to continue his Japanese traditions at home, but he is also aware of the need to fit in, in a way that the family does not get labeled. This said, the time spent at Fort Lincoln must have been a huge shock to Papa. The little dignity that Japanese families could afford after the events of 1941 would have made things twice as hard for heads of families.

The narrator says as much when she describes Papa's physical looks once he returns from Ft. Lincoln. Papa returns in September, 1942 after being gone for nine months:

He had aged ten years. He looked over sixty, gaunt, wilted as his shirt, underweight, leaning on that cane and favoring his right leg.

As far as his behavior, Papa was back giving commands and being the lead decision-maker of the family. However, his demeanor was off. The remaining family members could sense that, even though their lives had been rattled, the one person who gave them a sense of protection had altered greatly:

He was not the same man. Something terrible had happened to him in North Dakota.

First, Papa's nerves are rattled to the point that he no longer could control his anger. This causes a lot of fighting and shouting including physical violence. He also becomes a very heavy drinker, and it is the combination of the trauma from Ft. Lincoln, the alcohol, and the frustrating nature of the situation going on that leads him to, essentially, lose his self-control:

He terrified all of us lurching around the tiny room cursing in Japanese and swinging his bottles wildly.

Therefore, Ft. Lincoln and his experiences in the camp greatly affect Papa.

The narrative offers some intimations of Papa's life as a young man.  We know that Papa's family was of noble status, only to be reduced by American imperialist control of Japan.  Papa opted to leave his family as a teen to come to America.  This detail is significant in Papa's years as a young man.  He turns his back on his Japanese identity and sense of self in order to settle in America.  Papa is shown to be a young man who carries a dream of self- made success in America. The same dreams he carries as a young man are no different than the millions of others who come to American shores in hopes of leaving their past behind.  Papa replicates these same qualities when the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor in the outset of the book.  There is a complete rejection of his Japanese past in favor of the American present and future.  America robbed Papa and his family of identity when he was a young man.  Now, as an older man, the narrative opens with Papa being robbed again by America.  In both instances, Papa demonstrates a love and passion for America.  It is for this reason that he ends up being broken by the very same nation towards which he pledges his love and loyalty as a young man and as an older one.