A Different Mirror

“The Master Narrative’s narrow definition of who is an American reflects and reinforces a more general thinking that can be found in the curriculum, news, and entertainment media, business practices, and public policies. Through this filter, interpretations of ourselves and the world have been constructed, leaving many of us feeling left out of history and American itself.”

Takaki’s book counters the “Master Narrative” of American history. The Master Narrative leaves out the foundational contributions of ethnic minorities and creates a perception that they are not “true” Americans. A Different Mirror shows this is not the case, as it documents the many accomplishments and contributions of ethnic minorities in American history.

“But what happens when historians do not ‘record’ their stories, leaving out many of America’s peoples? What happens, to borrow the words of Adrienne Rich, ‘when someone with the authority of a teacher’ describes our society, and ‘you are not in it’? Such an experience can be disorienting—‘a moment of psychic disequilibrium, as if you looked into a mirror and saw nothing.’ What should we do about our invisibility?” 

This quotation exposes the dangers of the Master Narrative and the inequities of who gets to narrate official accounts of history. It highlights the psychic toil the Master Narrative has on individuals who are rendered invisible and thus seemingly unimportant. Takaki does not accept this inaccurate reflection of history and addresses the invisibility of ethnic minorities by writing a book about multicultural America.

“Indeed, The Tempest can be approached as a fascinating tale that served as a masquerade for the creation of a new society in America. Seen in this light, the play invites us to view English expansion not only as imperialism, but also as a defining moment in the making of an English-American identity based on race.” 

Throughout the book Takaki refers to The Tempest to illustrate English constructions of racial difference. A key figure in the play, Caliban, serves as a foil for the English to project their imaginings of “the Other.” Caliban stands in for all ethnic minorities, as the English create a dominant white American identity vis-à-vis everyone else.