Picture Brides By Julie Otsuka

Many immigrants came to the United States to seek a new life, but soon they realized it was only dreams. In Julie Otsuka’s novel, Otsuka uses descriptive language to unveil the hardships of a group of immigrants called picture brides. Picture brides refers to a group of Japanese women who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century and their purpose was to marry some American male. They sail from Japan to the United States with a photo of their American husband, who they have never seen before. When they were on the ship they were expecting their life to be sunshine and roses, but as the story goes on, it turns out that it is nothing of what they had expected. For these picture brides, they have to deal with discrimination and their relationships with the American. …show more content…
First of all, the picture brides sail to the United States to expect their young and wealthy husbands to be waiting for them. However, what is truly waiting for them is the start of a nightmare and old worn out man. During the first day they arrived, their husband raped them. They took the Japanese women “on the bare floor of the Minute Motel,” “downtown,” “second rate rooms at the Kinokamato Inn,” and anywhere they could find. Their husbands took the picture of brides for granted and did not take care of them. Although there are exceptions, most picture brides are treated this way. The picture brides didn’t realize it wasn’t the end, it was the start of the nightmare. After the first night, their husband took them home and treated them as cash cows. The Japanese women had to work at the farms to earn money. They had to do the labors that their men did not want to do. They had to pick up berries from morning till night. As with their children, they love their children and their children love them. However, due to the extreme workload, they rarely have time