In the book Obasan, Joy Kogawa uses imagery to convey various symbolic meanings in Naomi's life. Naomi embarks on a journey through the novel to discover the truth about her past. One of the many literary elements that the novel has are animal images that emphasize the meaning and contribute to the theme of the novel. Several animals are mentioned in the novel to represent Naomi's emotions and her journey. Kogawa uses the different examples of animal imagery in his novel, Obasan, to reveal the nature of power, both physically and emotionally, and the victim of power: Naomi. Animals such as chicks represent Naomi's helplessness and innocence as she lived in a world without her mother or knowledge of her history. The animals used by Kogawa, kittens, chicks and birds, are not strong enough against humans. They are not lions or tigers that can harm other animals or humans, so this makes them easily threatened and killed by power. Throughout the novel, animals are controlled by humans, in the same way that Naomi is controlled by the adults around her. . Naomi relates to animals and often dreams of them; for example, he dreams of meeting a couple who own a beast. It is a dog or a lion, Noemi doesn't know, but she knows that «it belongs to that man. His obedience is phenomenal” (35). The word "phenomenal" means how much control the man has over his dog, so much so that the creature turns out to be a robot. He has no feelings and is easily manipulated, he cannot escape or fight back, just like Naomi in the novel. One adult who greatly scares Naomi with dominance over her unlike anyone else is Old Man Gower. He forces himself on her, using his hands and words, both physical... in the center of the card... or manages to escape with his healed leg; the frog is able to move on from his past unlike Naomi. Kogawa's strategy of using animals in his novel, Obasan, has a reason, as does the type of animals. The animals and Naomi live in an unjust world where power is used to dominate them, ends the animals' lives, and affects Naomi for a long period of time. Naomi embarks on a journey but cannot overcome the nature of power that has haunted her since childhood. He remains a victim of power even when he discovers the truth about his mother and eventually returns to the coulee. Using animals, Kogawa shows how complicated Naomi's journey is, how she must remain silent, how she is excluded from her family, and how she carries the past with her even at thirty-six years old. Kogawa is sending the message that animals are as fragile and easily threatened as humans.