Yang
According to the author, the idea for this story came about as a result of laptop computer crashing and taking into the abyss of computer “death” some of the writing he was working on. The finality of the “death” of this computer created the revelation that he had become emotionally connected to the machinery. In this sense, Yang can be seen as a symbol for any sort of machinery with whom one creates a strong enough emotional bond that one feels a sense of grief at is permanent breakdown or “death.”
Cheerios
The story opens on the image of the robot boy, Yang, breaking down with his head falling face-first into a bowl of Cheerios. Cheerios is a dry breakfast cereal virtually synonymous with childhood breakfast rituals. This image thus symbolically endows the robot with an immediately kinship among human readers who grew up eating cereal by any name. Essentially, Cheerios equates with humanity by association.
Phillips Head Screwdriver
As Jim, the narrator, is desperately trying to fix Yang following his “crash” into the cereal bowl, he tries to pop open the back panel only to discover it is tightly fastened with screws requiring a Phillips head rather than flathead screwdriver. The Phillips head screwdriver was invented specifically to replace the traditional flathead model for use on industrial assembly lines since the design allowed for increase torque which resulted in a tighter seal. That Yang requires the Phillips screwdriver to open the back panel is therefore the opposite symbolism of Cheerios: it is the initiating symbol of his existence as a machine.
Russ Goodman
On the advice of his complicated neighbor, George, Jim first takes Yang to the Russ Goodman Tech Repair Shop in his attempts to get professional help for Yang’s breakdown. Russ turns out to be devoted xenophobic racist with a particularly robust prejudice against Asians. His name say it all, symbolically speaking: Russ is not a good man—especially in comparison to what we know of Yang—and he becomes a point of comparison on the issue of what, exactly, do we mean when we talk about “humanity.”
Yang’s Matchbox Display
Near the end of the story, just before the funeral is held for the burial of Yang’s body parts in the family’s yard, Jim is suddenly stopped by a sight he apparently has not noticed before: matchboxes stacked on a table with the matches themselves spread out like miniature logs. The purpose or intent of the display is not something that Jim can quite put a finger on: maybe it is abstract art or maybe it is supposed to be a log cabin or possibly even a tiny little city with the matches representing people. He contrasts the display with the calligraphy art that Yang produced because he was programmed with the ability. It stands out because it doesn’t seem to conform to any particular ability uploaded into Yang’s memory. It is something that exists simply because Yang wanted it to and thus it symbolizes the essence of that which distinguishes robots from human beings: the urge to do something for reasons unknown.
