Novel Analysis: “War Trash” by Ha Jin

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Results
Critical Review of War Trash
Results and discussions
Works Cited

Introduction

War Trash is a fictional novel written by Ha Jin and published in 2004. The novel is about the predicaments of North Koreans and Chinese POWs during the Korean War. The author uses Yu Yuan to narrate the experience of POWs in the camps. War Trash is basically set in a prisoner of war camp located in South Korea.

The camp hosts both North Korean and Chinese soldiers captured by the American and South Korean army. The author dwells mainly on dissimilar thoughts held by the Chinese and North Korean POWs in relation to their native countries. Ha Jin uses Yu Yuan (the narrator) to reveal the narrator’s unique perception about his life and duties. He is also used in the novel to depict his principles of fairness, friendship, love as well as respect (Whipple 1).

Results

There are several themes that emerge from this novel. The struggle between political ideologies (communism versus democracy) is one such theme. For example, the pro-communist camp used propaganda to force POWs to be repatriated back to North Korea and China. On the other hand, the pro-Nationalist camp employs similar strategy to compel POWs to be taken to Taiwan, an island claimed to be democratic and free.

For example, the North Korean POWs are enticed by the pro-Nationalist camp to accept repatriation to Taiwan where they will enjoy free life than one offered in their native North Korea country. The relevance of this theme is also highlighted by YU Yuan. We learn that he is a victim of ridicule back at home because of his close ties with the Nationalist camp. In addition, Yuan is unable to get any gainful employment (Amend 5).

This novel uses Yu Yuan’s personal view to describe the major issues of the Korean War. The major theme of War Trash is that the North Koreans and Chinese supported each other to thwart effort by South Koreans to capture Manchuria. North Koreans, either Communist or Nationalist was merely fodder for the war and would lose everything irrespective of their choices.

The novel also uses Yu Yuan to describe how it is very difficult to find a path for a “good” person to live in especially if the society is corrupted. Yuan (the main character) felt responsible for his fiancée and mother and decided go back to China although he was not a communist.

However, according to the society, it is better to die than be captured by the enemy. He would thus be treated as a traitor to the Communist cause if he went home. Nonetheless, Yu Yuan sacrifices himself and opted to go home to take care of his mother (Amend 5).

Deception is another theme that emerges from this novel. Both side of the political divide lied to POWs. For example, the North Korean prisoners were promised by the Nationalists side a better and free life if they chose to be repatriated to Taiwan. But we learn from Yuan that this is a lie. Just like Yuan, the North Korean prisoner would receive cold reception in Taiwan due to their close ties with Communism.

On the same note, if they opted to go back to their native country (North Korea), they would also be seen as traitors because they accepted to be captured by the enemy rather than die. In nutshell, both sides deceived the prisoners and everybody was used as a pawn. Thus, all characters in the novel are “war trash” (Reed Business Information1).

We also learn from the novel that it is very had to find a path for a “good” person to live in a society that is corrupted. For example, the citizens living in both North Korea and mainland China are “corrupted” by Communism ideologies. Although Yuan and other POWs served their country with dedication during the war, they are accused of treason and treated as outcasts when they arrive home.

The society cannot appreciate the fact that Yuan (being a good person) has decided to return home to take care of his mother. Traditionally, the Chinese and North Koreans value close family ties and young people are expected to take care of their aging family members. This is the main reason why Yuan decides to return home. However, instead of receiving praise from his members of the society for fulfilling his obligation, he is seen as a traitor (Whipple 4).

Critical Review of War Trash

War Trash is basically a by-product of creative imagination as well as extensive research (Yee 1). In spite of the fact that there exist some resemblance between Ha Jin (the author) and Yu Yuan (his narrator), the entire story is purely fictional. If the author feels the “full weight of the tattoo,” he does so only in his mind and soul because the tattoo is on the belly of Yu Yuan (the narrator) and not his (Jin 5).

In spite of the fact that War Trash evokes memories of a key historical occasion that affects both Yu Yuan as well as the readers, it is imperative to note that the major themes presented in this novel are not entirely about Korea, United States or China. On the contrary, the novel dwells on issues such as war and humanity which have universal appeal (Wong 5).

The first chapter of the novel introduces Yu Yuan (the narrator) who happens to be a student at the Huangpu Military Academy. It is at this time (1949) when the Communist Party assumes control of China. Yu Yuan and other students at the academy willingly acknowledge the new government given their disgust of the defunct corruption-riddled Nationalist regime.

After his graduation from the military academy, Yu Yuan is posted to the head offices of the 180^th Division, a unit mainly responsible for regional reconstruction. However, in 1951, the division is assigned new duties and instructed to initiates military plans to invade South Korea. After extensive training for weeks, the division finally enters Korea.

While they are in Korea, the division comes under heavy attacks by America warplanes. In face of dwindling supplies of water and food and pounded by air and artillery attacks from all angles, the division disintegrates as some members of the North Korean and Chinese forces surrender.

Later on, Yu Yuan joins Commissar Pei and spent his time reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin in to enhance his English skills and teach some English words to his withered counterparts. One day, the group is attacked and Yuan gets injured in the grenade explosion (Shy 3).

Yu Yuan wakes up in a POW hospital and discovers that his left femur was badly injured in the grenade explosion. After undergoing several surgeries at the hospital, Yu Yuan receives news that his injured leg will recover. Yu Yuan is taken through several physiotherapy sessions by Major Greene (a female medical doctor) to help him recover.

During these sessions, Yu Yuan takes her through calligraphic lessons which she ignored to study while in a Shanghai school. He later comes into contact with Commissar Pei in a nearby compound. Pei instructs him to develop close ties with Dr. Greene in order to solicit information about the ongoing peace talks at Panmunjom.

However, Yu Yuan is informed by the doctor that he is among the POWs to be transferred to Koje Island where most of the North Korean as well as Chinese prisoners of war are being held in captivity by the American forces (Shy 3).

Ha Jin gives a vivid account of what transpires at the POWs camps. The struggles that emerge between American guards and their POW; between North Korean prisoners and their Chinese counterparts; and among Chinese prisoners who desire to go home and those who do not are described in somewhat spare prose.

Nonetheless, the author is able to capitalize on the chronological events of the Korean War as a background to depict a rather multifaceted condition of love, frailty, aspiration, as well as human tragedy presented from the narrator’s (Yu Yuan) personal viewpoint (Wong 6).

Following his capture, Yu Yuan is taken to Pusan city where he is registered as a prisoner of war. Yu Yuan assumes a fake identity so as to conceal his military rank from his captors. Later on, his captors transfer him to Guh-Jae-Do Island where most of the captured prisoners are held. Yu Yuan is not happy to be in the pro-Nationalist camp.

This is not because of his political ideology but rather he craves to be repatriated to China, his native country, in order to be with his mother as well as his fiancée. If he chooses to go to Taiwan, his credibility in China would be irreparably damaged thereby making such a return unfeasible. Although his relationship with Huangpu grants him some level of comfort, he is immediately captured by the pro-Nationalist group and tattooed with an English phrase Fuck Communism when he states his desire to be repatriated to Mainland China, his native country (Yee 3).

The value of Yu Yuan to his captors increases after his capture. It is worthy to mention that the narrator was a cadet at Huangpu Military Academy even before the Communists assumed power in 1949. In addition, Yu Yuan is extremely valued by the Chinese for is exceptional skills in the English language. He was consequently drafted as an interpreter and played key roles during the negotiations with the Americans.

Yu Yuan’s propensity to keep his own counsel as well as his military and academic background alienates him from his fellow prisoners who are being enticed to either defect to what is claimed as Free China (Taiwan, an island protected by American) or go back to their native country. Most of the prisoners at the camp desire to be repatriated to their homeland for ideological or financial reasons (Wong 6).

However, Yu Yan wishes to go back to his homeland for a different reason. He merely wants to be repatriated to his native country to be with his fiancée Julan as well as take care of his aging mother. This isolation enables Yu Yuan to watch unfolding events around him with an objective mind unlike many other prisoners who are deeply blinded by ideological commitments.

This alienation also bolsters Yu Yuan’s tendency to pay no attention to labels such friend or foe, soldier or officer, Chinese or American. It is against this background that he impulsively attempts to help the desolate and the desperate prisoners in the camps irrespective of their labels-be they animals (such as the dog Blackie) or the young Shanmin, a fellow prisoner of war (Wong 6).

The author also gives a vivid description of the inhumane conditions experienced by North Koreans POW at the camp. Ha Jin describes how prisoners spent most of their time in the camp. Most of them are bored and depressed. In addition, they spent most of their time gambling and fighting especially over food.

Moreover, the anti-Communist leaders single out those prisoners who decline to sign up for the supposed Free China (Taiwan Island) for special abuse. These conditions are further aggravated by the overcrowding in the pro-Communist tents which restricts movement. Prisoners held in the pro-Communist compound are given half the food rations offered to prisoners held in the Anti-Communist camps.

The head of the anti-Communist compound is known as Liu Tai, a former Nationalist army sergeant who gave in to the American army at the first opportunity. Liu has a personal guard who intimidates prisoners in the camp. In fact, he is commonly referred to as Little Caesar by the Americans.

The prisoners are also denied freedom of expression. This is illustrated by Bai Dajian, a young inmate at the compound. When Dajian cynically condemns the criminal ineptitude of their Communist leaders in the war, Yu Yuan tells him to shut up because spies are everywhere (Shy 4).

Following his enrollment in the Communist camp, Yu is suspected for his close association with both the pro-Nationalists as well as Huangpu.

Nonetheless, he is able to win the trust of his superiors due to his knowledge of English language. The conditions at the Communist camp are much better and the POWs initiate plans for a possible confrontation. Nonetheless, they cannot match up with their counterparts in the North Korean camp who posses immense local knowledge due to their constant interactions with their Pyongyang capital.

Ultimately, the North Korean camp enlists support from the Chinese camp in order to capture General Bell (the leader of all the POW camps). Yu Yuan is selected by Commissar Pei, the Chinese camp leader, to facilitate the meetings between these two camps. The Chinese pro-Communist camp amasses information and relay it to the North Korean camp. This information is used to entice General Bell to attend concession meetings then capture him (Wong 7).

Later on, the POWs are transferred to better camps on the island of Cheju. Nonetheless, prisoners are unable to organize any meaningful resistance since the camps on Cheju Island are well managed and security is top-notch. To complicate the matter, Commissar Pei is detached from the rest of prisoners.

As a result, prisoners feel cut off from their native country and are concerned that they will be subjected to unfair treatment when they go back to mainland China. Nevertheless, given the inventive communication methods developed at the new camp, Pei is able to convey instructions to hoist locally-produced Chinese flags to commemorate national day. In spite of the fact that this move invigorates prisoners, it turns out to be counter-productive as confrontations ensue and many prisoners die in the ensuing skirmishes (Yee 6).

The author employs a colorful narration style to portray the American attacks on North Korean lines, the terrible fatalities, the starvation conditions that compel men to survive on water and flour for prolonged periods and their sense of desertion by their regime. For example, when Yu Yuan is injured in a grenade explosion, he is taken hostage and assigned to a prisoners of war camp where both the North Korean and mainland officers control some sections of it.

It is also worthy to note that the entire camp is controlled by the Americans. Han Jin enlivens the proceedings in the camp as officers attempt to maintain order while the prisoners try to conceal their true identity. This is attributed to the fact that Chinese prisoners fear the impending backlash when they return to mainland China.

Yu Yuan, just like other North Korean prisoners in the camp, is powerlessly coalesced by the forces of destiny, always striving to remain alive, always striving to comply with orders from his captors (irrespective of the fact that his captors mistreat North Korean and Chinese troops). As the war comes to an end, new problems emerge. Yu Yuan is undecided on whether to go back home or opt for Taiwan where will be censured for his close ties with the Communist side (Whipple 4).

Results and discussions

Character Analysis

Yu Yuan symbolizes a powerless individual who is part of a system that does not respect the wellbeing of individuals. Although Yuan wishes to return to his mother and fiancée, he is worried about the way the society will treat him. Just like other North Korean and Chinese POWs described in War Trash, Yuan is evidently dejected and readers sympathize with him in spite of the fact that his personal character arises from his intrinsic character.

Although War Trash portrays a whole culture, it does not dwell on love story, an aspect that joins other war novels and creates a link with readers. Nonetheless, War Trash stands out as a captivating and satisfying novel for readers who crave to learn about the influence of culture on behavior (Whipple 6).

The author employs the historical background of the Korean War to present a vivid description of the characters in the War Trash. The characters are depicted as discrete social types: the feeble ones who lose hope and die; the collaborators; and the leaders who are undeniably motivated by a goal bigger than themselves.

The creativity of the author is manifested by his characters in the novel: Yuan, the various North Korean Nationalists, American soldiers and Commissar Pei are extremely individualized. Nevertheless, they all mirror something of the social type. In other words, these characters depict the discrete marks of their social histories.

All these characters- the intellectual jerked by revolution and war, the illiterate peasant enlisted into the army, the criminals, the coward who gives in or dies under pressure, the political elites inspired by higher ideologies, are all incarcerate in the POW camps. The real individual attributes and social type of a given character are interlaced together generating neither a fantastic phantom nor a stereotype. These types of characters exist even today.

Yu Yuan inquires from an American prison priest why prisoners at the camp receive unequal treatment yet they are all sinners. The chaplain respond by saying that this is the way things should be carried out since Communist is wicked. It is worthy to note that this theme is very relevant today because if Islam was to replace Communism in any American camp today, it is highly likely that the same scene will replay itself (English 5).

The novel also talks about the difficulties North Korean (and China) citizens experience as a result of political unrest. Often, the entire lives of the characters depicted in War Trash are determined by political commotions over which they had no control. War Trash poses salient questions on whether a person can truly live a free and good life in the society.

The novel is about Yu Yuan who is valued by his Communist army and his captors because for his knowledge of English language. Although his does not subscribe to Communist Ideology, he must choose either to be repatriated to mainland China or Taiwan. Both choices have consequences.

Nonetheless, he opts for China in order to be able to take care of his mother. It is also worthy note that the North Korean POWs have no value to the Communist Party who vilified them after the war ended irrespective of the numerous acts of loyalty they showed. Their only crime was that they were captured by the enemy (Reed Business Information 2).

War Trash proceeds to reveal that devotion to a goal bigger than an individual is precisely how the characters regain self-respect. Yu Yuan is a moderately non-political individual. However, the sadism and hypocrisy of the Nationalist side makes him an active resister under Stalinist regime.

It is worthy to note that this was the prevailing spirit during the war. Both the North Korean and Chinese people were against national and foreign tormenters. War Trash reveals the manner in which these social processes take place in a prisoners of war camp.

The novel uses great compassion to describe the feelings of unfair treatment and injustice that Yu Yuan and other inmates experience. They are subjected to poor conditions, torture, beatings and even some of their fellow inmates are killed. Nonetheless, they are able to affirm themselves as complete humans (Amend 76).

Works Cited

Amend, Allison. Multicultural Voices: Asian-American Writers. New York: InfoBase Publishing, 2010. Print.

English, Sandy. “Novel About POWs Wins PEN/Faulkner Award.” 2005. Web.

Jin Ha. War Trash: A novel. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004. Print.

Reed Business Information. “Editorial Reviews.” 2009. Web.

Shy, John. “Ha Jin’s War Trash: Novel as Historical Evidence.” 2005. Web.

Whipple, Mary. “Seeing the World through Books.” 2011. Web.

Wong, C. Timothy. “A Review of War Trash: A Novel.” 2006. Web.

Yee, Danny. “Danny Yee’s Book Reviews.” 2008. Web.

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