In the American Society

“In the American Society” is divided into two sections, symbolizing how Mr. Chang first tried to stay in his own world and then how he tried, unsuccessfully, to assimilate into American culture. Jen titles the first section, “His Own Society,” and in this section, Mr. Chang neither desires nor attempts to conform to his new culture’s norms. He wears dirty, old clothing because he doesn’t care about appealing to others, and he refuses to change his business practices to conform to American labor practices. Instead, he attempts to recreate the patriarchal culture he came from by positioning himself as the man in charge. While Mr. Chang requires deference from his employees and demands things outside of their job duties such as chauffeuring him around, he views his role as benevolent as well. Like his grandfather, who distributed cash to villagers in need, Mr. Chang tries to exercise his role as patriarch by providing for specific employees, going so far as to pay bail and sponsor immigration paperwork for Booker and Cedric, “his boys.” Ultimately, Mr. Chang is unable to perpetuate “his own society”—Booker and Cedric, his surrogate sons, skip town because they don’t want to go to court.