Examples Of Greed In The Bonesetter's Daughter

CHAPTER THREE THE MOTHER-DAUGHTER RELATIONSHIP

Every Chinese American family has a tradition that children are required to learn Chinese and Chinese culture no matter how long they have lived in the United States. Chinese parents hope that Chinese culture can be developed. On the contrary, children born in the United States contact American culture in society, so they prefer to accept American culture in mind. Different cultures that they learn in family and society cause conflicts. Therefore, the contradiction between two generations is unavoidable. The ultimate source of contradictions is differences of traditional culture values between China and America, which reflects in the contradictions between LuLing and Ruth in The Bonesetter’s Daughter.

LuLing demands that Ruth learns Chinese characters which she tells her life philosophy with. LuLing said to Ruth, “Each character is a thought, a feeling, meanings, history, all mixed into one” (Tan 59). The intention of LuLing teaching Ruth Chinese character is significant. Actually, it is cultural heritage. LuLing hopes that Ruth passes on Chinese culture from generation to generation. But Ruth feels that her mother force her to learn Chinese culture so that she is resistant to learn Chinese, which makes her poor Chinese. Ruth knows several simple Chinese characters only but can not understand the manuscript of her mother written in Chinese. Ruth is brainwashed with Chinese culture rather than accept it actively.

Secondly, differences in cultural background and values increase conflicts between mother and daughter. Patriarchy and hierarchy of Confucian ethics are stamped on LuLing’s mind. LuLing hopes that Ruth grows up as LuLing’s request instead of Ruth’s. Filial piety is included in Chinese traditional ethics and morality which convey that children should be obedient at the very

Her roommate said, “she (Ruth) was crazy to let her mother push her around as if she were still six years old” (Tan 53). Her roommate asks Ruth, “Is she paying you to be a punching bag? ” (Tan 53) Ruth’s roommate shows such a typical American attitude: a child is an independent individual who has his own rights; parents can not take their children as slaves, on the contrary, they should give their children respect as much as possible. Ruth who was born in the United States learns from the education and friends that how important her own right is. Therefore, the education ethics of LuLing is not useful to Ruth and lead problems between