Critical Personal Analysis of “Fifth Chinese Daughter” As I began to read “Fifth Chinese Daughter” by Jade Snow Wong, I quickly developed a special appreciation for Jade Snow’s relationship with her father because although there are differences, it mirrors the relationship I have with my own. In fact, there were many gifts Mr. Wong gave Jade Snow that were nearly identical to some my father has given me. Mr. Wong may have his faults, but his sweet and silent acts of love allows me to see past them. Thus, I have chosen to analyze my response to Jade Snow’s relationship with her father. Growing up, I did receive corporal punishment, however, I can honestly say this method of punishment never resulted in injury, came from rage, or made me question …show more content…
Wong’s method of punishing his children disappoints me, I appreciate his soft side. Having been blessed with an amazing family and exposed to very few other father-daughter relationships, my view of how such a relationship “should be” is based off what I know and have experienced. Although I am fully aware others will have different experiences and opinions, I have grown up seeing my father as the foundation of our family. So, while my father is careful not to abuse his power and will happily leave decisions for my mother to make, there is still no question as to who has the final say. Growing up, my father and I rarely had long or deep conversations together. In fact, a quick hug or “I love you” was typically furthest either of us would go in communicating our feelings for each other. Nevertheless, I never doubted his love for me. I have come to recognize the gifts my father offers as his primary expression of love rather than the words he speaks. While I noticed and appreciated many of Mr. Wong’s silent acts of kindness, there were two that spoke to me the most. The first was the gift of Jade Snow’s desk (Wong 69), while the second was the handshake he offered her when she won the absenteeism contest (Wong 195). With the belief that the father is the head of the household and the fact my own father rarely voices his love or approval, I found myself quickly relating to Jade Snow. For example, when I came across the line “to help her in her studies, Daddy brought Jade Snow her own desk” (Wong 69), I instantly thought of my father. In my eyes, giving gifts made of wood is exactly the type of thing a father would do. This belief likely comes from that fact that my father is a carpenter, and over the years I have received numerous gifts made of wood from him. While I know Jade Snow’s story does not tell us Mr. Wong made the desk, I felt an instant connection to her as I recalled the little wooden table and chairs my own father had given me when I was
Character development is the most crucial element of a story, as it urges the reader to analyse the motives or the emotions that character may convey, therefore making the story immensely impactful. Wayson Choy effortlessly and deftly develops the character of Sek-Lung in his renowned short story, “The Jade Peony.” Sek-Lung, who is also the narrator in this story, is six years old and he’s struggling dreadfully to cope with his grandma’s upcoming death. The protagonist’s affectionate yet sorrowful feelings during this emotional crisis are clearly delivered, “Her palm felt plush and warm...
"The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet" by Jamie Ford is a captivating coming-of-age story that follows the life of Henry Lee, a Chinese-American boy growing up in Seattle during World War II. Throughout the novel, Henry experiences profound personal growth and self-discovery as he navigates the complexities of racial tensions, family expectations, and first love. This essay will explore how four quotes from the book exemplify the transformative journey of Henry's coming of age. Paragraph 1: In the early stages of the novel, a young Henry grapples with his dual identity as an American-born Chinese.
Kieu Tran’s offensive diction conveys the destruction American culture wreaks on Vietnamese culture through phrases such as “so-called freedom in the Western culture” and “[m]oreover, by law, parents cannot strike or hit them.” Throughout her entire essay, Tran arrogantly asserts that American culture is bad and Vietnamese culture is good. She starts by explaining that Americans have a misunderstanding of the term “child abuse” and that this term doesn’t even exist in Asian cultures. When Asians come to America, specifically Vietnamese, they are harassed by social workers and the government because they physically discipline their children. While in Vietnam, physical punishment is the standard way of disciplining children, in America, such
The relationship between a parent and child is incredibly important and can have a significant impact on a child’s overall development. It is often the most influential and important relationship a child will have in their lifetime, as the bond between a parent and child can shape the child’s world. In Chang-Rae Lee’s novel A Gesture Life, conflicts can damage this vital parent-child bond and have a detrimental effect on the child’s overall well-being and sense of identity.
Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother Critique Amy Chua, a professor at Yale Law School, has created an article called Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother that intensively describes differences in the usage of parenting methods in Chinese and Westerners culture. The author has personally raised her children in a highly strict manner so her children succeed in life and academics. Chua often refers to the term “Chinese mother” that describes her parenting style apart from Western parents. The main purpose of this article is to show the two parenting techniques and how they affect the child 's success.
“Her actions remind me that, even under unbearable circumstances, one can still believe in justice,” in David Henry Hwang’s foreword, in Ji-Li Jiang’s memoir Red Scarf Girl, commemorated even during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution anyone can overcome adversity (9). Ji-Li Jiang was a young teenager at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, and living through a very political time in China’s history made Ji-Li into the person she is today. Ji-Li’s intelligence, her choices, and family devotion made her into the headstrong and successful person she is today. Even when Ji-li thought she was unintelligent, others saw she was wise. There were many moments when Ji-Li was reminded she was very smart.
The analysis of the young girl in “Lost Sister” is no doubt an effort to link Cathy Song’s two worlds together. Cathy Song wanted acceptance of her culture, using it as a release and that freedom is within. Song described life for young girls in China as restricted, disciplined and structured. Jade is the name that Song throughout the poem. It is a known fact that the Chinese culture values jade stone more than gold.
I couldn 't agree with you more, that one of the fundamental tenets of Real Corporal Punishment, is the lad 's respect for the hard man laying it on, as well as the hard man 's respect for the lad taking it and the desire to do him the most good. This means that the lad should always fear his punishment and that the hard man should never flinch from laying it on properly, so that the lad really benefits from his punishment. While the lad 's punishments will, of necessity, really hurt, in essence he is being guided by the hard man laying them on, who in the long run will make a real, hard man out of the lad. Having watched the video of my December Thrashing with a Cane several times, I am pleased to say that I can see signs of a real
There is no denying that the film, Aftershock, directed by Feng Xiaogang is the most bankable domestic blockbusters in mainland China and wins the box office of more than six hundred million in 2010 (Coonan, 2010). It reproduces the grave earthquake took place in Tangshan, Hebei Province on July 28, 1976. Such a 7.8 magnitude earthquake turned Tangshan into ruins in only twenty-three seconds and caused 250 thousands death. The successful release of the film has caused the high attention and intense discussion among the community until nowadays. As an excellent work of contemporary Chinese realism film, it moves audiences through its setting, expression, characters and also the touching plot.
“That’s my girl! Dad said with a hug, then barked orders at us all to speed things up” (17). They show their kids what they believe to be a good life, and they don’t let their children think anything negative about it because that if their
It came to dominate my understanding of the discussion on the social and historical scene and to restrict my ability to participate in that discussion.(444) If we go back and use the reference again of the electronic tool we can see the struggle of being at home and communicating with her family and having an influence of capitalistic viewpoints and living the life of a capitalist, then immediately having to communicate in a different language at school and being surrounded by socialistic views and living the life of a socialist. Her thoughts were constantly flip-flopping and this became very frustrating for her. If we bring all these struggles into one main purpose, Min-Zhan Lu’s mother falls into silence two months before her death and Min-Zhan Lu attempts to “fill up that silence with words that I have since come to by reflecting on my earlier experience as a student in China.(437) The struggles that she faced growing up in China as a student and her past experiences have really helped her overcome life obstacles and develop her as a better reader and writer.
Many people face some kind of adversity in their lives, but only few are recognized to the same extent as Adeline’s experiences in the autobiography ‘Chinese Cinderella’, written by Ms. Adeline Yen Mah. ‘Chinese Cinderella’ suggests that mental strength is what is needed to overcome all forms of adversity in life. This essay will discuss the ways in which that Adeline uses intellectual power to overcome the difficulties in her life, the outcomes she achieved and the messages she portrays. The ways that Adeline uses mental strength to overcome adversity occurs through many different events in her childhood.
Children rely on their parents to give them a strong and safe place to grow into the people that they are meant to be. Throughout the memoir you can see all of the sacrifices Loung’s father made for the sake of his family and the love Loung had for him. This begs the question how did Loung’s relationship with her
(pg. 85) The goal of many people around the world, especially parents, is to live a life where their children or loved ones don’t have to suffer. Others set goals for themselves to achieve in the future, like having their dream job. Becoming content with your life is a hard thing to attain, and you can see through Wang Lung’s story how easy it is to lose. Challenges will always be
Throughout the film, there are umpteen numbers of scenes one can be put faced to the blatant sexual objectification of not some, but all female characters in the film. The very first glimpse of such objectification can be seen through the character of Xiao Mei. Although not a main and significant character in the film, Xiao Mei was one of the younger masseuses working in Lin Dong’s parlour. She too, like Pingguo and her husband, had come to Beijing from a small village town with the hopes and dreams of living a better life. Being a young girl, she too knew that she was only as valuable as far as her beauty would go and as sexually available she was.