Cultural Clash and "I " versus "We"

My Year of Meats addressed several controversial themes, yet the novel was still able to flow smoothly by the colliding of topics. A large theme of the novel dealt with the clash among American and Japanese cultures, in which tradition and notions of authenticity became an issue, as well as the topic of individualtiy as amplified in the phrase of "I "versus "we." However with every sub topic and reoccuring theme in the novel Ozeki was able to emphasize the dominant theme of the novel, by drawing analogies between humans and meat, specifically beef.
Traditional Japanese culture was represented by Akiko Ueno a frail Japanese woman who's purpose was to fulfill the commands of her abusive husband and reproduce a child to signify any selfworth to him. However, Jane Takagi is viewed as non-authentic, being a hybrid of American and Japanese and well over the height of small Japanese women. The irony in the situation of reproduction is found when Mr. Ueno compliments Takagi stating that she is a good example of hybrid vigor, and that she is good and strong from cross breeding. He then states that Japanese women get teh weak genes through many centuries of straight breeding. However, despite his attempt to rape Takagi and compliment hybrid breeding, he denounces his wifes suggestion of adopting Japanese children as he states "I want my own children..not some bastard of a Korean whore and an idot American soldier. I want my genes in my child." This is ironic in the sense that Takagi's father was a GI and her mother a Korean whore.
The issue of male domination leads into the occuring theme of what is specific to the individual and what is shared. The concept of I versus we occurs at several levels in the novel and is paralled between Akiko and Takagi when Akiko realizes that she wanted a child and that she never wanted John, and when Takagi decides to own her pregnancy and forget about Sloan. At this point Akiko has made a decision to individualize herself from "we" and Takagi then is faced with sharing the child with Sloan who keeps emphasizing the words our and we when referring to the fetus.
Within both of these topics there were references to meat and the cattle industry. The term cross breeding was used when refering to race, Mr. Ueno favors it in once sense and then criticizes it. When both girls were experiencing their pregnancies Takagi had dreamt of the dead cow as her child, and Akiko spoke that she knew she could concieve when the animal inside her did not come out.
In terms of the effects of cross breeding and the infilteration of American culture on Japanese tradition, I believe that authenticity of traditional Japanese culture will diminish and become a rarety. The other idea has already proven to be true due to an increase in the number of single mothers, divorse rates and cross breeding around the world.
To tie this into other class sources the stuggle to define ones own space and property may be referenced from several of the sources such as in the Holy Land where all the houses looked the same and the people adopted a similar standards, as well as in the Enacted Environment where fences and front yards either symbolized a welcoming entrance or closed off territory.