1. The Joy Luck Club involved multiple Chinese daughters and mothers facing obstacles such as conflict between each other and the American world they live in. It mainly focuses on Jing-mei trying to find her long-lost sisters, born from a different father and left in China. The story is told in a unique way, with the four mothers first telling their stories, talking about their lives and relationships with their daughters. It then transitions to the daughters and their points of view, their lives and their relationships with their mothers.
2. I think ethnic and cultural differences and similarities are the main themes of this story. The mothers did not grow up in America, and still have much stronger ties to their homeland in China. They do try be involved with American culture, they do learn English, but their ties aren't as strong as their daughters. The daughters are much more confused as to who they are. They are Chinese, but at the same time American, and it kind of creates an identity crisis. In the Joy Luck Club, both mothers and daughters feel safe, and feel connected to each other.
3. The tone throughout the book varies quite a book. At times there is a happy, remembering type of tone. But at other times, the tone can be sorrowful and thoughtful. Examples:
“It was only later that I discovered there was a serious flaw with the American version. There were too many choices, so it was easy to get confused and pick the wrong thing.”
“I raced down the street, dashing between people, not looking back as my mother screamed shrilly ‘Meimei! Meimei!’ I fled down an alley, past dark, curtained shops and merchants washing grime off their windows.
“My breath came out like angry smoke. It was cold…The alley was quiet and I could see the yellow lights shining from our flat like two tiger’s eyes in the night.”
4. Symbols: The coy fish the mother loved, and the goldfish that the daughter loved
Simile:"...she backed out of the room, stunned, as if she were blowing away like a small brown leaf, thin, brittle, lifeless."
Metaphor:"I see it right away: the marble end table collapsed on top of its spindly black legs... 'Fallen down,' she says simply...'It doesn't matter,' I say and I started to pick up the broken glass shards. 'I knew it would happen.' 'Then why don't stop it?' asks my mother. And it's such a simple question."
\ Allusion: Mention of the Ed Sullivan Show
Rhetorical Questions:"I wanted my children to have the best combination: American circumstances and Chinese character. How could I know these things do not mix?"
Foreshadowing:"'What use for?'" asks my mother, jiggling the table with her hand. 'you put something else on top, everything fall down. Chunwang chihan."
Parable: The parable of the Queen Mother of the Western Skies
1. Indirect Characterization - Since the story is told through the views of the mothers and daughters, everything they say can be used as an indirect characterization of themselves.
Direct Characterization - the author uses the elements to describe the daughters. An-mei and her daughter Rose were compared to "wood", as they bend easily to other's opinions.
2. The author's syntax and tone changes with each character she focuses on. The mothers speak English in a broken manner, while the girls are more instructed on the English language.
3. Jing-mei is dynamic and round. Throughout the story, she grows from a person who clashed with her mother, a static, flat character, and comes to understand her after her passing.
4. I think I came away knowing people. These women have had to face many obstacles that seem familiar to what Mexican Americans can sometimes go through. It's easy to relate to these women, Chinese or not.
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