What's in a story if you can't get something out of it and relate to your everyday life? The book “Typical American” by Gish Jen gave me something I never fully understood, and probably still can't: foreigners and their difficulties in building a new life in another country. I've done my share of travel, both domestic and abroad, but I've never been in a distant land long enough to feel the effects of the unawareness these people felt every day. The way this story was presented gave me a new insight, not only into foreign citizens, but more importantly, into what emotional feeling presents itself not just through words, but through setting, characterization , point of view, conflict and theme. .Ralph grew up in Shanghai, China, where he had a distant and unloving relationship with his father. Ralph took the opportunity to come to America in hopes of earning his bachelor's degree and eventually his doctorate. While this is a relatively simple goal for most people in America, for Ralph it has become more of a limitation; he often gets distracted to pursue bigger and better things. The beginning of Ralph's problems came when he was supposed to renew his visa to stay in America, but he let it expire and couldn't register for classes. After Ralph's sister, Theresa, and his future wife, Helen, arrived in America, Ralph finally began to get back on track in terms of his dream. He would go back to school and eventually graduate: but the dream didn't end there. This is the main conflict of Ralph's story, an internal battle with himself to do the right thing, in hopes of living a better and more prestigious life in America. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (p88), this goes back to a time in Ralph's life when he... middle of paper... the heir returns home, Ralph accidentally hits Theresa with his machine, sending her into a deep coma. This is the turning point for Ralph, not just as a person, but as a character in the book. Ralph goes from a somewhat flat character to a round character, and with this transformation he completes his dream, a dream he always had with him. He not only came to peace with himself and his successes, but also with those around him: “Ralph watched the water struggle with sadness in his heart, never imagining that one day the scene would hearten him, as it has happened now. " (p.296). Some might say Ralph never achieved his dream. I say he achieved his dream about halfway through the book, he just didn't realize everything he had and everything he he could lose until he was almost gone. Works Cited Jen, Gish. American, 1991.