Fairy tales in Obasan
... grew up dutiful and brave.” The significance of the myth Momotaro is that it elicits the cultural integration between the Canadians and Japanese. Momotaro was not born from biological parents, which in the myth refers to how the Japanese are not from Canada, and that they shouldn’t be considered Canadians. When the Japanese Canadians during World War II were taken away from their homes, they left with honor and dignity, not fighting for the rights they had as citizens. When Momotaro leaves his parents, he leaves quietly and with honor and dignity, so this shows you how the tale Momotaro was integrated into the Japanese Canadians ideals of displacement. In Chapter eleven the fairy tale Snow White is mentioned with respect to Naomi and Mr. Gower’s relationship. When Naomi was young, Mr. Gower to advantage of her and molested her on many occasions. She thinks, “I am Snow White in the forest, unable to run. He is the forest full of eyes and arms. He is the tree root that trips Snow White. He is the lightning flashing through the dark sky.(76)” . This passage demonstrates Naomi’s way of saying she was defenseless and couldn’t help what happened to her. Mr. Gower is like the tree root that trips Snow White because he always stops her from going away from him when he first comes up to her and starts molesting her. In chapter fifteen the fairy tale Humpty Dumpty is mentioned in reference to Stephen. It states “Stephen, half in, and half out of his shell, is Humpty Dumpty-cracked and surly and unable to move (136)”. Stephen is half in and half out because he’s Japanese but h...