The Sympathizer

“The talent you cannot not use, the talent that possesses you—that is a hazard, I must confess.” 

From the opening pages of the book, this foreshadows the narrator’s double-mindedness power that will be his ultimate demise, as it is when his mind literally splits in two.

“After the tenth putsch, I accepted the absurd state of our state with a mix of despair and anger, along with a dash of humor, a cocktail under whose influence I renewed my revolutionary vows.” 

Here we are given the exact formula for revolution, which is espoused in different permutations throughout the entire book: despair, anger, with a dash of humor and absurdity. These are the primary ingredients for revolution.

“I was doing my best imitation of a Third World child on one of those milk cartons passed around elementary schools for American children to deposit their pennies and dimes in order to help poor Alejandro, Abdullah, or Ah Sing have a hot lunch and an immunization.” 

The narrator has learned the ability to navigate his fluid identity to his advantage, playing up whatever element of his identity will benefit him. In this instance, he knows it is useful to play a Western stereotyped version of an Asian person in order to win the sympathies of Americans. Also, note the way he lists other stereotypical ethnic names so offhandedly—another layer of commentary about how Americans view third world countries.