ipl-logo

The Joy Luck Club Essay

996 Words4 Pages

Marriage is what we picture as a lovely thing in which a couple is usually bonded by love and mutual support, but in The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan marriage is deemed a problem and a difficulty to the couples. The Joy Luck Club, written by Amy Tan, is about four ladies that are together to play Mah Jong. The ladies tell each other stories about their lives and it shapes the life of the youngest lady, Jin-Mei Woo, who is there because her mother, who was in the club, passed away. Amy Tan develops the theme of marriage in The Joy Luck Club using flashbacks. Marriage in Chinese culture is based on traditions. A matchmaker is brought into the house to bond two toddlers for life. These two kids do not have a choice in whom they are able to marry. …show more content…

Ying Ying St. Clair had a hard marriage, and she had to have an abortion, because her husband divorced her. In “Waiting Between the Trees” Ying Ying talks about her miscarriage, and she says that she, “took this baby from my womb before it could be born. This was not a bad thing to do in China back then, to kill a baby before it was born. But even then, I thought it was bad, because my body flowed with terrible revenge as the juices of this man's firstborn son poured from me” (Tan 248). This is showing how she did not want to kill the baby, but because of divorce, she had to and it shaped her life and her aspect of love. Rose Hsu Jordan tried to avoid her divorce with Ted in order to kept her house. “Ted pulled out the divorce papers and stared at them. His x’s were still there, the blanks were still blank… And the answer, the one that was important above everything else, ran through my body and fell from my lips: ‘You can’t just pull me out of your life and throw me away” (Tan 196). Rose tried to talk to Ted, but she got into a divorce and it changed her view of herself. Divorce is is a big aspect in both marriage and the book, and it develops the plot by shaping the lives of the

Show More
Related

  • How Does Amy Tan Use Jewelry In The Joy Luck Club

    1408 Words  | 6 Pages

    The oldest piece of jewelry discovered dates back 150,000 years (ArtNet News), proving its undying influence on cultures throughout the world. Over time, jewelry has served various purposes, for instance, to signify status, to demonstrate religious devotion, as a demonstration of wealth, and most commonly: the enhancement of natural beauty. However, no matter the country or time period, jewelry holds a sort of significance for the owner, as seen through the history behind the piece. The Joy Luck Club, a novel written by Amy Tan, describes the generational struggle between Chinese-American immigrant parents and their daughters as they attempt to preserve their cultural identity in the face of adapting to American society. Tan uses jewelry in

    Read More

  • The Squid And The Whale Analysis

    1366 Words  | 6 Pages

    His wife, Joan meanwhile, discovers a literary talent of her own and has recently begun publishing her own work, which only increases the growing tension between them. It is interesting to note that the two of them are completely different from each other in terms of their personalities and it left me wondering what made them hold on for so long! There is evidence of fierce competition between the couple which is obvious from the

    Read More

  • The Themes Of C. S Lewis The Great Divorce

    1247 Words  | 5 Pages

    Armen Tatevossian Sesay English 8 5 April 2023 When a reader first reads The Great Divorce, written by C.S Lewis, the reader may notice it has many themes interpreted throughout the story. These many themes are what makes up the novel’s main topic and the way the reader interprets the story. The story mentions many religious ideas and fantasy-like topics which invoke the reader to dig deeper into the story and understand its many meanings. The themes of The Great Divorce, written by C.S Lewis, have ideas and theologies which coincide with the real world, the most notable themes of The Great Divorce consist of: Christianity, free will, fantasy.

    Read More

  • Why Is Divorce Important In The Great Gatsby

    963 Words  | 4 Pages

    Divorce in the 1920s was an uncommon occurrence and carried with it a heavy stigma. Since divorce was so uncommon, many spouses did not have a way out of their marriages, leading to impetuous decisions and often dire consequences. F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates the consequences of this social norm in the novel, The Great Gatsby, with the marriages of Tom and Daisy; and Myrtle and George. Fitzgerald uses Tom and Daisy’s marriage to depict how the stigma of divorce can lead to problems between spouses. One such problem that arises from this norm—people end up feeling jealous of others—leads to many arguments and disagreements.

    Read More

  • Story Of An Hour Marriage

    1037 Words  | 5 Pages

    The idea of marriage and what was considered an ideal union has drastically evolved. Marriage has only become an option in our civilization it’s no longer a social requirement, neither a priority for a female or male to get marry. In “The Yellow Wallpaper” Charlotte Perkins Gilman illustrates a controlling and dysfunctional relationship that also relates to “The Story of an Hour” where Kate Chopin also reveals a dysfunctional and unhappy marriage. When paired together, both pieces of writing portrait the other side of marriage where everything is not just a happy ending and it’s shown as incarceration and loss of freedom. Also, both writing take place in the nineteenth century, a time period when marriage was considered the right thing to do

    Read More

  • Their Eyes Were Watching God Literary Analysis

    956 Words  | 4 Pages

    Her purpose was to sensitize and show the audience the emotional effects of gender inequality. Love, society, freedom, dreams, goals, compassion, gender, and marriage are the main themes in the novel. All these together form the story of an innocent and dreamer woman named Janie Crawford that tries to find love in her three marriages. Throughout the novel, she creates meaning to the dependence of marriage to gender roles, and emphasizes how this can shape relationships in a social way. Therefore, women and men play a role that affects positively and negatively marriages in order to represent a particular social group.

    Read More

  • Forgiveness In Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club

    1026 Words  | 5 Pages

    Rose had felt lost, no one wanted to help her, and her life was falling apart. After her mother calls her, Lena thinks that her mother wants to save the marriage, but she was surprised when she said “I am not telling you to save your marriage [...] I only say you should speak up” (Tan 193). Finally liberated, Rose decides to skip her appointment with her psychiatrist and divorce Ted right there.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Infidelity In The Great Gatsby

    631 Words  | 3 Pages

    The parties of the main marriages were not happy with who they married, and this would often lead to becoming unfaithful in the dissatisfied marriage. Near the beginning of the novel, the reader is introduced to one of the most important couples in the story; Tom and Daisy. And, right from the start, the reader is

    Read More

  • The Joy Luck Club American Dream Analysis

    1034 Words  | 5 Pages

    Bi, Zijian Thu. 3/5/2015 English 2B Ms. Freeland 2° WHEN THE DREAM COMES TRUE What is your American Dream? “The Joy Luck Club”, a novel by Amy Tan, talks about how four mother-daughter pairs have fulfilled their American Dreams. Suyuan and Jing-mei was one of the mother-daughter pair who wants to fulfill their dreams in America.

    Read More

  • Suyuan Woo Relationship

    645 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club, mother and daughter relationships are put to the test. Four women meet to play a game of Chinese mahjong, keeping a tradition alive. Suyuan Woo, founder of the club, had a daughter named Jing Mei June Woo. Suyuan had two daughters which she expected both to succeed to her standards.

    Read More

  • Joy Luck Club Thesis

    207 Words  | 1 Pages

    Her intentions are not meant for heartbreaks, but for the well-being of her babies. Support Point # 2- Suyuan’s top priority is to educate Jing-mei as ideal daughter; however, high expectations are difficult to achieve causing problems and leading bitterness into the relationship. Support Point

    Read More

  • Essay On Moral Luck

    665 Words  | 3 Pages

    Actions delivers consequences Luck is a phenomenon present in our lives in very different ways, so much so that it is not easy to imagine a world without it. But, even so, it seems that when it comes to making moral judgments about the actions or beliefs of other people we want to find ways to neutralize it. Our main guide is the purpose of being fair to those we judge and, therefore, we want to set aside what does not strictly depend on them, aspiring to eliminate any possible distortion of this goal. However, the nature of luck is such that it makes it difficult to neutralize it in any sphere of human life.

    Read More

  • Water For Elephants Theme Analysis

    1001 Words  | 5 Pages

    Because they are married, conflict arises, adding to the plot of the novel as well as the underlying

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Communication In The Joy Luck Club

    1225 Words  | 5 Pages

    “Communication is the key to a successful relationship, attentiveness, and consistency. Without it, there is no relationship,” (Bleau). The Joy Luck Club is a novel written by Amy Tan. Set in the twentieth century, this novel depicts the life of four Chinese immigrant women escaping their past and their American-grown daughters. The novel reveals the mothers’ hardship-filled past and motivations alongside with the daughters’ inner conflicts and struggles.

    Read More

  • Interracial Relationships In Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club

    720 Words  | 3 Pages

    Incompatible Interracial relationships are difficult to maintain in the United States because of differences in cultural upbringing as well as racism and xenophobia. The book The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan focuses on four Chinese mothers who describe their past hardships and adjustment to the United States as well as their relationships with their American born daughters. The mothers try to save their children from experiencing the same things that they have been through. In the book, there are a few interracial couples such as Rose Hsu and Ted, Waverly Jong and Rich, and Ying Ying St.Clair and her husband Clifford. They all have trouble loving and understanding each other.

    Read More

More about The Joy Luck Club Essay

Open Document