Obasan Essay, Research Paper

Obasan is a great book so far; I can t seem to put it down. It had a lot of emotion that touched me. The way that the point of view was presented really emphasized the emotion in the beginning. It also used a lot of great visual imaging to make me feel as if I was there with the charters. At one point in chapter three I almost began to cry.

The charters in the book were all very easy to visualize due to the way the description was presented.

Naomi, the women that was the narrator in this book was an easygoing, loving teacher. The book is going backwards in time, meaning telling her life as it is now and slowly expressing why it is that way (due to the past.) She was a lonely 35 year old looking for happiness.

Then there s Naomi s uncle. He was a wise, quiet Japanese man who took care of Naomi. His wisdom and silence said more than words spoke. He died in chapter three.

Last person is Obasan; she wasn t really talked about in the first two chapters but then introduced in chapter three. She was Naomi s aunt, who s personality was sweet and when she delivered her wisdom onto Naomi is never discrete and to the point. She was partically deaf and was full of interesting quotes to say about life that really made you think.

The way the book is presented gives a lot of vivid symbolism. It s almost as if the book is written in poetic sensibility, for example,

Naomi says (1) the hill, surface, as if responding to a command from Uncle s outstretched hand, undulates suddenly in a breeze, with ripple after ripple of grass shadows, rhythmical as ocean waves . The point of view is also very good for this type of book, it really able the readers to feel the emotions of the person.

The whole book so far is really emotionally touching and as I read on I surmise that more heartache and will be experienced for Naomi.