writing east asian characters
as a half east asian person, asian representaion is important to me, and iām sure it is to all the other asians out there. but incorrect representation is far worse than no representation at all, so here are a few guidelines and things to keep in mind when writing an asian character. Ā
things to keep in mind when naming:
please donāt make up names that āsound asianā. well known offender: cho chang from harry potter. hearing people mock me when i speak in my asian language by saying āching chong changā is bad enough, but making us asians read/hear about a character whose name is a constant reminder of that ignorance and racism really, really bothers me.
if the character was born in a different country, our first names arenāt always native to our language/country. we may or may not have a traditionally english name. a great example of this used correctly is ethan nakamura, from the percy jackson series.
coming up with a last name is not difficult - at all. just google ācommon (insert country/ethnicity) last namesā and theyāll come up. use this for other ethnicities/races too!
this is really just common sense but donāt give a traditionally korean name to a japanese character, vietnamese name to a chinese character etc. (unless they are multiple ethnicities).
guidelines for physical descriptions:
pleaseā¦donāt say they have slanted eyes. just donāt.
our skin isnāt yellow. we arenāt lemons. also, the asian race incorporates not just east asians but also filipinos and other much darker skinned people.
many east asians have straight, thick black hair. but again, even within the asian race we are diverse, so this isnāt always true.
of course, if your asian character is being faced with racism, you can have the racist character make fun of their eyes or skin. some asians make fun of themselves, but make sure you check w multiple asians to see if this joke is ok.
writing personalities, characteristics, quirks, etc.
east asians can have any personality, just like any black, white, or hispanic character. they can be mean, they can be nice. just make sure that if you only have one asian character, they arenāt shown as a villain. if you have multiple asians on both the āgoodā and ābadā sides, thatās perfectly ok.
stereotypes can definitely affect your character. be concious of them.
peopleās personalities and quirks are shaped by their parents/how they were raised. an asian kid adopted by white parents is not going to act the same way or entirely fit in with other asians raised by asian parents. their cultures (or their parents cultures) will affect them. Ā
asians can be racist to other asians. in the past, koreans and japanese do not get along, and that has really showed in the japanese side of my family. my mother is quick to stereotype koreans she sees, but she does have korean friends she gets along with. racism among asians exists, and itās not always black and white. rasicm also exists against other races; iāve heard of an asian daughter who wasnāt allowed by her parents to marry a black man.
asians can have friends of multiple races/ethnicities
not all asians know their respective languages. some only know a little, some are completely fluent.
east asians donāt know everything about other east asian cultures, and can still accidentally insult other cultures. each culture is very different, so do your research on each one.
universal east asian culture things: 1) no shoes in the house. 2) do well in school. 3) strict rules on cleanliness, going out, friendships, relationships, and curfew. 4) mothers always wear slippers for some reason. 5) attacking insolent children with said slippers.
religion is also varied. usually itās either christianity or buddhism, although there are of course, exceptions. the native japanese religion is shinto.
taiwan was recently the first country to legalize gay marriage, which is good news, but that also means that many asian countries are against it or donāt fully support gayness. not all asians are like this! but itās common for asian parents to be less understanding of this kind of stuff so keep that in mind if your asian character is going to be gay.
stereotypes and their affects
asians are smart. this one probably came around because many asian parents are very strict when it comes to their childās education, but strictness doesnāt equal understanding a subject you just donāt get. this stereotype is usually detrimental to asians because people expect too much of them. if they do well, itās expected and less people congratulate them. if they donāt, theyāre shamed for it more.
asians are bad drivers. this one doesnāt affect asians as badly as the smart stereotype, but itās still insulting.
asians all look alike. again, this one isnāt really that bad, just very annoying. yeah, some of us look similar, but a lot of us are very different. i was once compared to a guy who was fully vietnamese, whose skin must have been at least ten shades darker, with black hair and was on the chubby side. iām japanese, half white, with brown hair, and definitely thinner than him. if i genuinely look like the person youāre comparing me to, itās not a problem, but itās definitely offensive when weāre very different types of asian. we are all different and unique, and itās important that people respect that.Ā
itās important to remember that not all of the things i said are always true - there are always exceptions. iāve probably missed a lot of things. i also donāt pretend to know about every different kind of east asian. so if you have anything to add, feel free, and if you have any questions about how to portray an asian, ask someone of that ethnicity!
itās okay if you didnāt realize that you belived in a stereotype or that you might have said something offensive once, as long as you learn from it and donāt do it again in the future. i hope non-east asians learned something from this post. good luck writing your asian characters! heck yea representation
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