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Fred Wah's Relationship With His Father

1336 Words6 Pages

The relationship between Fred Wah Jr. and his father Fred Wah Sr. is a complex and fascinating family dynamic. In the novel Diamond Grill , Fred Wah reflects on his past experiences and relationships. Fred's father grew up in China and did not know much english when he came back to Canada. Fred both reflects and rejects his fathers ways of life, however, his view of his father shifts from the different times of his life. As Fred tells the story of his life as a Chinese- Canadian his father shows him how to survive in the predominantly white world they live in. Fred finds him self trying to fit in by playing off his Asian heritage and settling into the white role, however, the food part of his life shows the culture his father raised him in …show more content…

and Fred Sr. share, which develops the connection they each have to their Chinese heritage. Both Fred Jr and Fred Sr share a passion for the food of their Asian culture and this brings out who they really are and not who they present to the world. Fred Jr tried to act as a white Canadian around his friends and at school however, “for years after leaving home [he] had a craving for some Chinese food taste that [he hadn't] been able to pin down. An absence that[gnawed] at sensation and memory. An undefined taste, not in the mouth but some blind alley of the mind”(67). Fred Jr knows that what ever he does to fit in as a Canadian, the culture his father raised him to love will always be a part of who he is. Fred Sr. taught him that “a Chinaman can always find his way around the country by knocking on the kitchen doors of Chinese restaurants”(17). The kitchen was a place where the culture all returns and Chinese-Canadians are free to have whatever social identity they choose. They get to feel comfortable in their background, and food draws Fred and his father towards their heritage. The restaurant is something they both have in common and is a place that Fred Jr was raised, which is why he will always have a piece of his father in the back of his mind. The food is a part of the Wah’s family culture that not only keeps them connected to their roots, but more importantly, to one

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