No-No Boy: Chapter 3 Summary & Analysis

Ichiro walks down Jackson Street, away from Freddie. He wonders if he and the other no-no boys have “renounced their American-ness” irrevocably. He asks himself, “was there no hope of redemption?” He remains an American with the rights of a citizen, and predicts that in time people will forget his crime.

Ichiro imagines a future in which “there will again be a place for me.” He’ll buy a home and start a family. He and Freddie will visit the families of men who went to the army, instead of to prison, and the difference between them will be irrelevant. He is hopeful in his heart, but in his mind he believes there is no happiness in his future.

Ichiro gets on a bus, which takes him towards the university where he used to study engineering. He loved being in school, and believes that his education was something he would have gone into the army and killed for.

Ichiro thinks that being American and fighting for America is complicated and “incomplete” “if one’s face is not white and one’s parents are Japanese”—and especially Japan is one of America’s enemies. Ichiro feels that he “forgot” the things about America that he treasured. However, Bob, Jun, and thousands of others did not.

Ichiro gets off the bus at the university and goes to the office of a former professor, Baxter Brown. He had not planned to visit, but now he feels compelled. Mr. Brown doesn’t seem to recognize his former student, who reintroduces himself. Mr. Brown notes that the evacuation was “tough,” and tells Ichiro he has a “right to be sore.” Ichiro insists that he has moved on. Mr. Brown asks Ichiro if he served, and Ichiro says he didn’t, but is relieved that he is not forced to admit he is a no-no boy.

Mr. Brown encourages Ichiro to return to school, although it is too late to enroll this quarter. Although the conversation is pleasant, as he leaves Ichiro reflects that the interaction felt lifeless and impersonal. He wonders if this is his problem or Mr. Brown’s. He suspects he “reduces the conversation to the inconsequential” because he feels he has forfeited the right to hear about the life he could have led.

Ichiro eats lunch at a nearby diner. As he sits and eats, an old acquaintance of his, Kenji, taps him on the shoulder. The two sit and talk, and then Kenji invites Ichiro on a drive. His car is a brand-new Oldsmobile. Kenji says it’s a present from “Uncle Sam.” Ichiro had noticed Kenji walked with a cane, but in the car he can see that his right leg has been amputated above the knee. Kenji explains that he got the car as a reward for being a good patient, but “it wasn’t worth it.”

Ichiro things that he would trade both legs to be in Kenji’s position. He feels that, although his body is strong, it is “only an empty shell.”

Ichiro asks Kenji about this leg. Initially it was amputated below the knee, but it continued to hurt, and the doctors realized there was some kind of infection, and were forced to amputate higher and higher. The leg has begun to hurt again, and Kenji knows he will have to go in for an additional amputation. He expects to live for two more years at most, if the rottenness cannot be cured.  Kenji also says sometimes he thinks about killing himself. Ichiro is surprised and angry to hear this. Kenji explains that he has eleven inches of his leg left, whereas Ichiro has fifty or sixty years of life. He wonders which Ichiro would rather have.

As horrible as Kenji’s situation is, Ichiro says he would still trade with his friend. This confession surprises the veteran. Ichiro explains that he was a no-no boy. Kenji did not know this, but does not judge him for it. Ichiro believes that Kenji has earned the right to stand tall, and to call America his own. Kenji notes that both men have big problems. Ichiro tells Kenji he would trade with him, even for just two inches of leg.

Kenji drops Ichiro off at home and the two make plans for later in the evening. At home, Taro is playing solitaire in the kitchen. He turned eighteen today, and so has dropped out of school and plans to join the army. Both Mr. Yamada and Mrs. Yamada are upset, but Ichiro understands Taro’s perspective. Taro feels like he is not rejecting his family, because Ichiro already rejected Taro when he refused the draft. 

Taro feels Mrs. Yamada’s influence and needs desperately to free himself. However, he doesn’t say this. Instead he just packs a bag and leaves. Mr. Yamada watches Taro go—“not a son but a stranger…an enemy leaving to join his friends.”

Ichiro, Mr. Yamada, and Mrs. Yamada stand stunned in Taro’s absence. His mother lets out a single cry, and then composes herself, asking about nickels as “if Taro had never been born.” Mr. Yamada gets back to work. Ichiro realizes that “the strength of Japan had failed,” and he knows that his mother understands this as well.