Racial Stereotype in Heroes.

        

Cultural artifacts reflect our values and opinions toward people and things. Television shows are a major component of cultural artifacts. Different racial images are presented through how characters are portrayed and the actions these characters take. The character Hiro Nakamura in the television show Heroes has the stereotypical image of an Asian guy. His physical appearance and the way he speaks contribute to his image as the nerdy Asian male. His background and his occupation also emphasize his Asian-ness. Lastly, his superpower and his actions further exaggerate the racial stereotype of an Asian.

            While almost all of the characters in the show Hero have English names, Hiro has a Japanese name. This immediately places him in a totally different racial category from all the other characters. The full name of his character is Hiro Nakamura. It is very obvious that it is an Asian name because Hiro is like the abbreviation for Hiroshima, which is an island in Japan. Nakamura is a very typical Japanese last name because people tend to associate Japanese names with “ra”, “ma”, and “na” as ending syllables. This is related to the stereotypical Asian because people tend to associate Asian with Asian-sounding names. For example, when people see names like “Lee” or “Chen”, they almost always assume that the person is Asian.

            The character Hiro Nakamura also has the “look” of an Asian. He is shorter than all the other male characters in the show and he is not muscular at all. He wears nerdy glasses and has an Asian looking haircut. His hair is black and straight. The fact that his hair is even at the sides could also be related to the typical Asian “bowl” cut where hair is equal length all around. His facial features demonstrate the look of a typical Asian. He has small eyes, flat nose, thin lips and skin with yellow undertones. This portrays the typical Asian because people tend to think of Asians as short and skinny with small eyes and flat faces. In fact, the word “chinky” is often used to describe Asians because Asians have small eyes. The fact that Hiro Nakamura wears glasses also contributes to this Asian image because people link glasses and nerdy-looking Asians. 

                      The way that Hiro Nakamura speaks further strengthens the image of a stereotypical Asian. Even though the actor playing Hiro Nakamura speaks perfect English in real life, he has to speak with an Asian accent in the show. The character Hiro Nakamura’s most spoken line is probably “Yatta!” It means “I did it!” in Japanese. The accent Hiro has and the Japanese phrases he uses all sharply contrast the other characters because they all speak perfect American English.  The way Hiro speaks reflects the view of our society because people tend to associate certain accents, like the one Hiro has, with Asians.

            The occupation of Hiro Nakamura truly reflects the typical Asian. Hiro is a computer programmer who sits in cubicles all day. His job requires a lot of math and science but not so much of physical power. This illustrates the typical Asian because people always think Asians are good at math and take on jobs that require a lot of brain power. In addition, Hiro’s office attire also contributes to the image of Asian because he wears suits with button-down shirts and ties. His outfits give him the look of a nerd. This relates to the stereotypical image of an Asian because people think Asians as nerds who wear conservative and preppy clothes. 

                    The character Hiro Nakamura finds about future events through comic books. There are many scenes of him reading the comic books. There are also many scenes of him carrying the comic books with him and using it as a guide to find places and people. This truly relates to the typical Asian because Asians are always associated with anime and cartoons. Probably because a lot of our childhood cartoons like Pokémon, Sailor Moon, and Yu Gi Oh are all made by Japanese people and have Asian characters in them, people just associate comics and animations with Asians.

            Hiro Nakamura has the superpower of turning back time and teleporting. This is very different from the superpowers of other characters like being able to fly or shoot fires. He needs to think and concentrate real hard to teleport. This mental superpower contrasts with the physical superpowers of the other characters. This adds on to the stereotypical Asian because people think Asians have tons of brain power but not much of physical strength.  

                      The weapon that Hiro Nakamura carries also contributes to his Asian image. He uses an ancient sword while other characters use guns. This creates a drastic contrast because swords are very old and Asian while guns are relatively modern and Western. The way that he swings the sword and carries the sword on his back creates the image of the samurai, the Japanese warrior. This really link Hiro to the stereotypical Asian because he uses ancient weapons and act like Asian warriors. People usually associate swords, wooden sticks, and Kung Fu with Asians. 

(Hiro’s signature face when teleporting.)

            Hiro Nakamura’s reactions to things also reflect the traits of the stereotypical Asian. In times of danger, Hiro usually try to escape instead of fighting it bravely. He takes the avoidance path by teleporting himself to a safer place. This demonstrates the belief that Asians are weak and cowardly. He portrays one of the typical nice, law-abiding guys because when he saw a dead man, he fainted to the ground. In addition, the first time when he had the chance to kill Syler, who is the Villain in the show, he just placed the sword around Syler’s throat but he could not actually do it. This shows that he does not have the guts to commit a crime. The further strengthened his Asian image because people almost never associate Asians to serious crimes such as murder and rape.

           Cultural artifacts such as television shows all have components that portray certain racial stereotypes. The image of the typical Asian is clearly shown in the character Hiro Nakamura in the show Heroes. His physical appearance, speech, and his actions show the typical weak, smart, nerdy and law-abiding Asian. His occupation and background further completed this image by showing he is the man of brain instead of fist.