Picture Bride

It was interesting to watch Picture Bride because it gave me a better understanding of what it was like for women to be married off to a man they had never met. It was difficult for Riyo to become adjusted to the harsh reality of plantation work and the American culture when she was married off to Matsuji. As mentioned in Takaki, women often found that “their new homes [in America] were often crude “huts” with oil lamps for light” and they were also paid less than the men (Takaki 190). This was demonstrated in the scene when Riyo received her first pay, and she was shocked to learn that she had only earned $11 for an entire months worth of work. Riyo was very unhappy and she strongly demonstrated cultural nationalism. She loved and missed Japan, and her motivation to work hard was to earn the $300 she needed to go back to Japan. As mentioned in Takaki, going on a labor strike is very difficult because the employers may just find another source of labor. Thus, when the planation laborers were thinking of going on strike, they considered teaming up with the Filipinos. Riyo on the other hand, who strongly pledged her allegiance to Japan, was only willing to contribute $2 to the strike.

Like the film Eat a Bowl of Tea, it is interesting to see how Mei Oi and Riyo both struggled to adapt to American culture. And as Takaki mentions in the book, it is actually very difficult for these Asian-Americans to fully assimilate into the American culture. After coming to America, Mei Oi wanted to go back to China and Riyo wanted to go back to Japan. The both of them ultimately stayed in America, but both still held onto many Chinese or Japanese values and customs. Chinese values played a consistent role in Eat a Bowl of Tea, and the Japanese-Americans in Picture Bride held an Obon festival. Because their homelands were far away, they had to adapt and create a strong community in order to make America feel like home.