Although it was supposed to be a time when people celebrated equality and equal rights, the 1970s were a time when racial injustices were still present on a daily basis . Some, such as authors Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston, would even compare it to the pre-World War II period as “After Pearl Harbor was bombed and the United States entered World War II, the FBI declared all Japanese Americans , German Americans, and Italian Americans as "dangerous enemy aliens". The government arrested and detained people on a daily basis” (Marsala). Although the United States did not intern people in the 1970s, the racism observed towards other minority groups such as African Americans, women, Asian Americans, and others was very comparable to the racism observed in the 1940s prior to Japanese internment. You can see racism demonstrated throughout World War II, but specific evidence like a bill passed by President Roosevelt in 1942 is a direct example. The bill legally allowed the U.S. government to detain and detain citizens for questionable actions and “Although the word Japanese did not appear in the executive order, it was clear that only Japanese Americans were targeted…” (The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica). The roundup of innocent Americans took effect because the U.S. government believed that Japanese citizens, as well as Germans and Italians, had spies living in the United States. Citizens “were transported inland to internment camps (critics of the term internment argue that these facilities should be called prison camps). The first operational internment camp was Manzanar, located in Southern California, where the Wakatsuki family was held captive. (The editors of the Encyclopedia Britannica). Through this detention, Jeanne and her family went through physical and mental trauma that would accompany the family for the rest of their lives. Unable to continue their normal lives or leave the camp, these families endured the worst suffering, separation from their father, even though he had done nothing wrong. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In the memoir's preface, the authors are able to appeal to common sense ethics by providing a brief outline of Jeanne's life, guiding readers to see that she is a credible source to listen to. They begin by writing about Jeanne's racial background and family life before the internment began. Shortly thereafter, however, the authors acknowledge the fact that “her father was arrested because his seafaring activities were considered suspicious by military authorities looking for spies to provide information to the Imperial Japanese Navy” (Houston and Houston 715). The fact that Jeanne is Japanese American and has dealt with discrimination in the past allows the authors to make themselves a more credible source for talking about discrimination and social injustices. Along with this, the authors use details from Jeanne's life to talk about her unfortunate circumstances and the reasoning as to why the authors wrote the memoir. Wanting to prevent any further discrimination similar to how her family was discriminated against in the 1940s, the Houstons write the memoir to demonstrate the severe mental trauma that discrimination can lead to. The Houstons further demonstrate their common sense with members of the public by detailing specific events that occurred in the internment camps, such asareas where families were forced to live, the traditions associated with the Christmas season and the leaders who took charge of the camp. In this way, they create an understanding between the readers and the author that Jeanne understands the barrier of social injustice because she always fights it together with the audience. The Houstons also use logical appeals to demonstrate to listeners that as authors they want the best for those who are affected by their audience and that, starting from specific examples or inductions, they are able to demonstrate the destruction of minority groups due to racism. The authors use the memoir as a message to educate readers about the trauma suffered in the camps and draw on specific examples from Jeanne's life to demonstrate the racism she experienced. Moments such as the discussion of “Yes Yes No No” (Houston and Houston 723) and the description of the “Nikkei community at the attack on Pearl Harbor and life in the relocation camps” mention the mental problems that many people suffered throughout the camp , and after release (Houston and Houston 715). The authors use this specific example of what happened within the internment camps to persuade the audience of the topic of discrimination placed before them and for the message to be carried through to the modern era. Using examples like Yes Yes No No, it shows the audience that the writers are choosing certain points from Jeanne's past to advance their argument. The family not having faced this amount of discrimination before, left both the Wakatsuki family and the entire community shocked as Japanese Americans were treated as less than human. Throughout the author's memoir, they implement the genre of forensic rhetoric as they both look back on the past to determine what happened during the family's internment. The authors wrote the memoirs more than 30 years after the horrors of Japanese internment, taking a look at the past and the social injustices that took place. This can be seen through the continued use of the past tense and quotes such as: "After the war, Wakatsuki Houston... and her husband wrote Farewell to Manzanar about her internment experience..." placing the memoir on a timeline in the 1940s (Houston and Houston 715). Through the preface, we learn that Jeanne was one of the interned Japanese Americans who experienced this traumatic event, giving her and her husband a solid foundation to look back on this case. The memoir uses a strong example of forensic rhetoric as it examines the past and passes judgment on the injustices that each interned family and discriminated against faced. Forensic rhetoric allows readers to connect with authors and understand the writers' perspective and judgment on the pressing issue. The final rhetorical appeals that the authors of Farewell to Manzanar use to connect with 1970s audiences are pathetic, specifically emotional appeals. Although there are many examples of emotions in the text, the one that stands out the most is sympathy. The writers use moments of fear to gain audience sympathy through moments that audience members can connect with: “He screamed and shook his fists and his own threats forced her across the messy room until she collided with one of the steel bed frames and fell." back on a mattress...'Kill me then. I am not interested. I just don't care'” (Houston and Houston 719-720). Whether it's Jeanne's father's shaking fists or her mother's plea for death, the audience is able to understand the mental trauma that internment and racism lead to. Wanting nothing more than to die, audience members are able to sympathize with.
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