Many events happened in the past and people fought for their rights and freedoms. In the novel “When the Emperor Was Divine” by Julie Otsuka, she uses this novel to talk to readers about the importance of freedom and human rights. In the story, she didn't mention the name of the main characters, but the characters involved in this novel are a Japanese family who are arrested by the Americans because of their ethnicity. First, their father was arrested by the American because he doubted that this man was a Japanese spy. Then their entire family was arrested in the Japanese concentration camp in the desert. They were ordered not to cross the camp fence or they would be killed by the soldiers guarding the camp. This means their freedoms have been taken away by the camp. In the story, the girl's personality changed because of this camp. She begins to realize that this “camp” was just a prison. So she started to give up on her life and not worry about anything. She used to eat with her family, but now she didn't; she also started smoking cigarettes between the ages of 14 and 15. Their human rights were also violated during their stay in the camp. They were forced to admit their loyalty to America. This causes all Japanese people to feel low self-esteem towards their identity. Therefore, the author uses this novel to show the change of this family by the lack of freedom and human rights. Losing freedom can change people's personalities. In the story, the girl's personality changes depending on the environment in which she lives. “She ate all her meals with her friends. Never with the boy or his mother. She smoked cigarettes. He could feel them in his hair. One day, he... in the middle of paper... because the war continues. Lack of freedom and human rights can make people's lives sad. Their identity, personality and dignity will disappear after the suppression of their freedom and human rights. This is an action that shows America's inhumane ideas. It is understandable that prisoners of war are put in prison and deprived of their rights; but Japanese-American citizens had nothing to do with the war. The Americans choose to treat Japanese-American citizens as prisoners of war, so this is not fair to them because they have the right to stay on the side they want and they can choose any region they want. Therefore, Otasuka's novel gives readers a lesson about the importance of people having their rights and freedom with them. People should cherish these two things; otherwise, they will regret it. Works Cited “When the Emperor Was Divine »"