A Different Mirror

A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America

• Genre: Nonfiction; history, cultural studies
• Originally Published: 1993
• Reading Level/Interest: Grades 9-12; college/adult
• Structure/Length: 17 chapters; approx. 508 pages; approx. 18 hours, 35 minutes on audio
• Central Concern: This account of American history, commended by critics on its first publication in 1993, provides a detailed view of the US as a country populated and built by diverse peoples of the world. A new edition in 2008 features new content, including the role of Black Civil War soldiers, Chinese Americans in the first half of the 20th century, and immigration in modern times.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Racism; racial conflict; discrimination; prejudice; discussion of enslaved people; discussion of Indigenous relations and genocide

Ronald Takaki, Author

• Bio: 1939-2009; born in Hawaii; American writer, historian, and ethnographer; attended the College of Wooster in Ohio on the recommendation of a motivating high school teacher; inspired as an undergraduate to pursue the study of ethnic identity and history; earned a Ph.D. at University of California, Berkeley in 1967; later taught at UCLA and UC Berkeley; helped to establish UC Berkeley’s ethnic studies programs; published several works that analyze history and point out the historical presence, perspective, and importance of many cultural groups; earned a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Asian Pacific Council (2002) and the Association of Asian American Studies (2009)
• Other Works: A Pro-slavery Crusade: The Agitation to Reopen the African Slave Trade (1971); Iron Cages: Race and Culture in Nineteenth-Century America (1979); From Different Shores: Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in America (1987); Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian-Americans (1989); Ethnic Islands: The Emergence of Urban Chinese America (1994); A Different Mirror for Young People (2012)
• Awards: Anisfield-Wolf Book Award (1994)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Tempest and Representation of “the Other”
• Class Conflict and the Struggle for Equality
• Multiculturalism and Diversity in America

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Gain an understanding of the cultural and historical contexts regarding immigrants’ innovative contributions to American society, as well as The Tempest’s role in the creation of “the Other,” both of which impact how Takaki recasts United States history in A Different Mirror.
• Study paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Multiculturalism and Diversity in America and the “othering” of American immigrants.  
• Plan, design, and construct visual media that shows how multiculturalism has developed and evolved between 1993, the date of the book’s publication, and the present day.
• Examine and appraise Takaki's purpose and techniques to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding how primary sources affect the overall narrative, the difference between the author’s conception of “race” and “ethnicity,” and other topics.