Abstract
Currently, there is an upward trend in the number of Chinese visiting Japan. Many of them who come to study
stay on for more than 10 years to work in Japan. This paper uses an interview approach to examine the identity
of a male Chinese worker who has been living in Japan for more than 10 years. The life story interview reveals
the way his life events have determined his present identity. His identity has been constructed through a series
of negotiations with the societies and communities in China and Japan. His identity carved out of his success
in studying abroad is affected by the “master narrative” in China. This success is reformed in the context of his
life in Japan because underlying it is the influence of constraints experienced while living in another country, his
significant others, and their shared “model story” of running a company within the community of Chinese residents.
In this paper, I elaborate on how his identity in his quest for work in Japan is constructed by his surroundings.
