How Does Place Shape Toshio and Kyoshi's Identities? Essay 4 Dialogue

Toshio and Kyoshi were born in a time when the world seemed large, other places were far away, communication and the level of education was limited to the few not the many. The 1930’s is the time in which this story is set and Hawaii is the place, a territory of the United States at this time. Asian’s were immigrating and coming to Hawaii for work and a better life, working on the Sugar Plantations. Along with these immigrants came their superstitions, folklore and the tradition of filial piety. These two brothers, Toshio being the oldest and the filial son, Kyoshi the second son, did not realize fate was going to take them on a journey that would shape their lives and Identity with past generations and a future that would open them to a world of choices their parents never had.
Culture, language, place, ethnicity and time help to cast the mold of which they are destined to travel, but, can change if they are open to viewing life objectively and Toshio and Kyoshi were certainly observing their own situation. Claiming a distinct place of their own was difficult at best and really their only release was gathering and talking to others their age which gave them a sense they were not the only ones who felt the injustice. In our time today we take for granted all the ways we have to communicate in the world the education we are generously endowed with and how we have crossed generational differences, but they did not have that. These two brothers wanted out from a life of debt and filial duty and the course of events that take place help them to accomplish this, however their duty to the family is a shadow they feel has to be erased before they can move forward.
For Toshio and Kyoshi place definitely shapes their identities, imagine living on an island then imagine living in the conditions they did and during the time in history. How could you get away from it and develop a different way of thinking if you have this constant reminder you are here to pay a debt for your parents and this is your life. Mr. Snook was the only adult that gave his students an opportunity to alternative means of thinking. He was let go because of his teaching methods and therefore the message was sent, the plantation governs how you think, your filial duty governs how you think and where you live governs how you think. Who we are is definitely shaped by many factors, place being one of them. I am sure we have all traveled out of California and noticed differences, some small, some huge and some leaving us shaking our heads because of what we are use to here. Toshio and Kyoshi's story is much more complex than what can be imagined by most of us, who enjoy the freedom of thinking for ourselves.