A Fire in Fontana

I particularly enjoyed this line from “A Fire in Fontana”: “There was an investigation, of course. The official conclusion was that probably the man had set the gasoline fire himself, and the case was closed”. Otherwise though I found Yamamoto’s short story captivating enough, her passivity was enraging. But after finishing the story and stepping away for a few minutes, I realized how the reader’s frustration with her lack of action is integral to the story’s objective: to make one feel as she did all those years. Nevertheless, her first paragraph was wise in saying that she wouldn’t go so far as to say she became black, because that indeed, is too far.

Hong’s essay reacts to “A Fire in Fontana” and suggests that the story provides a new link between Japanese and black Americans, by both groups being denied property rights. Her analysis of the seemingly minor details reveals that Yamamoto, in more ways than one, is caught between worlds. I found her insight into the "objectivity" of television news in the coverage of the Watts Riots particularly poignant: "The lack of respect for property justifies the denial of property rights".