Whereas Frank was deeply pained by the suffering endured by China in the war, James says that he has always tried to avoid romanticism and sentimentality in looking at China, and thus developed a kind of detachment: "I studied Chinese language, culture, history, and literature, but I remained wary of them at the same time.
他說，對於中國的事物，他都極力避免浪漫主義與感情用事。法蘭克對二次大戰時中國所受的欺凌，悲痛莫名，李潔明則養成某種程度置身事外的能耐，他「不想跟任何人、事牽扯太多，以至像法蘭克一樣為它所毀」。