Obasan is told in flashbacks by Naomi Nakane. It tells about her family's treatment by the Canadian Government during WWII.
             The major conflict in Obasan was the way the Nakane family was moved around and taken away from all that was theirs. The conflict wasn't ever really resolved. The war ended, and they still were not allowed to go home. Eventually, the children grew up and Stephen moved away, but the rest of the people just stayed in Granton.
             The unjustness of the Canadian Government in WWII. Race doesn't define what makes someone a "Canadian".
             Naomi Nakane: Naomi is 5'1" and 105 pounds. She has straight black hair, and a "youthful, oriental face". Naomi is somewhat shy as a child. She doesn't play a musical instrument. She ends up being a schoolteacher, in Granton, and has trouble controlling her class because of her somewhat shy nature. She is not married, and is sometimes considered an old maid.
             Stephen Nakane: Stephen, as an adult, is starting to get a little bit heavy, and his hair is streaking with grey. As a child, he broke his leg, and had a slight limp. Stephen tried to put as much distance between him and his Japanese culture as possible. He is a famous musician.
             Obasan: Obasan is getting old. She is losing her hearing, and her tear ducts are clogged. She was with Naomi the whole time she's been alive. Obasan was always teaching Naomi things, and being there for her. She's a mysterious person, and would never flat out tell anyone anything. She always gave things is fragments and riddles.
             Uncle: Naomi's Uncle loved the sea, but he never went back after he was taken away from it by the Canadian Government. It is his death that sets the story in motion. he liked to make "stone bread".
             Mark Nakane (Naomi's father): Naomi's father was a very precise person. He was extremely graceful, and elegant.
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