as a contrast to Clara, representing the polite and dignified Japanese servant.
Key passages
“No Japanese bride is ever homesick. She has known from babyhood that fate has another home waiting for her, and that there her destiny is to be fulfilled.”
Japanese brides are raised to accept that they will leave their childhood home for a new one, so they do not experience homesickness.
Etsu explains the cultural expectation of Japanese brides regarding marriage and relocation.
“I soon learned to like everything about my home, although, at first, the curtained windows, the heavy, dark furniture, the large pictures and the carpeted floors seemed to hem me in.”
Initially, Etsu felt confined by the American home's decor, but she grew to appreciate it.
Describes Etsu's initial discomfort with American interior design.
“In Japan it is considered lazy and disgraceful for a wife to sleep while her husband is working.”
Japanese custom dictates that a wife should stay awake until her husband returns from work.
Etsu struggles with conflicting duties between Japanese and American expectations.
“West is West, and East is East, I said, as I sank on a sofa with a sigh of relief. I think while I'm here I'll forget the conventional standard of beauty; for only the charm of naturalness is suited to these big, free, homelike rooms of Mother's.”
Etsu decides to abandon Japanese aesthetic standards and embrace the natural, free style of her American home.
Etsu's acceptance of cultural difference and adaptation to her new environment.
