Paper Wishes

“The pieces do not fit.”

After offering a long list of the disparate items Mother is trying to fit inside a single suitcase, Manami sums up the problem. Her brief pronouncement that “The pieces do not fit” occupies its own line, emphasizing the sentence’s importance. Manami means more than that the family’s belongings do not physically fit into the suitcase. Figuratively, she means that the situation makes no sense, like a puzzle with pieces that do not fit. The disparate parts of a human life cannot be condensed into one small space—each family member is complex and fully human, not simply a “Japanese American” to be packed off to a concentration camp based on their ethnic background.

“Her cheeks are wet with tears. ‘It’s a prison,’ she says.”

Manami’s mother is shocked by Manzanar’s appearance. This moment conveys what little information the ordinary Japanese Americans have about what is happening to them, how unfamiliar and hostile the California desert seems to them, and the fear they have about being held prisoner. For many years, the larger population of Americans refused to hear that camps like Manzanar were actually prisons and objected to them being called “concentration camps.” This moment makes it clear that this is exactly what they were, reinforcing the theme of The Problem of Unjust Persecution.

“‘It’s okay,’ Kimmi says. ‘I know you’re sad. I miss Yujiin, too.’”

Kimmi’s reaction to Manami’s silence characterizes Kimmi as compassionate and intelligent. Without being told, she knows why Manami is so sad, and she is quick to reassure her friend that there is nothing wrong with her reaction. Since Kimmi is a likeable and cheerful character, her easy acceptance of Manami’s different way of processing what is happening to them implies the narrative’s acceptance of the same idea: Adversity affects different people in different ways, and this is perfectly fine. This is a part of the story’s examination of The Importance of Resilience and Adaptation.

“Light filters in, but dirt mostly stays out.”

The red desert dust is a constant, bothersome reminder of the Tanakas’ loss of their home and the lives they have built in Washington. Mother nails a makeshift curtain to the family’s only window to keep the dirt from blowing inside, and she is at least partially successful. Unfortunately, this also dims the available light. This scene reflects The Importance of Resilience and Adaptation by conveying how people like Manami’s mother are doing their best in terrible circumstances, even when their best efforts are imperfect and come at a cost.

“Mother’s seeds have sprouted.”

The Tanaka family’s garden seems doomed at first because of the desert environment. Chapter 3 begins with the announcement that, finally, the seeds that Mother planted have begun to show signs of life because of Mother’s and Manami’s careful tending. Manami follows this announcement with a description of the way Mother herself has begun to change and grow: She wishes to take a job as a camp cook. This juxtaposition hints that the sprouting seeds have more than a literal meaning. Symbolically, they communicate the family’s determination to thrive in their new environment, despite the odds against them.

“Kimmi is a good friend […] She is happy here.”

Grandfather’s words to Manami reinforce the characterization of Kimmi as a kind and optimistic person. They also characterize Grandfather: He does not directly suggest that there is anything wrong with Manami’s approach to coping with their circumstances, because he respects her autonomy. Nevertheless, he still manages to communicate that part of what makes Kimmi a good friend is that she is a role model of another, more productive, approach.

“I begin to understand even more. It is my fault that Yujiin is alone on the mainland, far from the island. It is my fault that Grandfather has stopped laughing. Maybe it is even my fault that Ron is with us in this prison-village, far from college.”

Manami’s traumatized reflections reflect The Emotional and Psychological Effects of Imprisonment on Children. She has lost Yujiin and been imprisoned in a concentration camp. She has just realized that her dream of being rescued was a childish fantasy: Ron is now a prisoner just like the rest of the family. This moment is the beginning of a more mature understanding, in that Manami now sees how her impulsive action has impacted her dog’s future. However, her sense of guilt regarding Ron and Grandfather also reveals that she still struggles to understand what she is and is not responsible for.

“For the rest of the morning, I think about this. About the other children who can go outside the fence. The other children who do not have their dogs taken away from them.”

This passage develops the theme of The Emotional and Psychological Effects of Imprisonment on Children. The length of time Manami spends thinking about the differences between the imprisoned Japanese American children and the free children of the camp’s workers—“the rest of the morning”—shows how confusing and significant this contrast is for her. She focuses on ordinary details that matter to children, not on the larger geopolitical concerns of adult policymakers.

“I listen to words about liberty and freedom […] On the island, I thought I understood these words and this song. But now I am not sure.”

Even at 10 years old, Manami is able to see the conflict between the words of the National Anthem and the actions of the country’s government. She implicitly accuses the government of hypocrisy, because it does not seem willing to apply the principles of liberty and freedom to all citizens equally, invoking The Problem of Unjust Persecution.

“Miss Rosalie’s face turns red. ‘You’re welcome,’ she says.”

Rosalie blushing after Ron thanks her for standing up for Manami is a reminder that, even in the terrible conditions of Manzanar, new attachments can still be formed. This foreshadows the relationship between Rosalie and Ron that will develop later in the narrative.

“I have added my paper promises to the air.”

The meaning of the book’s title—Paper Wishes—becomes clear in this moment, as Manami releases her drawing of Yujiin into the wind. The drawing is filled with promises she has made to her little dog, telling him that if he will come to her in the camp she will feed him rice and chicken and let him sleep with her. In combination with the letters to Keiko and Ron, these pieces of paper represent her hopes for rescue, for reunion, and for happiness. She is not yet ready to use her voice to speak her wishes aloud, and so she releases her “paper wishes” into the air to speak for her.

“Perhaps tonight I will find my voice.”

Grandfather’s first dinner in the mess hall with the family is significant, and Mother marks the occasion with a tea ceremony that reminds Manami of home and the island. Manami feels as if this special tea is helping to clear the dust of Manzanar from her throat: Symbolically, the strength of family and tradition reassures her that they can find a way to be happy even in this terrible place. She wonders if this will be enough to help her speak again.

“Grandfather says, ‘Their fathers are working and cannot take them out on boats. […] Their mothers are working and cannot watch over them. […] They are running wild.’”

Grandfather’s explanation of why the wild boys from Ron’s class are getting themselves into trouble highlights the breakdown of the traditional social structures within the Japanese American community imprisoned at Manzanar. Forced to leave behind their traditional ways of socializing their children, the prisoners struggle to replace these traditions effectively, reinforcing The Emotional and Psychological Effects of Imprisonment on Children.

“‘This tea is a treat for the celebration,’ Grandfather says while we eat. ‘Many of our neighbors worked together to save money to buy it.’”

Although Sepahban does not explicitly say so, workers at Manzanar were paid very low wages; this is why many families would have to pool their money to purchase something like tea. The government’s refusal to simply provide tea, which is central to most of the prisoners’ cultural traditions, shows how little respect and concern the government had for the imprisoned Japanese Americans. This detail reflects The Problem of Unjust Persecution.

“‘I cannot sit around until school starts,’ he says. ‘I will study at night.’ He sips. ‘One day, we will leave this place,’ he says.”

Ron shows his sense of responsibility and his work ethic as he explains to Manami his reasoning for taking a building job against his father’s wishes during the school break. He wants his little sister to know that he has not given up on their future. As he sips at the tea she has brought him—a drink central to their identity as Japanese Americans—he affirms that he will keep studying so that he can go back to college someday. As if gathering strength from the tea itself, he declares, “One day, we will leave this place.” The juxtaposition of his words with his sipping of the tea conveys a sense that both personal and cultural factors are at play in Ron’s embrace of The Importance of Resilience and Adaptation.

“Ron did not mention Miss Rosalie’s return. I wonder if he knows. It’s hard for me to imagine that he doesn’t. In this prison-village, everyone knows everything.”

Manami’s thoughts about Ron and Rosalie foreshadow her discovery, later in the chapter, that the two are in a romantic relationship. Her contention that “everyone knows everything” at Manzanar is ironic, as not only is she about to discover a secret relationship, but soon she will discover that there are even more things she does not know about what people in Manzanar are thinking and doing. This is yet another illustration of Manami’s relative innocence and still-immature thinking.

“Mother brings us thinly sliced apples from the orchard. They smell so good. […] My throat has opened enough for me to swallow. And I am hungry for more apples.”

Manami has been shut up in the barracks room, unable to eat anything solid for days. The combination of her mother’s and Kimmi’s loving attention with the smell of the fresh, sweet apples is enough to ease her torment a bit. Manami is not only able to eat a bit of apple, she realizes she is “hungry for more.” She is beginning to move past her upset about Ron and Rosalie and is ready to turn her attention once more to life outside her family’s one-room home.

“Yes. But: Forbidden. Dangerous. I understand these words, too, and I am afraid for my brother.”

In the historical period Ron and Rosalie are living in, their interracial relationship would be frowned upon in even the best of circumstances. Their situation is aggravated by the fact Ron is a prisoner in the concentration camp in which Rosalie works, and the nation is at war with the country Ron’s ancestors came from. Manami may not understand the complexities of the situation fully, but her parents’ words echo in her mind. Manami is right to be afraid for Ron, foreshadowing the trouble Ron will get into later in the novel.

“‘The island garden had plenty of rain,’ Mother says. ‘So much rain that it only grew shallow roots. This garden never had enough rain. So it had to grow deep roots.’”

In a literal sense, Mother is explaining what she appreciates about the tenacity of the garden she and Manami have created at Manzanar. Underneath this, however, is a figurative comment to her daughter about life itself and about The Importance of Resilience and Adaptation. While adverse circumstances might interfere with visible accomplishments, under the surface, more important accomplishments are taking place. Just as the plants at Manzanar produce fewer and smaller vegetables, the people incarcerated there may no longer be able to accomplish their original goals, but they are becoming stronger and more resilient as well.

“He reads the paper. ‘No freedom behind barbed wires.’”

This moment finally reveals what is on the mysterious pieces of paper that Manami has seen Ron and the wild boys arguing over for several months. The warden’s anger and his characterization of the message as “subversive” (138) underscores the hypocrisy of the US government, invoking The Problem of Unjust Persecution. Freedom of speech is supposed to be a fundamental right in the United States, and in any case, the message is true: People who are imprisoned are, by definition, not free. The warden expects the prisoners to meekly accept their incarceration as justified and thereby show loyalty to a nation that has shown no loyalty to them.

“Father does not speak for a moment. Then he clears his throat. ‘This shame is not yours.’”

Although Father and Ron have been battling for months about Ron’s choices, when Ron is about to leave for Idaho, Father makes sure that Ron knows he does not blame him for the choices he has made. Ron’s behavior has been nothing but honorable, and Father wants him to know this. His phrasing implies, however, that there is shame to be assigned—to others in the camp, and even the government itself.

“Grandfather was right. I have taken care of him. And I feel my heart growing bigger.”

Seal gives Manami something outside of herself to love, care for, and believe in. This is a turning point for the story’s central conflict, as for the first time Manami notices a significant change in her own feelings and is open to the possibility that she will heal and begin to live again.

“The cracks in my throat rip wide open. ‘No!’ I say. ‘No!’”

In a dramatic moment, after months of silence, Manami finally speaks. Once again, soldiers are trying to take a dog from her, and once again, she protests. This time she finds that her voice does matter, and the soldiers relent.