Interior Chinatown: The Problem with Predeterminism

               Predeterminism is the belief that the events in one’s life are caused by an external force. Sometimes, that force is believed to be God, or fate, or another supernatural force. Sometimes, that force could simply be the social circumstances of the day. Charles Yu writes extensively about this philosophy in his novel, Interior Chinatown. Wu’s predeterministic worldview limits his options and satisfaction in life, and it is only when he rejects the philosophy entirely that he is able to be happy.

 

The story of Interior Chinatown begins with Willis Wu describing his prospects as a young Asian man attempting to make his break into the world of acting. He describes his job prospects as:

“First, you have to work your way up. Starting from the bottom, it goes:
5. Background Oriental Male
4. Dead Asian Man
3. Generic Asian Man Number Three/Delivery Guy…
and then if you make it that far… a Very Special Guest Star, which for your people is the ceiling” (Yu 11-12).

Wu’s rationale for this is that he believes his roles are limited because he is of Asian descent. The book is written in second person. The use of the words “your people” shows how Wu has strongly aligned himself with a group: Asian Americans. This is a large and diverse group in America, but Wu’s willful decision to accept he has few available roles is a testament to his acceptance of predeterminism. An external force – the racial relations in the United States – prevents Wu from ever being more than a guest star on a show. Wu believes that “[his] people” are mostly incapable of being more than background ethnic stereotypes because of external forces outside of his control. Later in the novel, Yu shows the flaw in this kind of thinking.

               Wu, upon achieving his ultimate predetermined role in life, understands the flaws in the philosophy. Wu reflects that “Congratulations. You are: KUNG FU GUY … You got exactly what you wanted. Didn’t you? Or did they give it to you... The role of a lifetime,” (Yu 180). Wu achieves the ultimate role available to him by his worldview: Kung Fu guy. In doing so, he abandons his wife and infant daughter chasing after the role that he believes has been determined for him. Wu’s belief in predeterminism rears its head once again as he reflects that, even though he has achieved his ultimate goal, it was never really his fault. His success is more accredited to external forces that gave him the role – and he is deeply troubled by it. Wu rejects the philosophy shortly after fulfilling his destiny. He quits his job and leaves for his wife and daughter, only to find that they have lived their own lives apart from him and that his wife has divorced him. Wu’s predeterministic beliefs ruin the prospects of his life, and it is only after his complete rejection of the philosophy that Wu gets to live happily ever after.