My Year of Meats

“Through [the American wife], Japanese housewives will feel a hearty sense of comfort, of hearth and home—the traditional family values symbolized by red meat in American culture.”

This is the last line of the pitch Jane creates for the TV show My American Wife!. It functions as a gateway to many of the book’s major themes by introducing concepts such as American culture, marriage, the production of American meat, and family dynamics. Jane shapes the voice and tone of the show through her pitch, and throughout the novel works to course correct by presenting more unique American stories. 

“How can you say ‘justa name’? Name is very first thing. Name is face to all the world.”

Jane’s mother says this to Jane’s father when he quibbles at her decision to give their daughter a hyphenated last name. The subject of naming remains important throughout the novel. Having American-sounding names allows Jane and John/Joichi to have some privileges in America they would not have had using traditional Japanese names. Jane becomes obsessed with naming her unborn child later in the text.

“She liked the size of things American. Convenient. Economical. Big and simple.”

Akiko has this thought after watching Suzie Flowers dump Coca-Cola on a pot roast. This quote calls attention to one of America’s most prominent features, its superfluous size, which is what most attracts Akiko and the film crew to America. The comments about America being convenient and economical are somewhat ironic; as the book unfolds the high cost of America’s penchant for convenience become clear.